PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Kids reduce stress in goat herds

2013-09-10
(Press-News.org) Dairy goats are usually separated from their mothers a few days to weeks after birth and reintroduced into the herd months later – on most farms either in the last months of first pregnancy or shortly after parturition/kidding. The practice is supposed to ensure stable milk production in the herd but it clearly causes stress to the goats. Problems arise because goat herds have a strictly hierarchical social structure and changes in herd composition may lead to serious rivalries and increased aggressive behaviour. Farmers are on the lookout for ways to keep the stress to their animals as low as possible – not only for the sake of the animals but also because stress often results in lower levels of milk production.

Lactating mothers are less stressed

Susanne Waiblinger from the Vetmeduni Vienna's Institute of Animal Husbandry and Animal Welfare has investigated the social behaviour and levels of stress hormones in 32 young goats following their introduction into a new herd. Half of the animals were introduced during the so-called "dry phase" when all the goats in the herd as well as young goats are pregnant and not giving milk. The other half was introduced shortly after parturition/kidding during the lactating period when mothers were nursing their kids. Waiblinger found that newly introduced goats experienced markedly less social stress in flocks with lactating mothers and goat kids. In "dry" herds, the goats were frequently confronted with aggressive social behaviour. The difference may have a simple physiological explanation. As Waiblinger explains, "We think the oxytocin system is activated in the presence of kids. Oxytocin is released during childbirth, sucking and other positive tactile contact in mammals and acts not only as a bonding hormone but also calming, pro-social and stress-reducing. Thus, it is less likely that there will be aggression between the goats."

Young goats prefer to stay close to their mates

Once the young goats have been introduced into the new herd, they appear to prefer staying close to other goats of the same age rather than to adult and unknown members of the herd. Waiblinger rationalizes this by noting that "The social and exploratory behaviour in a herd is a reliable indicator of the stress experienced by the animals. When less stressed, goats are more likely to try to become acquainted with unfamiliar adults. Stressed goats prefer to surround themselves with well known peers." Waiblinger suggests: "It will be interesting to see whether it is the presence of kids or the mother lactating, that plays the crucial role in stress reduction."

In her scientific work Susanne Waiblinger focusses on the husbandry of small ruminants and cattle and the relationship between animals and humans. She explores how different management practices affect stress and well-being of the farm animals.



INFORMATION:



The article "Introducing young dairy goats into the adult herd after parturition reduces social stress" by S. Szabò, K. Barth, C. Graml, A. Futschik, R. Palme and S. Waiblinger was published this month in the Journal of Dairy Science.

About the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna

The University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna is the only academic and research institution in Austria that focuses on the veterinary sciences. About 1200 employees and 2300 students work on the campus in the north of Vienna, which also houses the animal hospital and various spin-off-companies. http://www.vetmeduni.ac.at

Scientific Contact

Prof. Susanne Waiblinger
Institute of Animal Husbandry and Animal Welfare
University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
T +43 1 25077-4905
M +43 664 60257-6966
susanne.waiblinger@vetmeduni.ac.at

Released by

Susanna Kautschitsch
Science Communication/ Public Relations
University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
T +43 1 25077-1153
M +43 664 60257-6587
susanna.kautschitsch@vetmeduni.ac.at



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Life found in the sediments of an Antarctic subglacial lake for the first time

2013-09-10
Evidence of diverse life forms dating back nearly a hundred thousand years has been found in subglacial lake sediments by a group of British scientists. The possibility that extreme life forms might exist in the cold and dark lakes hidden kilometres beneath the Antarctic ice sheet has fascinated scientists for decades. However, direct sampling of these lakes in the interior of Antarctica continues to present major technological challenges. Recognising this, scientists from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), and the Universities of Northumbria and Edinburgh have been ...

Motorized microscopic matchsticks move in water with sense of direction

2013-09-10
Chemists, physicists and computer scientists at the University of Warwick have come together to devise a new powerful and very versatile way of controlling the speed and direction of motion of microscopic structures in water using what they have dubbed chemically 'motorised microscopic matchsticks'. Before now most research seeking to influence the direction of motion of microscopic components have had to use outside influences such as a magnetic field or the application of light. The University of Warwick team have now found a way to do it by simply adding a chemical ...

Study reveals benefits of wishes on seriously ill children and their parents

2013-09-10
New research has shown that schemes that grant children with a life threatening illness a special wish have a positive impact on their and their family's wellbeing. The research also demonstrates that seeing the child experience their wish was positive for the parents, while often it provoked bittersweet feelings. The study, published in Acta Paediatrica and led by Dr Anne-Sophie Darlington, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Southampton, Professor Passchier and Dr Heule at the Erasmus Medical Centre in the Netherlands, interviewed and surveyed 235 parents ...

New magnetic semiconductor material holds promise for 'spintronics'

2013-09-10
Researchers at North Carolina State University have created a new compound that can be integrated into silicon chips and is a dilute magnetic semiconductor – meaning that it could be used to make "spintronic" devices, which rely on magnetic force to operate, rather than electrical currents. The researchers synthesized the new compound, strontium tin oxide (Sr3SnO), as an epitaxial thin film on a silicon chip. Epitaxial means the material is a single crystal. Because Sr3SnO is a dilute magnetic semiconductor, it could be used to create transistors that operate at room ...

