Using Eye and Nasal Temperatures to Measure Positive Emotions in Free-Range Hamdani Sheep

Abstract

The present study was designed to measure both eye and nasal temperatures by stroking the animals’ body to determine positive emotional state in free-range Hamdani ewes. Twenty Hamdani ewes, aging 2-4 years, were used in this study. Focal sampling was used to collect data. Data were collected from both nose and eyes of animals. A total of 1680 temperature data, an average of 84 data from each ewe, were collected from all twenty ewes throughout the study. Ewes were stroked at the forehead, withers and neck for five minutes, temperature data were collected twice before, twice during and twice after stroking for both eyes and nose. Results revealed that there was a significant difference in eye temperature (P<0.01) as well as nasal temperature (P<0.05) between the three stages. Both eye and nasal temperatures were decreasing over time. In addition, the mean eye and nasal temperatures for all stopwatches were highly correlated (r = 0.94). From this study it could be concluded that peripheral (eye and nose) temperatures offer a useful understanding of changes in emotional valence in ewes.