| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Ethology | The study of behavior |
| Female Grouping | Groups of females and their young, interacting with males only to breed |
| Harem Grouping | Groups of females and their young defended by a single male |
| Compound Social Structure | Adult males, females, and juveniles in a large social group |
| Solitary-Territorial | A female and her young occupy a territory and defend it from males and other females |
| Paired-Territorial | A sexual pair occupy and defend a territory from other members of their species |
| Alpha | The dominant member(s) of a pack |
| Piloerection | Hair standing on end |
| Neoteny | The persistance of immature characteristics into adulthood |
| Monogamy | Having only one mate |
| Positive Reinforcement | Giving a pleasurable reward in response to desired behavior |
| Negetive Reinforcement | The animal avoids a fearful or aversice stimulus by performing a particular behavior |
| Punishment | The delivery of an aversive stimulus to the animal in response to a behavior |
| Extinction | A behavioral modification technique that removes a positive reward for a previously rewarded behavior, resulting in a gradual decline in the behavior until the animal no longer performs the behavior |
| Counterconditioning | Training an animal to perform a behavior in response to a stimulus different and incompatible with the previous response to the same stimulus |
| Desensitization | Using a gradually increasing stimulus to reduce the stimulus' impact on the animal |
| Autonomous | Independant |
| Aggression | A behavior with intent to harm |
| Dominance Aggression | The animal perceives a threat to its dominance |
| Fear Aggression | The animal perceives a threat to its space or physical being |
| Territorial/Possessive Aggression | The animal responds to a threat to their territory |
| Prey Aggression | Aggression directed to a smaller, prey0like species |
| Redirected Aggression | The animal perceives a threat of some sort, but directs its aggression toward another animal, person or object that did not elicit the threat |
| Separation Anxiety | Anxiety brought on by being separated from owner, or being left alone for even short periods of time. |
| Spraying | A territorial marking behavior |
| Displacement Behaviors | Behaviors that might be fairly normal, but are used in excess when stressed |
| Gentle Leader | Type of head collar that allows for painless, acurate control of the head |
Combine with other sets
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace