The Animal Nervous System

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The Animal Nervous System

• And its Role in Animal Behavior
• Unit 7, Lesson 1

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For years, people have asked the question, Can
animals think?

• A study of the nervous system of agricultural
  animals leads us to the study of animal behavior.

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Vertebrates have many similarities . . .

• Central Nervous System consisting of brain and
  spinal cord.
• Peripheral Nervous System consisting of nerves
  that carry information to and from the rest of
  the body to the central nervous system.

Did you know? Protein is vital in the
development of vertebrate soft tissues, which
includes the nervous system.
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There are some differences . . .

• The overall size of brains differ, where some
  brains are larger than others
• There are noticeable structure differences in
  particular places when comparing brains
• In some brains the cerebral cortex is
  particularly smooth and in some others there is
  lots of cortical folding

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What do these differences mean?

• As brains have evolved, areas that control
  senses, instinct and coordination have became
  predominant.
• In a human brain, the area dedicated to thinking
  (cerebrum) covers up and dominates anything else.
  It also has folds that increase the surface area.

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So, can animals think?

• This is a very controversial topic!
• Some believe that we tend to only measure
  intelligence in terms of human understanding, so
  we see animals as lesser when they might have
  some areas that are more developed than ours.
• Others believe that animals are acting off a
  combination of learned responses and instinct.
• Others see them as having equal intelligence to
  humans and fight for their rights.
• What do you think?

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There is no clear answer.

• The area of animal intelligence is constantly
  being studied by hundreds of scientists.
• However, the study of animal behavior is
  essential to the production of agricultural
  animals. This is the area we will focus on.

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Ethology

• The scientific study of an animals behavior in
  response to its environment.
• Knowledge of animal behavior is essential to
  understanding the whole animal and its ability to
  adapt to various management systems.
• Involves the interaction of inherited abilities
  and environmental experiences.
• Producers who understand patterns of behavior can
  manage and train animals more effectively.

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Instinct

• Reflexes and responses an animal has at birth
• At birth, all mammals have instinct to nurse.
• After hatching, chicks begin pecking to obtain
  feed.

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Habituation

• Learning to respond without thinking.
• Response to a certain stimulus is established as
  a result of habituation.
• Conditioning is learning to respond in a
  particular way to stimulus as a result of
  reinforcement when the proper response is made.
• Reinforcement usually in the form of a reward.
• Trial and error is used until correct response is
  found.
• Example newborn searches for place to nurse
  because its hungry and receives reward of milk
  when proper place is found.

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Reasoning

• The ability to respond correctly to a stimulus
  the first time that a new situation is presented.
  

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Intelligence

• The ability to learn to adjust successfully to
  certain situations.
• Short-term memory
• Long-term memory

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Pavlovs Dogs

• Ivan Pavlov worked to unveil the secrets of the
  digestive system and he also studied what signals
  triggered related phenomena, such as the
  secretion of saliva.
• When a dog encounters food, saliva starts to pour
  from the salivary glands located in the back of
  its oral cavity.
• saliva needed in order to make the food easier to
  swallow
• Pavlov became interested in studying reflexes
  when he saw that the dogs drooled without the
  proper stimulus.
• No food was in sight - their saliva still
  dribbled.
• Every time the dogs were served food, the person
  who served the food was wearing a lab coat.
  Therefore, the dogs reacted as if food was on its
  way whenever they saw a lab coat.

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Pavlovs Dogs

• Pavlov then tried to figure out how these
  phenomena were linked. For example, he struck a
  bell when the dogs were fed. If the bell was
  sounded in close association with their meal, the
  dogs learned to associate the sound of the bell
  with food. After a while, at the mere sound of
  the bell, they responded by drooling.
• This is called conditioning.
• He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or
  Medicine in 1904

Visit http//nobelprize.org/medicine/educational/p
avlov/ And play Pavlovs Dog Game to illustrate
this principle.
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Extend your thinkingCompare and contrast these
brains. Who do they belong to?