The general study includes the following sections: 1) determination of the animal's habitus; 2) examination of mucous membranes; 3) examination of the skin, coat and subcutaneous tissue; 4) research lymph nodes; 5) temperature measurement.
Determining the habitus of an animal
Inspection is the main research method here. It is especially important when examining entire herds, brooding horses, evaluating animals, mass examination at exhibitions, etc. Under these conditions, on the basis of a cursory examination, an idea is created about general condition animals - their fatness, maintenance, feeding, it is sometimes possible to identify patients and those suspected of a disease - groups to be rejected are compiled, selection is made according to one or another indicator, etc. An experienced doctor with good practical training performs such tasks so successfully that further research often makes only minor adjustments, emphasizing and shading the features of each case.
Some details of the changes detected by inspection have to be established with the help of palpation, which, in a general study, finds a greater use. To determine body temperature, thermometry is used, which, instead of subjective sensations of examination and palpation, already delivers accurate data.
Regarding the significance of the general examination in diagnostic terms, it should be noted that in some fairly common diseases clinical picture filled with symptoms from this side, and the diagnosis is thus based on the findings of the examination. These include: tetanus, rabies, morbus maculosus, bovine puerperal paresis, and acetonemia. In the vast majority of cases, however, a general examination gives only individual signs, perhaps important ones, especially in assessing the state of the animal, such as an increase in temperature, the appearance of edema, but nevertheless completely insufficient for determining the nature of the disease. It can be hoped that further work on the patient and a special study will help to establish the picture of the disease so accurately that the goal of the study - making a diagnosis - will be achieved. Finally, there are cases when a study conducted with all punctuality does not notice any changes at all. Not infrequently, in such circumstances, even a special study gives only extremely vague signals, regarding which it is impossible even to say where, from which organ they come. This is the position in which the doctor finds himself in case of chronic diseases. various bodies animals, with chronic virulent infections, etc. Careful observation of the patient, repeated examinations of him, and, finally, the use of certain methods from a number of specific ones in such cases are often of great service, leading to the right way, delivering just the information that was missing in the process of making a diagnosis.
Definition of a gabit. si animal starts general study. Under the habitus understand the state of the patient at the time of research on physique, nutritional status, body position in space, temperament and constitution.
In creating the first impression of the patient and his condition, the habitus in general is of great importance, providing the kind of information that is important in any disease in general. In some cases, these data are guideline.
Rice. 1. Cretinism in a dog (according to Stang). Rice. 2. Rickets in a calf.
Body type determined by inspection according to the degree of development (mass) of the skeleton and muscular skeleton, and only in exceptionally rare cases, for example, when determining the details of the physique, the therapist has to resort to the help of measuring instruments.
Depending on the mass of bones and muscle tissue, they say either good or thin physique. A good physique gives the impression of strength and strength. A good physique is characterized by strong legs with wide joints and massive, voluminous muscles; rib cage wide and deep, the ribs are steep, wide, with large intercostal spaces; the back is short; a closed and short loin turns into a massive and wide croup; the head is large, sometimes heavy, with a fleshy, heavy and short neck. With a good physique, you can count on good development lungs and heart, for sufficient intestinal capacity. An animal with a good physique shows maximum resistance to various harmful influences, and in case of diseases it turns out to be the most enduring, giving a significantly higher percentage of recovery. And only as an exception can be noted a few diseases (rheumatic hemoglobinemia of horses, morbus maculosus, puerperal paresis and acetonemia of cattle), which mainly affect animals of good physique and good nutrition.
With a thin physique, the animals are weak, frail, fragile, weak; they seem to be flattened laterally. A long, narrow body, with a flat chest and a long back, a long loin and an open sigh, is set on long and thin (liquid) legs; light, dry, neat head suspended on a thin, long and flexible neck.
With a bad physique, cattle often become a victim of tuberculosis; calves are especially susceptible to paratyphoid, dictyocaulosis; horses die from catarrhal pneumonia, chronic alveolar emphysema and heart disease; poorly built puppies are often disfigured by rickets or die due to the plague.
Power status gives an idea of the balance of metabolism. Here, just as in assessing the physique, one should not begin with details. Power state is determined along the way contour lines-their softness, roundness and completeness, or, conversely, rough angularity, sharpness; use in case of need
Rice. 3. Rickets. Softening of the bones. palpation, establishing the degree
high crest, belly under- Fig. 4. Wasting in the dog (according to Stang).
they pull, the pudendal olasty is deepened, the anus is far retracted.
Good fatness gives a reliable guarantee that the energy expenditure is fully balanced by its arrival. In cases where assimilation processes prevail over dissimilation processes, excess nutrient material is deposited in fat depots. Horses of heavy breeds, indoor dogs, cats, and especially pigs are especially prone to deposits of significant amounts of fat, as a result of which severe disorders of the function of certain organs sometimes develop. In such cases, one speaks of obesity.
Rice. 5. Squishy.
As a result of these or other influences, animals sometimes lose weight amazingly quickly, turning into real skeletons within some 3-5 days. This is observed in horses with an acute form of infectious anemia, with infectious encephalomyelitis, with acute glanders, in all animals with rabies, in calves and piglets with paratyphoid and white diarrhea. However higher degrees weight loss is more often the result of chronic infectious and
invasive diseases - tuberculosis and paratuberculosis,
chronic glanders, piroplasmosis, chronic infectious anemia, dictyo-caulosis, fascioliasis and gadfly disease of sheep. Sometimes emaciation is noted only on individual organs, even with good overall fatness. Here it should be noted atrophy of muscle groups with ankylosis of the joints, atrophy of the croup with flabby paraplegia.
The position of the body in space. The doctor has to observe and examine patients in various poses, with different positions of their bodies. When examining, the most comfortable position is the standing position, which guarantees flawless conduct of almost all details of the examination; small animals are more likely to be examined in a lying position or seated on a table. Sometimes some aspects of the study require observation of the animal while moving.
