Domestication of vertebrates is based on the understanding of the needs of animals in their natural environment. Thus the success of this domestication throughout human history is largely dependant of the knowledge of the animal feeding behaviour. The aim of this volume is to provide advanced students and researchers with a review of current knowledge of feeding in domestic mammals and birds. The book also presents chapters on feeding behaviour in particular species; the scope is wide, covering not only ruminants, poultry and pigs, but also more specifically horses, rabbits and ostrich. Contributors include leading research workers from Europe, USA, Australia and South Africa.

This book provides students and researchers with reviews of biological questions related to the evolution of feeding by vertebrates in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Based on recent technical developments and novel conceptual approaches, the book covers functional questions on trophic behavior in nearly all vertebrate groups including jawless fishes. The book describes mechanisms and theories for understanding the relationships between feeding structure and feeding behavior. Finally, the book demonstrates the importance of adopting an integrative approach to the trophic system in order to understand evolutionary mechanisms across the biodiversity of vertebrates.

Although feeding is not yet been thoroughly studied in many vertebrates taxa, and different conceptual and methodological approaches of the concerned scientists make a synthesis difficult, the aim of the editors is to provide a comprehensive overview of the feeding design in aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates with a detailed description of its functional properties. The book emphasizes the constant interaction between function and form, behaviour and morphology in the course of evolution of the feeding apparatus and way of feeding both complementary and basically related to survival interspecific competition, adaptation to environmental changes and adaptive radiations. Special stress is drawn onquantification of the observational and experimental data on the morphology and biomechanics of the feeding design and its element jaws, teeth, hyoidean apparatus, tongue, in order to allow present and further comparisons in an evolutionary perspective.

This book explores the importance of good nutrition in ensuring an adequate standard of welfare for farm animals. It is often not realized that farm animals can suffer when they are fed unsuitable diets, which may be because these diets are more economic or the farmer does not know how to rectify poor nutrition. This book reveals how to recognize and deal with feeding problems in farm animals, when the animal’s behaviour is indicating a deficiency, through oral stereotypies for example. Feeding livestock in emergency situations can present special challenges, and the availability of clean and potable water, one of the essential components of life, can also be an unrecognized problem for many farm animals. Feeding farm animals effectively is rarely recognized for the major welfare issue that it is. We may assume that animals in intensive husbandry conditions have adequate feed, yet it is often too concentrated and designed primarily to immediately maximize production from the animals, in the form of growth, milk yield or reproduction. In extensive rangeland conditions adequate feed supply also cannot be assured, potentially leading to undernutrition with serious consequences for the health and even survival of livestock. This book will provide a much-needed review of the relationships between nutrition and the welfare of farm animals.

Natural feeding, feeding modes, preferences and behaviour; Physiological regulation of feed intake: genetic, metabolic, hormonal and neural regulations; Environmental factors and feed intake: feeding behaviour, feed choice and feeding habits.

Understanding voluntary feed intake of pigs enables the precise formulation of pig feeds, ensuring the ingestion of sufficient but not excessive amounts of nutrients to optimise performance. This reference textbook, based on scientific results covers all aspects of feed intake in pigs. It contains up-to-date reviews by renowned scientific experts on different aspects affecting voluntary feed intake and diet selection in pigs. Different physiological factors involved in feed intake regulation, ranging from the sensorial evaluation of feeds, to the hormonal and metabolic regulation of feed intake and the impact of pig health are discussed. The book also deals with aspects such as genetic background of the animals, feeder design, feed manufacturing technology and the use of models to predict feed intake. This book is intended for academics, researchers, students and industry professionals involved in the field of pig nutrition and pig production.

This book contains an up to date and more focused examination of developments in the understanding of voluntary food intake and new ideas and studies related to diet selection. New chapters are introduced and old ones are rewritten and reorganized in a more readable style by using extensive reference to books and reviews. The book is intended for animal nutritionists, animal scientists, farm owners and managers, veterinarians and students.

CHOICE Highly Recommended title, 2022! This 30-chapter volume informs students and professionals about the behavioral biology of animals commonly housed in laboratory and other captive settings. Each species evolved under specific environmental conditions, resulting in unique behavioral patterns, many of which are maintained in captivity even after generations of breeding. Understanding natural behavior is therefore a critical part of modern animal care practices. The descriptions, data, guidance, resources, and recommendations in this book will help the reader understand their animals better, refine the care and treatment that they receive, and improve the well-being, welfare, and wellness of their animals. The book is divided into three sections, all focusing on aspects of the behavioral biology of animals found in laboratories and related research settings. After five introductory chapters, 25 chapters are dedicated to specific taxonomic groups (including mice, zebrafish, zebra finches, reptiles, macaques) while a concluding section of ethograms provides a centralized resource for those interested in understanding, and potentially quantifying, animal behavior. The Behavioral Biology of Laboratory Animals will provide anyone working in maintenance, care, and/or research programs that involve laboratory animals with information about the way the animals live in the wild, and the way that they should live in captive research settings. Many of the guidelines and recommendations will also be valuable to those managing and working with animals in other environments, including zoological parks, aquaria, and sanctuaries.