A novel set of behavioural indicators for measuring perception of food by cats.
Behavioural indicators provide a promising approach for objective assessment of the perceptions of animals. In cats, the frequency of specific behaviours as indicators of perception has been studied in connection with food palatability. The aim of this study was to expand that knowledge by identifying behavioural indicators correlating with three degrees of palatability. Thirty-four pet cats were presented with three types of items: favoured food (FF), favoured food with a placebo mini-tablet hidden inside (TFF) and non-favoured food (NFF). The items were presented in a pseudo-randomised sequence, with six trials per item and 18 trials per cat. The behaviour of cats before, during and after eating, or refusing to eat, was video-recorded. Two trained observers, blinded to the types of food items, independently determined the frequency of 16 behavioural patterns on the video recordings. The data were analysed using a mixed logistic regression model. Five behavioural patterns differentiated FF from NFF; 'flick ears backwards', 'lick nose, not eaten', 'flick tail' and 'groom body' were more frequent with NFF, whereas 'lick lips' was more frequent with FF. One indicator, 'drop item', was more frequent with TFF than FF. These findings provide evidence of new behavioural indicators for objective assessment of food perception in cats. The findings also have practical applicability in designing a novel palatability test to be utilised in developing veterinary pharmaceuticals with improved palatability for cats.
Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, 00014 Helsinki, Finland. Electronic address: saila.savolainen@helsinki.fi.
Saila
S
Savolainen
Department of Production Animal Medicine, Research Centre for Animal Welfare, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, 00014 Helsinki, Finland; Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Helena
H
Telkänranta
4Pharma Ltd, Finland, Ahventie 4, 02170 Espoo, Finland.
Jouni
J
Junnila
Division of Pharmaceutical Technology, Industrial Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Jaana
J
Hautala
Division of Pharmaceutical Technology, Industrial Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Sari
S
Airaksinen
Division of Pharmaceutical Technology, Industrial Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Anne
A
Juppo
Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Marja
M
Raekallio
Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Outi
O
Vainio
D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000379:methods*; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D002415:Cats / Q000502:physiology*; D004435:Eating; D005010:Ethology / Q000379:methods*; D005518:Food Preferences; D010465:Perception; D010919:Placebos / Q000008:administration & dosage
D010919:Placebos
Behavioural indicators; Feline; Palatability; Taste reactivity