Healthy animals, left to their own devices, can easily change the position of their body at will, giving it those postures that correspond to volitional impulses. Unlike this kind voluntary provisions still distinguish forced positions, when the animal is forced to maintain the posture created by the painful process, without being able to change it at will. The reasons for this are loss of consciousness, certain pains, dizziness, weakness, perhaps fear or muscle or nerve paralysis. However, when analyzing forced positions, especially lying down, one should not lose sight of the fact that animals often do not rise simply because they do not want to get up, for example, after eating, hard work, at high external temperature, due to extreme phlegm, etc. To make sure that the animal is really not able to get up, one has to resort to various coercive measures - shouting, patting on the ears, croup, clicking with a whip, showing tasty food, etc. t. e. And only in those cases when, despite all the measures of influence and help in trying to get up, a change in position turns out to be impossible, it is recognized as forced. Forced positions are an extremely valuable sign, clearly characterizing the disease process and the patient's condition.
Forced lying position in the horse it is included in the clinical picture of rheumatic and enzootic hemoglobinemia, the last phase of tetanus, the lethargic form of infectious encephalomyelitis, transverse lesions of the spinal cord and all diseases associated with loss of consciousness. In cattle, it characterizes the laying down of cows before and after calving, puerperal paresis, the last phase of acetonemia, and transport sickness. Small cattle, pigs and carnivores during severe processes, especially febrile ones, generally prefer to lie, huddled in a corner (dogs), buried deep in the litter (pigs). When trying to pick them up, the animals get up, sluggishly and reluctantly take a few steps and lie down again, accepting the same
Rice. 6. Tetanus.
location. Thus, if for large animals forced lying is the central symptom of a limited range of diseases, determining the nature of suffering, then in small animals it is observed too often and shades only their condition.
Forced standing seen predominantly in horses. It is characteristic of tetanus, pleurisy, pleuropneumonia, all diseases associated with severe dyspnea, as well as a number of brain diseases.
Each of the described positions of the body, in space, both voluntary and forced, can be further: a) physiological and b) non-physiological. The latter is one of the most common symptoms of certain sufferings, involuntarily drawing attention to itself with its unusualness. Especially characteristic is the position of the body with tetanus, when the horses stand with legs apart, like goats, with an elongated head and neck, a tensely straightened back, ears pulled back and a raised tail. In severe febrile illnesses, they keep their heads helplessly lowered and stand with half-closed eyes, alien to everything. In the lethargic form of infectious encephalomyelitis and tetanus, horses lie stretched out with their heads and necks extended, and the limbs of the side of the body facing upwards are held in weight without touching the ground.
AT forced movement, differing in great diversity, are important in the pathology of the horse. These include: a) aimless wandering, b) arena movements, c) clockwise movements, d) forward movements, e) backward movements. In small animals, in addition, there are: e) roll-like movements. Forced movements are complex, sometimes well-coordinated, extremely monotonous movements that occur only under the influence of a pathological process, as a result of irritation of the corresponding centers. Since such movements appear to the observer to be completely unrelated to external influences, they do give the impression of being involuntary or forced.
Aimless wandering is usually observed with anatomical
Rice. 7. Elongated position of the head with pharyngitis.
brain damage and functional disorders. In Born's disease, equine encephalitis (American and French), infectious encephalomyelitis, acetonemia of cattle, coenurosis, animals wander for hours, moving from one place to another in a state of some kind of stupefaction. Movements are poorly coordinated, animals
Rice. 8. Progressive osteitis.
they stagger, stumble, do not notice obstacles, climb walls, feeders, completely unresponsive to external stimuli, excluding, perhaps, auditory ones. Sometimes these movements are full of energy and strength and resemble the gait of a horse rushing to the house, horses, a foal, etc. Even obstacles are sometimes unable to stop the movement, only changing its shape. Stopping in front of a wall, falling into a ditch, lying on its side, the animal does not stop making habitual movements on the spot.
Manezhnye movements are for the most part well-coordinated movements in a circle in a certain direction, and the diameter of the circle either remains unchanged or gradually decreases. In the first case, the animals sometimes walk in the accepted direction for hours; when the diameter of the circle decreases, the arena movements turn into clockwise movements, which more often end in an unexpected fall. They are usually the result of damage to the corresponding center of the cerebellum, thalamus opticus, ganglia of the cerebrum or unilateral shutdown of sensitive receptors in diseases associated with disorders of consciousness or increased intracranial pressure.
Movements of the hour hand are more often observed in the direction of rotation of the clock hand, sometimes in the opposite direction. They represent the rotation of the entire body of the animal around one of any legs as a fixed point. Similar movements are characteristic of paralysis of the item vestibularis and lesions of the cerebellum. Experimentally, they can be caused by destruction of the thalamus opticus, nucleus ruber, and anterior colliculus.
Rice. 9. Striving forward with brain diseases (but to Makarov).
my striving forward, which cannot be weakened or suspended. Movements are usually hurried and not always strictly coordinated. The limbs are often entwined, there is a staggering of the buttocks, stumbling, sometimes a fall or even overturning of the body. The localization of changes can be the centers of the occiput or torso, corpus striatum, as well as the retina.
Moving backwards is sometimes the only possible form of movement. It is observed occasionally in infectious encephalomyelitis and cerebrospinal meningitis and is usually associated with contractures of the occiput and spasms of the spinal muscles. Due to arching of the hind limbs, tilting of the head and severe coordination disorders, backward movement quickly leads to a fall or even tipping of the animal. It is experimentally possible to induce this form of movement after the removal of the cerebellum.
Roll-like movements are often observed in small animals: dogs, cats, and especially birds. They represent the rotation of the animal's body around the longitudinal axis. At the same time, everything is often limited to only one turn or even half a turn, in other cases, movements continue until they are stopped by some obstacle on the way. They are usually associated with unilateral lesions n. vestibularis, cerebellar peduncles or their surrounding parts.
