Effects of Winter Housing, Exercise, and Dietary Treatments on the Behaviour and Welfare of Red Deer (Cervus Elaphus) Hinds
| Autor: | J C Pollard, R P Littlejohn |
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| Rok vydání: | 1998 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | Animal Welfare. 7:45-56 |
| ISSN: | 2054-1538 0962-7286 |
| DOI: | 10.1017/s096272860002025x |
| Popis: | To assess the welfare of red deer (Cervus elaphus) confined at pasture or in indoor housing over winter, behaviour, productivity, skin damage and adrenal response to ACTH challenge were measured in six groups of eight weaner hinds over 91 days from June to September 1990 in Otago, New Zealand. The hinds were confined either indoors (I), indoors with daily exercise (IE), or outdoors (O); (n - 2 groups to each treatment). All groups were fed concentrate ad libitum plus 100g lucerne head−1 day−1.Indoor confinement was associated with a greater incidence of nosing/chewing other hinds, aggression, chewing of the enclosure, and closer distances between individuals, compared with outdoor confinement (P < 0.05). Ad libitum provision of hay over a 2-week period reduced the incidence of chewing of indoor enclosures (P P P P P P P < 0.001). A negative relationship was found between pre-challenge levels of plasma Cortisol and the number of aggressive interactions received (P < 0.05). Pre-challenge Cortisol was greater for IE than I (P < 0.05), and the increase in Cortisol post-challenge was greater for outdoor groups than indoor groups (P |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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