Companion Animal Behaviour Study Guide for Final Exam (Fall 2025)

AN SC 378 Companion Animal Behaviour Study Guide for Final Exam Fall 2025

Important Overview

The final exam will be scenario-based, utilizing various question types such as multiple choice, fill in the blank, terminology, and short answer. All material covered in class contributes to the exam content. Mock scenarios and case studies for dogs and cats are available on the ANSC 378 Canvas site.

Exam Details
  • Date: Thursday, December 18th, 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location: NRE 2-003
  • Duration: Approximately 1.5 hours (90 minutes), but students will have up to 3 hours to complete the exam.
  • Closed Book: Students must bring their One Card and a couple of pens (blue or black ink).

Study Components

Sections of Study

  1. Behaviour Modification (Part A and B)

    • Definitions and differences between habituation, desensitization, and systematic desensitization.
      • Habituation:
      • A process that saves an animal from being continuously startled or frightened by chronic stimuli.
      • Young animals habituate more readily than adults.
      • Requires periodic exposure to the stimulus to maintain the habituation.
      • Desensitization:
      • An intentional and structured form of habituation.
      • Systematic Desensitization:
      • Avoids flooding by gradually increasing the intensity of the stimulus, helping the animal habituate at each level.
    • Flooding:
      • The presentation of a stimulus at full strength can result in learned helplessness.
    • Considerations in classical conditioning including unconditioned stimulus, unconditioned response, conditioned stimulus, and conditioned response.
    • The importance of the CS and US sequence and how it affects conditioning speed.

  2. Instrumental Learning / Operant Conditioning

    • Compare and contrast with classical conditioning.
    • Conditions include positive and negative reinforcement, positive and negative punishment.
    • Distinctions between reinforcement (increases behaviour) and punishment (decreases behaviour).
      • Positive Reinforcement:
      • Adding a stimulus to increase behaviour.
      • Negative Reinforcement:
      • Removing a stimulus to increase behaviour.
      • Positive Punishment:
      • Adding a stimulus to decrease behaviour.
      • Negative Punishment:
      • Removing a stimulus to decrease behaviour.
    • Explain how shaping of behaviour works through successive approximations.

  3. Behavioral Modifications

    • Focus on learned tasks, desensitization, counter-conditioning, reinforcement schedules (fixed and variable intervals, ratios), instinctive drift, and their implications.
    • Instinctive Drift: The tendency of an animal to revert to instinctual behaviours which can interfere with learned behaviours.
Use of Medication to Treat Dog Behaviour Concerns
  • Physiology of Anxiety:
    • The amygdala and hippocampus roles in anxiety and emotional memory.
  • Potential Treatments for Anxiety in Dogs:
    • Punishment, confinement, gradual desensitization, pharmacological treatments, non-pharmacological adjuncts.
    • Drug Therapy Considerations:
      • Combination of medications and behavioural modification improves outcomes.
      • Only drugs with short-term effects are recommended.
  1. Classes of Anti-Anxiety Drugs:
    1. SSRIs:
      • Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors with fewer side effects.
      • Example: Fluoxetine (Prozac).
    2. Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs):
      • Broader acting and often older drugs used after SSRIs.
      • Example: Amitriptyline.
    3. Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs):
      • Prevent the breakdown of neurotransmitters.
      • Example: Selegiline.
    4. Novel Anticonvulsants:
      • Example: Gabapentin for anxiety and chronic pain.
Cat and Dog Behavior Overview

  1. Evolutionary History and Taxonomy of Dogs

    • Domestication commenced approximately 12,000-15,000 years ago.
    • Classification under Carnivora, Canidae family.

  2. Comparison of Dog and Wolf Behavior:

    • Examination of domestication effects on social structure and behaviour patterns.
Cat Behavior and Physiology
  1. Genetics and Behaviour Characteristics of Felines:
    • Insights into social behaviour, hunting instincts, and sensory capabilities.
    • Importance of understanding ethograms and sickness behavior in veterinary practices.
Behavioral Behavior in Veterinary Clinics
  1. Fear-Free Methodology:
    • Techniques to minimize animal stress during veterinary visits. Understand the importance of gentle control and communication strategies with clients.

Conclusion

The final exam content encompasses extensive material on animal behavior, including practical applications of behavioral modification, drug therapies, stress management strategies, and a comprehensive understanding of animal behaviors in clinical settings. Students are encouraged to actively participate in mock scenarios and case studies to reinforce learning outcomes.