Temperament determined by the speed and degree of reaction to external stimuli. The criteria are the expression of the eyes, the response movements, for example, the play of the ears, and the whole behavior of the animal. There are lively and sluggish temperaments.
Horses of a lively temperament are distinguished by the ability to quickly perceive: they are always attentive, vigilantly watching their surroundings, sensitively responding with playing with their ears, changing their gaze, and facial expressions to perceived impressions from outside world, show impatience before work, before giving food, haste in eating; their movements are full of energy and strength, they are the most valuable workers in almost every economy.
However, a sharply pronounced lively temperament at the same time presents some inconvenience, and sometimes makes the animal completely unsuitable for work. Horses of a lively temperament are often too impressionable, disobedient, stubborn, angry, shy, sometimes maim people, animals, often break the harness.
The phlegmatic temperament is manifested by just the opposite properties. Animals are lazy, lethargic, little mobile and stupid.
For the therapist, temperament matters in the sense that, in severe suffering, it is sharply reflected in the behavior of the animal. Strong pain sensations are especially painful for animals of a lively temperament and, conversely, are less disturbing for phlegmatic people. And vice versa, with severe febrile illnesses, horses of a lively temperament at first glance do not give the impression of being seriously ill, keeping their appetite and vigor longer, while phlegmatic people under these conditions do not pay any attention to their surroundings and seem hopeless. Thus, when evaluating the forecast, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of temperament.
Constitution. The constitution is understood in veterinary medicine as a combination of all influences that determine one or another degree of resistance of tissues, organs and the whole organism in the fight against harmful factors. This general resistance is very different and depends on the resistance of each individual tissue and the nature of each individual stimulus, and thus is far from being always a constant value.
Astrakhan sheep is considered extremely resistant, as it easily tolerates the harsh conditions of Central Asia - lack of water, tropical heat, dry and scarce food, but, transferred to a humid climate and abundant green vegetation, it does not acclimatize well and often dies from inflammation. gastrointestinal tract, dictyocaulosis.
When evaluating the constitution, it must be remembered that, along with morphological features organism, which are easy to measure and evaluate, here the purely biological properties of tissues matter and, in addition, the properties of the germ plasm, its genotinic structure, which determines the development of the cell. this direction. Thus, the constitution is determined by three factors: exterior, interior and heredity.
According to Bogomolets, the constitution "leaves its mark on the whole organism in its whole, reflecting not only on the morphology of the individual, but also on the individual nature of his physiological reactions.” For the therapist, the reaction to the influence of various painful factors is especially important. From this point of view, since the time of Hippocrates, a strong and a weak constitution have been distinguished. Animals with a strong constitution easily put up with the adverse effects of temperature, high humidity, the action of cold winds, drafts, tolerate deprivation, hunger, strong stress, and are less sensitive to a number of infectious diseases, and after infection they easily recover. Animals of a weak constitution in this respect are the exact opposite.
The desire to give a more accurate description of constitutional types, which could be widely used in in practical terms, led to the creation of various kinds of numerous classifications. Of these, Shigo's (Sigaud) classification has become widespread in myo-icin, which distinguishes 4 main types: respiratory, muscular, digestive and cerebral. Attempts to transfer this classification to animals have not been successful, since within the same species, for example, in cattle, it is not possible to establish enough characteristic features for each type. Thus, in relation to animals, this classification, as a four-term one, cannot withstand empirical verification, and is also inconvenient when constructing variational series.
From this point of view, the classification of Kretschmer (Kretschmer) is more consistent, which distinguishes three main types: 1) asthenic ^ (lep-tosompy), 2) athletic (muscular) and 3) pyknic.
Rice. 10. Asthenic type.
Zaitsev, who worked on the study of constitutional types in horses, gives them the following characteristics.
Asthenic type characterized by a long chest, long neck, light head, with a relatively poorly developed lower jaw and chewing muscles, and a tucked up abdomen. Well developed lung of considerable size poor development connective interlobular tissue. A voluminous massive heart but in relation to the total body weight is much larger than in other types. The network of blood vessels is well branched. The liver is relatively small. The small intestine is shorter than other types. Representatives of this type are Arabian and English horses, as well as American and Russian-American trotters.
For picnic type characterized by a short chest, a massive croup with wide-set mokloks, a massive head with a strongly developed lower jaw and chewing muscles, a short neck and a voluminous belly. Animals are distinguished by great strength, but far from being so mobile. Ardennes, percherons, and partly heavy artillery horses fit this characteristic.
Rice. 11. Picnic type
Muscular type occupies a middle position between those just described. The best representatives of this type are mestizos of trotting and heavy horses, and
Rice. 12. Muscular type.
also convoy and well-built working horses, which are distinguished by well-developed muscles, strong bones, sufficient snares and mobility.
Zaitsev's measurements of height, torso length, girth of the chest behind the shoulder blades and girth of the metacarpus according to six main indices, processed using the method of variation statistics, made it possible to establish a profile for each type.
At the same time, “in horses of a muscular type, the profile is usually located close to the midline, while in picnics it will go above the midline and only at the end drops down. The corresponding curve for asthenics goes, on the contrary, below middle line, at the end rising up ”(Zaitsev). However, the differences between the main constitutional types are not limited to purely morphological features of the body structure. These differences go much deeper, reflecting on the function of the main systems. According to "Chernorutsky, there is known kind correlation between the constitutional type and the functional power of the organism. So, the respiratory capacity of the lung in asthenics is higher than in picnics; their blood pressure, on the contrary, is somewhat lower, and their calcium and uric acid levels are also significantly lower.
