- Jun 9, 2017
- 92
- 90
- 123
Hi,
I know I’m joining the convo a little late, but I thought my two cents might be worthwhile.
Please note: I have NEVER worked with cattle - only horses (as well as dogs, cats, chickens, etc.) As such, I’m transferring my knowledge of horses on the basis that these large herd-and-prey- animals have similar behaviour. I could be completely wrong on this assumption. That’s being said...
When dealing with whatever animal you’re with, communication is key. Problems arise when people try and communicate with animals like they do with other people. I’ve seen people try and scold their dogs by explaining to them why they’re upset (“I don’t like it when you eat food off the counter!”) and scooping rabbits and chickens into their arms to reassure them when they get hurt. But all animals have different ways of “talking” and trying to apply human speech and body language to an animal leads to a lot of trouble.
People never hit people, so it can be hard for our human-hardwired brain to justify hitting an animal. However if you watch horses in the field, you’ll see they have no trouble with this. A horse lower on the hierarchy that behaves rudely will be swiftly scolded by a higher horse through kicking, nipping or at least a threat of such a actions. You may also notice that following a correction, the scolded horse will not pout, or cry or hide. That is because horses don’t see physical correction as excessive or rude, only mandatory for the success of the herd. In fact, it would be WORSE for the horse to have NOT been scolded, because one thing far worse for a horse than being physically corrected is to have confusion as to where they stand in the hierarchy. Confusion for a herd animal that absolutely depends on a clear hierarchy for their survival (as clear direction is absolutely necessary in their natural habitat when confronted with danger) is incredibly uncomfortable. A horse that receives confusing signals from human caretakers as to whether they stand above or below them become anxious, aggressive, fearful and so on.
So in conclusion, it’s is my opinion that a swift and clear correction is better than babying an animal. Animals like cows understand physical communication - it is their language. It is not mean or hurtful, because cows are not people and they do not talk out their problems or text each other or get counselling from therapists. The cow may feel some physical pain, but mentally, the cow would actually RATHER be corrected and know where they stand rather than sometimes be allowed to mount and behave in this way and be scolded for other things.
I know I’m joining the convo a little late, but I thought my two cents might be worthwhile.
Please note: I have NEVER worked with cattle - only horses (as well as dogs, cats, chickens, etc.) As such, I’m transferring my knowledge of horses on the basis that these large herd-and-prey- animals have similar behaviour. I could be completely wrong on this assumption. That’s being said...
When dealing with whatever animal you’re with, communication is key. Problems arise when people try and communicate with animals like they do with other people. I’ve seen people try and scold their dogs by explaining to them why they’re upset (“I don’t like it when you eat food off the counter!”) and scooping rabbits and chickens into their arms to reassure them when they get hurt. But all animals have different ways of “talking” and trying to apply human speech and body language to an animal leads to a lot of trouble.
People never hit people, so it can be hard for our human-hardwired brain to justify hitting an animal. However if you watch horses in the field, you’ll see they have no trouble with this. A horse lower on the hierarchy that behaves rudely will be swiftly scolded by a higher horse through kicking, nipping or at least a threat of such a actions. You may also notice that following a correction, the scolded horse will not pout, or cry or hide. That is because horses don’t see physical correction as excessive or rude, only mandatory for the success of the herd. In fact, it would be WORSE for the horse to have NOT been scolded, because one thing far worse for a horse than being physically corrected is to have confusion as to where they stand in the hierarchy. Confusion for a herd animal that absolutely depends on a clear hierarchy for their survival (as clear direction is absolutely necessary in their natural habitat when confronted with danger) is incredibly uncomfortable. A horse that receives confusing signals from human caretakers as to whether they stand above or below them become anxious, aggressive, fearful and so on.
So in conclusion, it’s is my opinion that a swift and clear correction is better than babying an animal. Animals like cows understand physical communication - it is their language. It is not mean or hurtful, because cows are not people and they do not talk out their problems or text each other or get counselling from therapists. The cow may feel some physical pain, but mentally, the cow would actually RATHER be corrected and know where they stand rather than sometimes be allowed to mount and behave in this way and be scolded for other things.
