NORMAL BEHAVIORS AND

LIVESTOCK VITAL SIGNS

Objectives
 List vital signs for animal health.
 Identify healthy animal characteristics in various
species of livestock.
 Analyze animal health in a production environment.
 Assess the effect of mass production on the health
of livestock.
Warm Up
 What is a normal behavior for an animal?
 What is an abnormal behavior?

 How do we know what is normal animal behavior

and abnormal in our livestock?

 What is the easiest way to determine if an animal is

feeling sick or needs attention?
 Not eating or drinking
Key Terms
 Automation: The use of machinery in farm
environments to increase efficiency and decrease
labor costs.
 Stereotypic Behavior: A ritualistic or repetitive
behavior.
 Behavior: An animal’s response to it’s environment.
 Vitals: Checking animal’s temperature, heart rate,
and respiration rates.
 Disease: Any abnormal structure or functional
change in the tissues of the body.
Key Terms
 Pulse: The rhythmic, periodic thrust felt over an
artery in time with heartbeat.
 Respiration: The act of breathing, taking in oxygen
and using it in the body tissues, and giving off CO2.
What is Normal Behavior?

 Some aspects of normal behavior in

animals are more obvious than others
Thus it is easier to tell when these habits
cease that something is wrong
What do animals normally do when
they are sick or uncomfortable?
Normal Behaviors
 Why is it important to understand the normal
behavior of your animal or animals?
 In large herds or flocks this makes it difficult to
evaluate each individual animal
 Always check for physical abnormalities, lethargy,
open sores or gashes, coughing, limping, or cease of
consumption of food and water
Normal Behaviors
 Cattle:
 Relaxed posture
 Tail is relaxed, hanging down

 Ears oscillating with noises

 Clear, bright eyes

 Grazing and chewing cud laying down

 Consuming water

 Alert
Normal Behaviors
 Sheep:
 Strong flocking and herding instinct
 “Follow the Leader” mentality

 Social, never alone

 Non-aggressive & docile

 Grazing and drinking water

 Alert

 Sometimes playful
Normal Behaviors
 Goat:
 Browsing, picky appetite
 Longer grazing hours

 Strong flocking instinct

 Wagging of tail

 Alert and curious

 Sheltering during rainstorms

Normal Behaviors
 Chickens:
 Bright and alert
 Responsive to environment

 Interacting with other birds

 Uninterrupted egg production

 Uninterrupted water and food consumption

 Plumage is smooth and preened

Normal Behaviors
 Pigs:
 Solitary males, herding of females and young
 Social heirarchy

 Consumption of food and water

 Alert

 Reactive to surroundings

 Wallowing in mud in hot conditions

Normal Behaviors
 With your partner, list some abnormal behaviors
going from the information we now know about
healthy livestock.
Abnormal Behaviors
Animal Abnormal Behavior
Listless, not drinking water and eating,
Cattle pacing, dull eyes, coughing, braying, tail
tucked close to body
Plumage unkempt and dirty, dull eyes,
Chickens isolation, not consuming food or water
Dull eyes, isolation, aggression towards
Goats other members of the herd, uninterested in
environment, not eating or drinking
Isolation, dull eyes, not eating or drinking,
Sheep listless
Tail-chewing, cannibalism, cage biting, not
Pigs eating or drinking, isolation, aggression,
listless
Animal Vitals
 Temperature:
 One of the quickest deciding factors in a veterinary
disease or illness diagnosis
 80% of heat loss is through skin

 When temperature is above normal, the animal has a

fever
 When the temperature is sub-normal, the animal is
considered hypothermic
Normal Temperatures
 Species Degrees Fahrenheit
 Horse 99.5 to 101.3
 Foal 99.5 to 102.2
 Cattle 100.4 to 103.1
 Sheep and goats 102.2 to 104.9
 Swine 100.4 to 104.0
 Animals suffering from a heat stroke will have a
temperature at about 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
Checking Vitals
(a) shake the mercury column into the bulb end of the thermometer
(b) moisten or lubricate the tube and
(c) insert the bulb end through the anus into the
rectum. Insert the full length of the tube into the rectum,
and leave the thermometer in the rectum for about 3
minutes.
Note: Most animals object to insertion of the
thermometer in the anus, so be sure to use an appropriate restraint
on the animal. The normal temperatures for different animals are as
follows
*kiddos check their own vitals activity
*video checking livestock vitals
Checking Vitals
 Pulse:
 The three factors in checking an animal’s pulse are:
1. Frequency
2. Rhythm
3. Quality
 Can be checked with fingers placed over an
artery in soft tissue
 External maxillary artery crosses the lower edge of
the mandible, just in front of the masseter muscle
Checking Vitals
 Average pulses for large domestic animals are:
 Heart beats per minute
 Adult horses 28 to 40

 Newborn foals 100

 Foals (6 to 12 months) 45 to 60

 Cattle 40 to 70

 Sheep and goats 60 to 90

 Swine 60 to 100
Checking Vitals
 Respiration has two parts:
 Inspiration:The expansion of the chest cavity due to
oxygen intake
 Expiration: The expulsion of air from the lungs

 Variations in rates of respiration can be affected by

age, exercise, excitement, environment, pregnancy.
 It is good to check a few other animals in the same
area to assure accuracy.
Checking Vitals
 Normal mature livestock respiration rates:
 Horse 8 to 16 per minute
 Beef cow 10 to 30 per minute

 Dairy cow 18 to 28 per minute

 Sheep and goat 12 to 20 per minute

 Pig 8 to 18 per minute

Checking Vitals
 What other factors could we consider when
watching animals for illness?
 Loose stool
 Excessive sweating or shivering

 Refusing to stand

 Ignoring food or water

Checking Vitals
 It is important to always check vitals in any case
where you think your animal might be sick.
 If you are ever unsure, call a veterinarian.
Review
 List vital signs for animal health.
 Identify healthy animal characteristics in various
species of livestock.
 Analyze animal health in a production environment.
 Assess the effect of mass production on the health
of livestock.
Sources
 http://www.goatworld.com/articles/behavior/beha
vior.shtml
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sickness_behavior
 http://www.sheep101.info/201/behavior.html
 http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-
labor/7article/article29.htm
 http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0020.html
 http://www.iowabeefcenter.org/Beef%20Cattle%2
0Handbook/Vital_Signs.pdf