Significant differences are further established by hematological examination. In trotters, according to Zaitsev, the number of erythrocytes and hemoglobin is higher than in draft horses and working horses. The diameters of erythrocytes, their surface and volume in trotting horses are also greater than in draft horses.
Thus, the exterior of the animal is closely related to its internal features (interior). This makes it possible to use constitutional features as a criterion not only in assessing the performance of an animal and its productivity, but also in a therapeutic sense.
With delivery in Novosibirsk.
Under cellular conditions, under the influence of psychological factors and with improper feeding, the resistance of the organism of animals to diseases is greatly reduced, therefore proteins, like other animals, are susceptible to various diseases. When keeping animals at home, it is necessary to strictly observe the basic rules of sanitary regime and personal hygiene in order to protect your pets from diseases. In addition, during childbirth and during the period of raising offspring, there are often unexplained cases the death of young animals and females, which occur in connection with the new conditions of their habitat, which differ from the conditions in nature.
First of all, so that your animals feel good and never get sick, need to take proper care of them.. In addition, it is necessary to keep the newly acquired squirrel in quarantine for one month and only then transplant the new animal into a common cage with your other pets.
Change of scenery, as a rule, also greatly affects the general condition of the animal. He may feel sad, his appetite decreases and lethargy appears. Animals require special attention and care in the first month of their stay in your apartment. During this time, they wean from the old conditions and get used to the new home environment and people. During this period, try to give them especially a lot of time so that the animals get used to you and consider you theirs.
At keeping animals in quarantine you need to carefully monitor his health for a month and measure his body temperature. If you know your pet's normal body temperature, then any deviation from the norm will indicate that the animal does not feel well.
If there are several animals in quarantine, for example, a male and a female, the sick animal must be transferred to another cage.
Very often, young females refuse or are reluctant to feed their young with milk. In such cases, the mammary glands are examined, and if the female turns out to be healthy and she has milk, then it is recommended to leave her at the brood, and so that the babies do not die of hunger, they should be fed with milk through a pipette for several days. If the female begins to feed the cubs normally during this time, artificial feeding can be stopped.
If the mammary gland does not secrete milk or the female stubbornly refuses to feed the offspring, then she is rejected, and the cubs are placed with another female (it can be of a different species, for example, with a rat that has cubs), and she feeds the foundlings until they are independent.
If there is no female suitable for these purposes, then the cubs are artificially fed with boiled milk, first through a pipette, and then with the help of a nipple. The following accessories are required for this purpose. A heat emitter, which can be used as a heating pad used in medicine. This device is used to heat orphans and sick animals.
1. Plastic syringes without needles for feeding newborn orphans and cubs who, for some reason, do not have enough female milk.
2. Lots of soft and absorbent paper towels.
Goat's or cow's milk can be used as a milk substitute for squirrels ( feed warm), and also at the age of several days, you can feed gruel, to which a little glucose or condensed milk is added ( for one part of baby food 50 ml of condensed milk with a fat content of 12%). Later, a small amount of calcium powder (such as calcium gluconate) is added to this mixture, as well as a small amount of sugar at the tip of a teaspoon. When feeding orphaned cubs, substitutes for cat and dog milk have proven themselves well.
Cases of the birth of dead cubs in healthy females are extremely rare. They occur with malnutrition or malnutrition, due to a lack of vitamins and trace elements, as well as some infections, such as listeriosis or brucellosis. Females during childbirth, if they are fed a balanced diet, die very rarely. Their death can occur as a result of a spasm of the unpaired uterus, caused, for example, by a strong fright. To prevent stress, you should always approach the nesting house with a pregnant female carefully and without much noise. Real pathological births occur mainly for two reasons - in violation of the asynchrony of labor from the right and left sections of the uterus or the wrong position of the embryos. There are also cases of death of pregnant females from sepsis due to the decomposition of dead embryos, as well as as a result of ectopic pregnancy.
It is easy to confuse with stillborn cubs that were born normal, but died already on the nest litter for some reason, for example, because their mother did not accept them, which happens not only during the first birth in a cage, but also in wild females who were caught already pregnant. In the first case, the cause is insufficient development maternal instinct, in the second - the lack of milk as a result of strong, prolonged stress. In addition, the female may accidentally trample the newly born cub. It often happens that a young female, who killed the first brood due to inexperience, successfully raises the next ones.
Animals forced to live in a cramped cage are often at enmity with each other. At the same time, the behavior of animals of different sexes and temperaments sometimes differs quite strongly: the male, as a rule, guards the area of the entire cage. Females act differently: one cannot calm down until " alien"is in a cage, which ultimately leads her to death from hunger and persecution, the other is limited to the fact that, having driven her rival into a corner, she goes to the house and rests there. The female guards only the nest and can be aggressive even to the male.
N.N. Meshkova, E.Yu. Fedorovich
"Various and lengthy examination new territory, periodically renewing its re-examination allows synanthropic rodents - house mice, gray rats to know the environment well and respond to the slightest changes in it. Studies have shown that these animals notice not only the appearance, but also the disappearance, rearrangement of objects, and even their replacement with similar ones (Meshkova et al., 1992; Fedorovich and Meshkova, 1992). After noticing a change, the animals immediately interrupt their “daily” activities (for example, feeding, patrolling the territory), and all activity seems to be “pulled” to the places of changes, the examination and reexamination of which are resumed several times.
Experiments with changing the environment familiar to animals made it possible to reveal the patterns of deployment of exploratory behavior under these conditions, as well as to trace the features of the construction and functioning of the image of the environment in animals, its dependence on the characteristics of the individual, its motivational state, and the characteristics of life (Fedorovich, Meshkova, 1992; Fedorovich, in oven).
