Veterinary Physiology-III

MATERNAL BEHAVIOUR

• Maternal behaviour begins shortly before birth and end after the young are weaned. This behaviour varies among different farm animals.
• In the cows after the young is born the mother rises, inspects and starts licking to clean the calf s hair coat clean and shiny, removes the placenta and starts to nurse the calf. The mother is possessive with her young during the nursing period. If the calf encounters any trouble, the mother comes to its rescue, and may even injure a person who comes too close.
• The mother and young uses visual, tactile, taste and olfactory communications to identify each other. At the time of weaning, the cow and calf bellows almost continuously for 2 or 3 days after which they become quite. After several days of separation, the bond between them is severed and they show no sign of recognition.
• Before parturition, the sow prepares nest and marks an area contoured to her body. It lies in such a way that soon after birth, the piglets can easily approach the mammary gland. Some sows are nervous during farrowing and may eat piglets. Sows are very protective of their young and will defend them when they squeak. The sow emits sharp barking grunts in rapid succession, when an intruder approaches the sow . She cares for her young till weaning, and 2 to 3 days after weaning she loses interest in them. Sows will accept piglets from other litter, if placed with them during the first 1 or 2 days of farrowing .
• Within few days after birth, each piglet in the litter locates a teat, and the same teat is used during the remaining period of nursing. Runt piglets get rear teats where availability of milk is lesser than the front teats.
• The ewes after parturition lick the newborn lamb to clean it. The lamb staggers to its feet and try to find teat. The ewe stands quietly during this process. The lamb wags its tail during nursing. Ewe will accept and suckle orphan kids and vice versa.
• In hens, broodiness (inclination to sit on eggs) is the maternal behaviour and it is inherited. It is influenced by prolactin. Broody hen will sit on nest with eggs or even without eggs and they spend very little time to obtain food or water during the incubation period.

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Abnormal maternal behaviour

• Cannibalism - common in carnivores and birds
• Placentophagy - common in herbivores and carnivores, absent in horses and camels
• Stealing the young ones - is common in sheep, when a ewe is in prepartum it will have a strong maternal motivation which makes it to steal the young ones of other ewes.