Maya dismembered their enemies

2013-09-10
Researchers of the Department of Anthropology of the Americas at the University of Bonn have discovered a mass grave in an artificial cave in the historical Maya city of Uxul (Mexico). Marks on the bones indicate that the individuals buried in the cave were decapitated and dismembered around 1,400 years ago. The scientists assume that the victims were either prisoners of war or nobles from Uxul itself. For the last five years, archaeologists of the department of Anthropology of the Americas of the University of Bonn have been excavating in the historical Maya city of ...

Novel mechanism discovered in first line of immune defense

2013-09-10
1. Scientists from A*STAR's Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) have discovered a new defense mechanism that the immune system utilises to combat infections. The team's discovery of how a novel protein unexpectedly activates an immune response shows how this mechanism can also be used to get rid of tumour cells. This research was done in collaboration with University Hospital Basel, Switzerland, published in July 2013 in Nature Immunology. 2. The immune system combats microbes using several strategies, of which early activation of defence is one of the most important. ...

Life deep down: A new beautiful translucent snail from the deepest cave in Croatia

2013-09-10
Scientists discovered a new species of a peculiar cave-dwelling snail in one of the 20 deepest cave systems in the world, Lukina Jama–Trojama in Croatia. The newly discovered species belongs to a genus of minute air-breathing land snails that have lost visual orientation and are considered to be true eutroglobionts, or exclusive cave-dwellers. The study describing the new species was published in the open access journal Subterranean Biology. The new species Zospeum tholussum is a miniature and fragile snail, with a beautifully shaped dome-like translucent shell. Only one ...

Micro-gels from tiny ice algae play an important role in polar ocean carbon budgets

2013-09-10
A community of microscopic algae and bacteria thrives within the Arctic and Antarctic pack ice. These ice-organisms are adapted to growing on the ice crystal surfaces and within a labyrinth of channels and pores that permeate the ice floes. It is a hostile place to grow with temperatures often at -10°C to -20°C, low light and within six or seven times more salty brines in the ice channels compared to the underlying seawater from where these organisms originate. Many marine organisms secrete gel-like substances in response to environmental stress, and these ice-dwellers ...

Bilingual education has spillover effect

2013-09-10
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Bilingual education programs have a substantial spillover effect on the students they're not designed for, according to a groundbreaking study co-authored by a Michigan State University scholar. Texas elementary students who speak English as their home language and were enrolled in schools with bilingual education programs performed much better on state math and reading tests than native English-speaking students at schools without bilingual education programs. The study did not explore the reasons why, but it could be because the English-speaking ...

Why does a fancy purse say 'stay away from my man'?

2013-09-10
Women are unconsciously deterring romantic rivals by buying certain luxury items, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "Spending on luxury goods in the US amounts to as much as $525 billion per year, with women's products accounting for over half of this consumption. Why do women desire luxury goods?" write authors Yajin Wang and Vladas Griskevicius (both University of Minnesota). Sometimes it's because they want other women to know their mates are spoken for. "Women at different ages and relationship status inferred that a woman with designer ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Drones reveal extreme coral mortality after bleaching

New genetic finding uncovers hidden cause of arsenic resistance in acute promyelocytic leukemia

Native habitats hold the key to the much-loved smashed avocado’s future

Using lightning to make ammonia out of thin air

Machine learning potential-driven insights into pH-dependent CO₂ reduction

Physician associates provide safe care for diagnosed patients when directly supervised by a doctor

How game-play with robots can bring out their human side

Asthma: patient expectations influence the course of the disease

UNM physician tests drug that causes nerve tissue to emit light, enabling faster, safer surgery

New study identifies EMP1 as a key driver of pancreatic cancer progression and poor prognosis

XPR1 identified as a key regulator of ovarian cancer growth through autophagy and immune evasion

Flexible, eco-friendly electronic plastic for wearable tech, sensors

Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?

Stuckeman professor’s new book explores ‘socially sustainable’ architecture

Synthetic DNA nanoparticles for gene therapy

New model to find treatments for an aggressive blood cancer

Special issue of Journal of Intensive Medicine analyzes non-invasive respiratory support

T cells take aim at Chikungunya virus

Gantangqing site in southwest China yields 300,000-year-old wooden tools

Forests can’t keep up: Adaptation will lag behind climate change

Sturgeon reintroduction initiative yields promising first-year survival rate

Study: Babies’ poor vision may help organize visual brain pathways

Research reveals Arctic region was permafrost-free when global temperatures were 4.5˚ C higher than today

Novel insights into chromophobe renal cell carcinoma biology and potential therapeutic strategies

A breakthrough in motor safety: AI-powered warning system enhances capability to uncover hidden winding faults

Research teases apart competing transcription organization models

Connect or reject: Extensive rewiring builds binocular vision in the brain

Benefits and risks: informal use of antibiotics to prevent sexually transmitted infections on the rise in key populations in the Netherlands

New molecular tool sheds light on how cancer cells repair telomeres

First large-scale stem cell bank enables worldwide studies on genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease

[Press-News.org] Kids reduce stress in goat herds