In a 4x4 m enclosure, a "living room" was recreated, imitating a human dwelling. A group of unfamiliar animals was simultaneously released into the room. After 4 - 5 days, the "room" was fully functionally mastered by them, relations in the group stabilized; in further work was carried out only with groups in which clear hierarchical relationships were formed with despotic dominance of one of the males. On the sixth day after the animals were released, 7 changes of the following types were made simultaneously in the “room” setting: disappearance, replacement, rearrangement, and the appearance of objects. The main part of the material is presented on the basis of E. Yu. Fedorovich's thesis, completed at the Faculty of Psychology of Moscow State University. The behavior of gray rats in similar conditions was studied by a student Faculty of Biology Moscow State University A. V. Belousova.
We assumed that the rank of an animal in a group poses specific life tasks for an individual, determining its way of life, the system of relations with various components of the environment. This determines to a large extent the features of the functioning and development of each animal that regulates its behavior. mental reflection, the image of the environment.
To establish the influence of the rank of the animal on the probability of occurrence and the nature of the course of orienting-exploratory activity in each group, we analyzed the behavior of two males - the dominant and the active subordinate (subdominant). These two categories of animals were selected according to next reason: at expressed respect"dominance-subordination" between them, these individuals had approximately equal motor activity and, at the same time, moved throughout the territory. Hierarchical position among females rare exception, was implicitly expressed; inactive subordinates - "outcasts" - activity was limited to small areas of the room and was reduced mainly to quick dashes from shelter to feeding places, so they did not occur in most places of appearance of changes.
As a result of the observations, it was revealed that the dominants and active subordinates differed in a number of quantitative and qualitative behavioral indicators in relation to changes.
Dominant individuals, resuming activity in a changed environment, detected changes after a longer period of time than subdominant ones, and only on the 2nd - 5th time they were near the places where they occurred. In general, at the first approach, dominant males noticed 19% of the changes, and active subordinates - subdominants - 75%. Cm. Figures 5 - 8 Applications, in the same place the plan of the "living room".
It should be avenged that most often from the first time those changes were noticed that appeared in the open in the places most visited by animals, near the centers of activity and routes of movement. However, we did not reveal an unambiguous dependence of the instantaneous observation of a change on the place of its occurrence.
We combined the cases of not noticing the "novelty" by analyzing the situations of finding the animals next to it, into 4 groups.
1 . Dominant individuals do not notice the appearance of changes, pursuing, looking for subordinate animals or females. Here are some examples. The dominant male twice ran near the appeared house to the sound of the subordinate jumping, but noticed him only when he stumbled upon this object during the chase. The dominant from the other group "hunted" for the subordinate, who just at that time was eating the bait from the trap that had just been set (Gero's flat crusher). Being aimed at the object of his "hunt", the dominant drove the subordinate straight into the trap. And only the next time, being in the same area, the dominant male noticed the appearance of a trap and examined it. The same dominant passed, almost touching sideways to another trap, following the trail of the subordinate, but noticed and began to examine it, only returning back. Many times we observed how dominants, having run in the course of chasing a member of the group throughout the "room" and, accordingly, past most of the changes, without reacting to them in any way, noticed them in a calm state, showing neophobia.
So, one of the dominants even attacked the animal sitting on a new flower pot, without showing neophobia towards the new object, although before that it “did not dare” to approach it several times. Often, dominants noticed an object that appeared or rearranged only as a result of a direct collision with it, again during pursuits, or as a result of an attack on other members of the group who were examining these objects at that moment. In such cases, the pursuit ceased, and the dominant male either frightenedly jumped away from the "unexpected" object, or proceeded to carefully examine it. Sometimes the dominant male excited state took a new object for the desired subordinate and attacked him. So, the dominant male ran into a small flower pot three times in a row and bit it. The same was observed in gray rats - the dominant male, after sorting out relations with rats from the neighboring group, approached in a threatening pose to new bottle and tried to attack her.
2 . Subordinate mice ran past the changes made to escape persecution. A whole range of examples gives us the behavior of inactive subordinates, "outcasts". These animals, running along short routes from shelter to food and back, as a rule, did not react to the changes that appeared. One of these animals, having a shelter in one of the graduation houses, did not "notice" the disappearance of others standing nearby, although it ran out of its shelter 5 times during the observation period.
3 . Mice (more often subordinates) ran past the changes, purposefully moving from shelters to feeding points after sleep or, when the dominant was activated, to shelters.
4 . Both dominants and subordinate animals did not notice some changes while examining others.
Thus, one of the males passed by the new house for the first time, distracted by sniffing the tracks left by the observer. We have seen how an examination by an animal of one change, important for the performance of its vital functions, for a long time "did not make it possible" to notice and/or examine another, located nearby. So, three subordinate mice from different groups showed the same pattern: each of them passed ten centimeters from the appeared flower pot (in other situations it was noticed from 1 meter), focusing in the direction of the place where the chair used to be, on which these individuals had shelter. On their way back, these mice froze in front of the "unexpected" pot that appeared in front of them, ran away to the side, and then approached and examined it. In several groups, the dominants noticing the appearance of a new house near their shelter (suitcase) for the entire three hours of our observations distracted these animals from examining other changes. Attempts to get close to this subject with different sides(the house caused a strong neophobia) were interspersed with chases and the search for subordinates throughout the "room". However, the dominants again and again returned to attempts to start an examination of this subject, without reacting in any way to the appearance of other changes. One of the dominant animals found and several times examined a hole dug by wild mice under the mesh floor of the "room". The exit of this hole was located between the place where the chair we removed was located and the pot placed. The dominant did not pay attention to these changes and did not examine them.
A. V. Belousova described a case when a rat, approaching a peak that greatly frightened her, walked along a new trap that stood in her way, noticing it. Subsequently, the trap greatly frightened this female.
Thus, we have seen that changes may or may not be noticed from the first time, depending on the motivational state of the animal, the direction of its activity in this moment. First of all, the most significant changes for each individual at this very moment are noticed. N.Yu. Voitonis (1949) considered such non-observation by animals of even biologically significant changes in the environment as a manifestation of the attitude, the mobilization of the body for some one activity that is relevant at the moment.
