Some sensory determinants of home orientation in kittens

Tools for Managing Feline Problem Behaviors: Pheromone therapy

PRACTICAL RELEVANCE

Cats are one of the most common companion animals in the world. However, relatively little scientific research has been conducted on cat behavior. With problem behaviors a leading reason for relinquishment of cats to shelters, or abandonment outdoors, solutions to address feline behavioral problems can have important welfare benefits. Because naturally occurring pheromones produce measurable species-specific responses in cats, the use of synthetic pheromone products consisting of the same compounds may activate a specific behavioral response in the receiving individual, allowing humans to better communicate with cats and manage feline problem behavior.

AIMS

In this article the scientific background for naturally occurring feline pheromones and semiochemicals and their impact on cat behavior is reviewed. This is used as a foundation to explore the three feline synthetic pheromones currently available and the empirical evidence that exists for their effectiveness. From this information, several recommendations for veterinarians and behavior professionals on the application of feline pheromone therapy in the home and veterinary clinic setting are presented.

EVIDENCE BASE

The efficacy of synthetic pheromones as a tool for the management of problem behaviors is a relatively new area of research and only fairly recently has the need to implement more rigorous research methodology been recognized.

Mother-offspring recognition in the domestic cat: Kittens recognize their own mother's call

Acoustic communication can play an important part in mother-young recognition in many mammals. This, however, has still only been investigated in a small range mainly of herd- or colony-living species. Here we report on the behavioral response of kittens of the domestic cat, a typically solitary carnivore, to playbacks of "greeting chirps" and "meows" from their own versus alien mothers. We found significantly stronger responses to the chirps from kittens' own mother than to her meows or to the chirps or meows of alien mothers. Acoustic analysis revealed greater variation between vocalizations from different mothers than for vocalizations from the same mother. We conclude that chirps emitted by mother cats at the nest represent a specific form of vocal communication with their young, and that kittens learn and respond positively to these and distinguish them from chirps of other mothers and from other cat vocalizations while still in the nest. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 58: 568-577, 2016.

Features of the establishment of the spontaneous activity of neurons of the trigeminal sensory nuclei of viable sections of the rat brainstem in postnatal ontogenesis

An attempt was made to characterize the features of the development of the neurons of the sensory trigeminal nuclei, a basic structure of the sensory support of alimentary behavior, in the late stages of postnatal ontogenesis. A technique involving viable sections of the brainstem of infant rats at the ages of two, four, and eight weeks was utilized. An increase with age in the number of neurons possessing spontaneous activity (44% at two weeks; 69% at eight weeks), an increase in the frequency of discharges, the appearance by the fourth week of a population of cells with high-frequency spontaneous activity, and an increase in the number of such neurons by the eighth week. Three types of background-active neurons were distinguished: episodic, continuous, and group; and the dynamics of the change in the ratios of these types with age was demonstrated. Significant changes with age were not found in resting potentials, although a tendency to its increase takes place between the second and eighth weeks of postnatal development.

The development of exploration and spontaneous alternation in hooded rat pups: effects of unusually early eyelid opening

Changes in exploratory activity and spontaneous alternation were examined across postnatal Days 8-31 in Lister hooded rat pups whose eyelids were surgically opened at 6-8 postnatal days. Compared with controls, whose eyes open naturally at 14-16 days, the treated animals showed accelerated behavioral development. Open-field activity increased more rapidly in the week following surgery, but only when all pups in the litter had their eyelids opened, and not when only half of the litter was treated. Rearing on the hind paws emerged earlier in treated animals, but grooming was unaffected. Pups having unilateral early eyelid opening made pivotal circling movements contraversive to the opened eye in an open-field arena in the early neonatal period. When tested in a T-maze, treated pups showed earlier spontaneous alternation than controls. Possible physiological systems underlying such changes are discussed. Our results show that unusually early visual stimulation has behavioral consequences, producing a brief speeding of some attentional and investigatory behaviors, though such changes may also depend upon environmental factors.