Caprophagy in pigeons

[Roland]

Caprophagy in the horse Close

Coprophagy, or the ingestion of fecal material commonly raises great concerns in horse owners and handlers. To the uninformed, the behavior appears disgusting and maladaptive. In the foal, however, this is an integral component of growth and development and is therefore not considered abnormal, rather essential.

THE BEHAVIOUR AND ITS BENEFITS

In the foal, coprophagy is seen as a temporary behavior where the foal consumes small amounts of its mare's feces. The mare's feces contain a compound or pheromone that prompts such a response from her foal. The behavior is usually seen in its highest frequency for the first few weeks of the foal's life and continues until five or six months of age. Coprophagy benefits the young foal by helping to establish the micro flora of the gut. By ingesting the stool of the mare, the foal will receive the normal population of microorganisms that are necessary for the maintenance of the gastrointestinal tract. The consumption of fecal material throughout the first three weeks of life may also be of nutritional value. By eating small amounts throughout the day the foal receives a plethora of vitamins and minerals that may otherwise be lacking in their diet. This behavior does not satisfy hunger, but delivers those nutrients required in small amounts. Along with compensating for nutritional deficiencies, this behavior also acts to introduce a critical compound that the foal lacks. Deoxycholic acid is a bile acid that is passed from the mare to the foal through fecal ingestion. This compound acts as a protective substance that enhances the ability of the gut to fight off viral and bacterial infections. Without this compound the foal is susceptible to enteritis that commonly manifests itself as diarrhea. Along with increasing the immunocompetence of the gut, deoxycholic acid is fundamental in the development and function of the nervous system.

 

[bewted]

THIS IS WELL KNOWN IN THE RABBIT WORLD !!!!!!!

[Guest]

Believe its an entirely different process in pigeons: the adults seed the youngsters' digestive system with bacteria present in the adults' crop.

 

They are passed with the crop milk, together with a lot of other things the youngster needs for its immune and digestive systems .

 

I also understand pigeons do eat droppings too, but nobody seems to know why. For example, David Parsons on his latest CD says he thinks it might be down to boredom, while Tony Cowan says he thinks the birds know its a probiotic.

[Guest]

slightly off track but its well known that urine has been used by travellers..they soak their feet in it to get rid of corns etc.....paul

[sammy]

slightly off track but its well known that urine has been used by travellers..they soak their feet in it to get rid of corns etc.....paul

 

good for warming yir hands on cold morning when out poaching to paul

[Roland]

The plot thickens...

 

Wells DL.

 

Canine Behaviour Centre, School of Psychology, Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN.

 

Twenty-eight domestic dogs with the behavioural problem of eating their own faeces were treated in two ways. Half of them were treated with a citronella spray collar, and the others were treated with sound therapy. To assess the relative efficacy of the treatments their owners rated the severity of their dog's faeces eating for a week before the study began, during each of three weeks of treatment, and at the end of a fourth week during which they had not been treated. The owners reported a significantly lower incidence of the behavioural problem during the first week of both treatments, but in the dogs treated by sound therapy its incidence subsequently increased. The behavioural problem was reduced most effectively in the dogs treated with the spray collar, and continued to decrease during the period of treatment.

 

Publication Types:

Clinical Trial

Randomized Controlled Trial

 

PMID: 12885213 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Roland]

Amino acid, mineral and vitamin levels in hydrous faeces obtained from coprophagy-prevented rats. Close

Sukemori S, Ikeda S, Kurihara Y, Ito S.

 

Department of Zootechnical Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan. SUKEMORI@nodai.ac.jp

 

Amino acid, mineral and vitamin levels in hydrous faeces obtained from coprophagy-prevented rats were examined. Two experiments were conducted with rats of different age, 4 weeks and 10 weeks. Six rats each were fed under coprophagy-prevented and coprophagy-allowed (conventional feeding) conditions, respectively. In the first experiment using 4-week-old rats, amino acid values were determined for hydrous faeces and usual faeces obtained in the above-mentioned conditions. In the second experiment using 10-week-old rats, mineral values were determined for both types of faeces. Vitamin values were determined in both experiments. In a comparison of amino acid values and their patterns, specific kinds of amino acids in hydrous faeces were not recognized as growth factors. Sodium and potassium levels in hydrous faeces were significantly higher than those for usual faeces, but those levels were 1/(18-20) of those derived from feed. Although cyanocobalamin and folic acid levels in hydrous faeces were two to three times higher than those for usual faeces, folic acid supplements from coprophagy were 1/8 of those derived from feed. Cyanocobalamin supplements from hydrous faeces were five times larger than those from feed. Therefore, it appears that cyanocobalamin was supplied by the ingestion of hydrous faeces and that this cyanocobalamin supports conventional growth in rats.

 

PMID: 12752827 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[ch pied]

the plot thicken's . dog's doing this have also been found to have vit D ,

deficiency, prob spelt wrong