Although the dominant individuals moved throughout the entire volume of the "living room", in general they did not notice all the changes made - an average of 4.0 out of 7 possible; spread - from 1 to b. While subordinate animals noticed and examined an average of 6.4 out of 7 possible changes, range 3 - 7. Most often, dominant individuals noticed and showed the most pronounced neophobia and exploratory behavior in relation to objects that appeared for the first time or in a new place; disappearance, as well as the replacement of objects, if these changes were not related to their life activity (for example, a shelter could be in a rearranged house), they did not notice, or examined very little (1-3 approaches). Subdominant individuals noticed changes of all types, except for the disappearance of small objects, unless they were again associated with their vital activity.
It was rather unexpected for us to see how carefully and variously interestingly these animals examine the place from which any object was removed. Here specific example. A chair was taken out of the room. The mouse, running from this place at a distance of about one and a half to two meters, suddenly stopping and turning its head towards the removed object, froze. This was followed by a series of orientation posts from different places, while the mouse was spinning, running from cover to cover along a large diameter around. Then, with more or less alertness, the animal approached directly to the area of the floor over which the chair stood, and passed it, making frequent small zigzags - sniffing the floor and changing the direction of movement after 2 - 3 steps. Sometimes the animal stopped and made a series of spatial orientation stands in different directions. Sometimes he would run off to the side, orientate himself there, then approach the changed place again, passing it in small zigzags (see Fig. 8 of the Appendix).
One more example. The researchers were removing a broom that was leaning against the leg of one of the chairs. Most often, the disappearance of this object was noticed by mice from the seat of a chair, above which the handle of a broom towered. The mice spun on the edge of the seat, looking down, alternating this with orientation posts, ran back to the other end of the seat, oriented from there to the side where the broom had previously risen. Then the animals went up and down several times along the leg of the chair, against which the broom was leaning, and, finally, bypassed, making small zigzags, the area on the floor on which the broom directly rested.
When some of the graduation houses were moved, the animals examined both the moved houses themselves and the place from which they were removed.
On the whole, for active subordinate animals, cases of noticing changes from afar were typical, as well as purposeful approaches to them, as a rule, without pronounced signs of iophobia. Examination of "novelty" - long (on average 10 - 12 seconds, in some cases up to three, and even six minutes (!) Continuously), the chain of actions for the examination at the first approach consisted of 4 - 10 actions. As we have already said, the dominant animals did not notice the changes for a longer time, part of the detection of changes in them was associated either with an accidental collision with an object that appeared or rearranged, or with imitation of other individuals - the dominant approached the object that appeared for the first time, having previously observed other animals or animal that examined it. In 95% of cases, the first approach of dominants to changes followed after other mice had been nearby and examined him.
A striking distinctive feature of the behavior of this category of animals at the initial stage of familiarization with the changes that had taken place was a strong neophobia towards them. During all three hours of observations, some individuals did not “dare” to approach at least one of the new objects that we set up. Once we observed the manifestation of geophobia in relation to even an empty place from which graduation houses were removed. It is noteworthy that nsofobiya in relation to the changes made manifested itself not only before the first examination of them. Often, in dominant individuals, we noticed an alternation of not noticing a change when running past (when stalking or chasing a subordinate or a female in estrus) with the manifestation of neophobia towards him, in a different approach. One of the dominant males showed strongly pronounced neophobia towards the rearranged houses, and "did not dare" to approach them, bouncing each time to the nearest shelter. When he followed, running from object to object, one of the subordinate males, he hid behind these graduation houses without any signs of fear. This did not prevent the dominant from being wary of them during the subsequent resumption of their examination.
The manifestation of strongly pronounced neophobia to new objects in dominant male gray rats, unlike other members of the group, in similar experimental conditions described by A.V. Belousova. Partly due to iophobia, the first contacts with "novelty" in dominant animals were fragmentary (1-3 seconds), the chain of actions for their examination consisted of 1-2 elements, the orienting-exploratory activity during subsequent approaches unfolded extremely slowly. The phenomenon of neophobia will be described in more detail below.
What subdominant and dominant individuals noticed different quantity changes and, in addition, active subordinates, unlike dominants, noticed and examined mainly all types of changes, can be explained by the different representation, differentiation of environmental elements in the mental image of these animals. This is indirectly confirmed by the peculiarities of the nature of the movements of animals of both these categories until the day of changes, in a stable, familiar environment.
In general, the movements of dominant mice were less variable, with calm environment indoors, they ran along the same routes connecting important areas for them, shelters, places of feeding and drinking. Movement along such routes was rapid, while the mice rather stereotypically ran around objects from the same side, went into shelters and left them in the same places and in the same way. Dominant individuals left running routes mainly in two cases: while chasing or spying on some mouse, and also when patrolling the territory, moreover, the dominant went around in turn those places that had previously discovered the desired individual, or followed in the footsteps of a runaway mouse.
Since the arrangement of objects did not change in all groups, dominants from different groups were generally characterized by similar routes of movement ( rice. 9 Applications).
For active subordinate animals, subdominant, the following was characteristic: after leaving the shelter and approaching food and water, they, as a rule, bypassed the territory. The trajectories of subordinate individuals did not form "paths" as in dominants, but were arranged "diffusely" ( fig.10 Applications). The subordinates also had short running routes, passing through which they moved stereotypically. The subordinate animals used them, in contrast to the dominant ones, most often when the situation in the room became tense: these routes connected the feeding grounds and the shelters.
In addition, it was in subdominant individuals, as already described above, that we observed most interesting form behavior - re-examination of a familiar, well-known territory - these animals walked around the room with "binding" their movement to almost all ground objects located in the room, while re-examining the objects themselves: they climbed inside, from above, walked around the perimeter, sniffed. It can be assumed that such a re-examination led to a more detailed acquaintance with the subject situation of the "living room", and also contributed to the further observation by these animals of any changes in the environment.
