I was fascinated recently by a video clip of a bee being trained to play football. A fake bee was used to show a real bee how to move the ball in exchange for a drop of sugar. Once the bee had learned this rewarding move it was then able to show another bee how to move the ball, and when given a choice of ball would always go for the nearest one requiring least work even when the bee that had been observed had been forced to move one further away (Loukola et al, 2017). It is not new that bees can communicate with one another — successful honey bee foragers use waggle dances to tell nestmates the direction and distance of profitable flower patches — but this study has shown that the bee's ability to learn is more sophisticated than previously thought.
We continue to discover that animals have more complex feelings than was once thought possible. It is now widely accepted, for example, that animals feel pain even when they are hiding it from our unobserving eyes, and that they should receive pre-emptive analgesia, be regularly pain scored, and that it is likely that a procedure that is painful to you or I would also be painful to them. We have a growing understanding of the ability of animals to feel stress and the negative consequences of this — many animals live in an environment for which they are ill-prepared. Our much loved companion animals can inadvertently find themselves in a state of chronic stress predisposing them to a number of stress-related issues. In this issue we launch the start of a series on stress looking at a number of different species. The introductory article ‘Let's talk about stress’ (p86) by Claire Hargrave explains why there is a need for more conversation on the recognition and prevention of stress.
The research article this month presents a series of case studies of different species showing trained behaviour (p116). The author shows that species ranging from tapirs to fish can be trained for new behaviours beneficial to their care. Kelly Deane also introduces a small study of a group of zebra trained to receive their annual vaccination. While the study is too small to be conclusive it does raise an important issue — trained behaviours could be used to improve animal welfare not just in zoo animals but also in companion animals.
We now also have a better understanding of the strength of the human–animal bond. It is this bond that in many cases enables the trained behaviour, but this bond also means that the loss of a pet is felt acutely. In the third in our series on bereavement Libby Sheridan and Helen Tottey (p66) look at the client experience — empathy and compassion should be displayed at all touchpoints on the end-of-life journey by all members of the veterinary practice. Training and protocols can help all concerned at this difficult time.
Research is essential to the future of veterinary nursing and needs to be built on to bring veterinary nurses in line with their human counterparts. In the comment piece this month (p128) Kate Sparksman describes how she embarked on her journey into research. I would urge all veterinary nurses to consider whether this route would suite them too. For all veterinary nurses having an evidence-based, best practice approach to patients is essential. The BSAVA Congress is the perfect way to meet fellow veterinary professionals, exchange ideas and update your skills. We will be there, please come and see us on stand 401!