Let's return to the behavior of the animals in the "living room" that we have modified. Thanks to the active, varied and prolonged examination of the changes that appeared, subdominant individuals quickly corrected their behavior, "drawing" the examined changes in the situation into the sphere of their life activity: for example, timely running around their new or rearranged objects during pursuits, using them as new shelters, observation posts, the first they began to feed from the set traps (unguarded in our experiments).
Another category - dominants for quite a long time did not take into account the changes that had occurred in their life. So, in the course of chasing other members of the group, they often encountered objects that appeared or rearranged. For example, one of the dominants knocked down the graduation house, moved to a new location, three times in a row during the same chase. We also observed how, after repeated examination of any change in the dominant, running up to him from the other side, they were "scared" of him (repeatedly showed neophobia).
One of important factors determining the features of the orienting-exploratory activity of animals in the changed environment was the nature of the use of the place where the change took place, its significance for a particular individual. Changes made in the center of the zone of activity of a given animal, for example, near its shelter, were noticed (after a longer or shorter period of time) in 100% of cases by both active subordinates and dominants. For example, two pairs of shoes rearranged in place of each other were noticed and examined only by those dominants whose shelter was nearby - in a rag hanging from a chair, although all the dominants were in this area more than once during our observation. The disappearance of the broom was noticed by many subordinate animals, but for a long time and repeatedly this place was examined only by individuals that had shelter on the chair to which this broom was leaning - they zigzag around the floor area on which the broom rested, climbed up and down the chair leg , oriented from the seat, over which the broom handle towered. In general, producing changes near shelters or feeding grounds produced both the strongest neophobia and the strongest exploratory response.
Thus, as shown by the above observational data, the deployment of orienting-exploratory activity in conditions close to natural does not occur automatically in response to any changes in the environment familiar to the animal. The nature of the animals' behavioral responses in situations of "novelty" is largely determined not so much by the formal signs of the changes themselves (the nature of the changes, their size, etc.) as by the characteristics of the animal's life activity (in our case, the general context of activity at the moment the animal is near change, its need-motivational state, the nature of the use of the territory on which the change occurred, the significance of the change for the animal).
Some of the above observations allow us to conclude that the animals reflect the environment actively, which is manifested in this case primarily in the selective, "biased" nature of the perception of changes.
The active nature of mental reflection was expressed primarily in varying degrees of readiness of individuals to perceive changes in the environment, which was determined, in our opinion, by the significance of the very fact of the appearance of changes for the animal. The great readiness of subordinate animals to perceive and take into account changes was manifested in the following: active subordinate individuals, for whom the search for any new opportunities for adaptation to existing conditions through establishing new connections with the environment (first of all, the search for new sources of food and shelter), they noticed most of the changes from the first time, as a rule, from afar, after which they purposefully approached him. (Some mice, climbing onto a tall object - a nightstand, oriented themselves from above, after which they climbed down and niches directly to some change, for example, to the place of a removed chair.)
Dominants whose position in the group depended on maintaining the existing hierarchical structure in the citypyPPE and a significant part of whose activity was reduced to searching, pursuing subordinates, did not notice the changes that had taken place for a long time, in general they saw fewer changes, did not take them into account in their life for a long time.
It also seems to us that the fact that subordinates in general were not characterized by the manifestation of neophobia in relation to changes, once again underlines the increased readiness of these animals to perceive changes made. Isolated cases of manifestation of ieophobia in subordinates related to situations of unexpected observation of an object for an animal, in a place where it was supposed not to exist. We can also see the potential willingness of subordinates to perceive changes in the cases described above of regularly repeated non-re-examinations of the room of objects in it.[I think this is where ethologists know. VC. ]
The group of cases where the examination of one, more significant change "did not allow" the animal to notice others, located nearby, as well as cases when the dominant, chasing or tracking subordinates, does not notice "novelty" in the environment, once again confirms the active nature of the mental regulation of behavior. processes.
The presented material, it seems to us, convincingly shows that animals do not simply select incoming stimuli, filtering them sequentially according to "registers" - novelty, intensity, uncertainty of significance (Sokolov, 1960; Grashchenko, Latash, 1965;Barry, 1990), but they themselves actively scoop out the necessary information, the necessary stimulus from the environment (Leontiev, 1979; Smirnov, 1985; Vilyunas, 1986;Latash, 1990). Moreover, "the stimulus that is sought for already has an interpretation, a meaning..." (Smirnov, 1985, p.6). What information, what objects, their properties and connections will be perceived by an individual, what content will be filled mental image, is determined by the animal itself, the whole context of its activity, its way of life.
neophobia
Stress is a negative reaction of the animal's body to any changes or events that affect the cat's life. It can be loud sounds, smells, a sudden change of scenery, acquaintance with a new animal.
The behavior of a stressed cat can be varied, but, in general, animals are observed:
- food refusal,
- the cat seeks to hide in secluded places,
- aggression,
- damage to furniture, toys, carpets,
- urinating or defecation is not in the litter box.
Causes of stress
There are several possible causes of stress.
1. Change of scenery.
Cats do not like change and moving from one comfortable environment to a new one can be stressful. For example, moving from one apartment to another, a weekend in the country.
To make the cat feel comfortable, you need to bring her favorite toys, bowls, her toilet to which she is used to, her favorite food and treats. It is also necessary to spend some time with the cat alone and let her get used to the new environment.
2. The appearance of a new family member.
For example, if you have a kitten, a puppy, or if a child has appeared in the house, the cat may begin to experience fear due to the appearance of a stranger on its territory.
You need to properly introduce the cat to a new family member and give it some time to get used to. If a new adult appeared in the family, it would be nice if it was he who was engaged in feeding the animal. The cat will quickly get used to the person giving her food.
3. Loss of a family member.
The loss of a family member (for example, due to divorce, relocation, or death) can take a toll on a cat's well-being. The animal gets used to the owner and cannot understand the reason for his absence.
If possible, give the cat the worn things of the person she yearns for. The smell of things will help to cope with stress or calm her down a little.
4. Switching to a different diet.
A sharp change in diet (according to the recommendations of a veterinarian, for example) also negatively affects the emotional state of the animal. It is recommended to switch to a new diet gradually - over four to five days, gradually adding new food to the usual one.
5. Lack of a safe and secluded place.
If there is no place in the house where the cat can retire, groom, then this can also lead to a stressful situation. Cats need houses, shelves where they can sit and look around, quiet place for a toilet, a separate place with food and water.
6. A trip to the veterinary clinic.
Both the trip by car in a carrier and the visit to the veterinary specialist will cause stress for the cat. The abundance of new sounds, smells, bright lights, inspection of a stranger scares the cat and causes her stress. Try to let your pet inspect the carrier before going to the clinic, put her favorite toys and food there. If the animal does not tolerate such trips, you can call the veterinarian at home.
stress treatment
In cases where the above methods do not help the cat cope with her stress, the appointment of special drugs for the treatment of anxiety and stress in the animal is recommended. These can be special synthetic cat pheromones (Feliway), the smell of which helps the cat to relax. In some cases, drugs containing herbal sedatives or phenibut may be prescribed, in threatening situations and in consultation with a specialist, antidepressants and sedatives of a number of benzodiazepines may be used.
A change of scenery in such circumstances is the best medicine that allows you to switch your attention and look at the world around you from a different angle. It can positively affect mood and help to refresh, cheer up and change the course of your life.
In his book "The Destroyer of Stereotypes" Gregory Burns made a very clever point:
“Sometimes, in order to shift the perceptual system from the usual category, it is enough just to change the environment. This is one of the reasons why restaurants are among the places where amazing discoveries. A more radical change of environment - say, traveling to another country - is even more effective. Being in unfamiliar places, the brain is forced to think in new categories. It is thanks to this process that the working capacity of the brain increases, and it begins to rush around old ideas, but with new pictures, creating something amazing and creative.
Simply put, a change of scenery is a good way to get our imaginations and best solution to get out of the creative crisis.
How to change the situation?
The fact that a change of scenery is useful to any person is now clear. But what to do when such "diversity" as - the way to work, walking to shops, visiting and other "exciting" activities do not help to shake off blinders, everyday routine and take a fresh look at the world?
It is best to take a vacation for a few weeks to go on a trip abroad, to visit a country with a different culture, other customs and traditions, a different climate and nature. If you prefer a passive pastime, go to the sea, soak up the beach, breathe sea air, bask in the sun. Outdoor enthusiasts can, for example, go to Africa on a safari or arrange a tour of Europe, visiting several states at once, where they will learn a lot of new things and get a lot of positive impressions.
Abroad is good, but if there is no way to go there, you can have a great rest at home. Unity with nature, clean air and the absence of city noise is a great way to change the situation, understand how to understand yourself, restore calmness and peace of mind, recharge with positive energy in order to return to work with renewed vigor. Where you go - to the sea (river or lake), to the village or decide to visit the ancient Russian cities - you decide.
« Travel teaches more than anything else. Sometimes one day spent in other places gives more than ten years of life at home.» France A.
If it is needed change of scenery, get distracted from routine affairs and sort yourself out, and they don’t give you a vacation, go on weekends to nature (to the forest for mushrooms, fishing, to the country, just to the forest for a picnic) or somewhere else. Have not been to a restaurant for a long time - invite your wife (husband) and taste some exotic dish together, have never played paintball - go with friends and give vent to all your negative emotions ... you can always think of something to do, if there is a desire. It is important to remember that even in one day with proper planning rest, you can get a lot of new experiences, returning home a completely different person.
In moments when the holidays are still far away and there is so much work that you have to work even on weekends, and you need to change the situation, you can just walk around the city. Visit places you have not been to for a long time, but which bring back fond memories.
The evil influence of the prison and other correctional institutions on their inhabitants lies precisely in the monotony of the surrounding reality and the impossibility of changing the situation. A free person always has the opportunity to leave the room and take a walk. Then why do we, having the opportunity, spend so little time walking in the fresh air, contemplating the world around us? Instead of making good use of our time outside of work and taking a little break from dull everyday life, we often spend time monotonously - at the computer or with the TV remote control ...
let yourself at least occasionally relax, change the situation and relax. Spend time with family, loved ones, and friends who you don't see very often. Get out of your normal state! Live not only by setting goals, planning and scheduling, change something in own life, bring novelty into it, then it will sparkle for you with a variety of colors and give you inspiration!
Speaking of a change of scenery, we do not always mean only vacation with rest. In fact, anything can be changed on the different stages and for some definite (or vice versa indefinite) time. You can change jobs, change environment, or even change your place of residence. A change of residence can also be different - from moving to another apartment or another city, to moving to another country. Of course, this does not always happen because of the desire to change the situation, but also because of it too. For measures such as changing permanent residence or searching for new work people often go from the desire to drastically change their lives. And I think in most cases it is not in vain, because with a radical change in the situation, our attitude to our activities, to ourselves and other people changes. This is how we feel responsible for our lives. We build new relationships and learn to prioritize correctly.
A change of scenery in an apartment or room, in an office or workplace is also part of the escape from everyday life and in a good way refresh the perception. The change of visual images will do you good and color your gray everyday life. Rearrange furniture or less bulky items, tidy up and get rid of unnecessary items. Make repairs, repaint the walls, put new wallpaper, etc.
Many talk and talk about the benefits of a change of scenery, including such funny guys as Stas Davydov. Videos from project "Goat":
