As a result of a generous donation from the International Fund for Cat Welfare (IFCW) of the charity The Feline Advisory Bureau (FAB), following a gift from the Centre of Applied Pet Ethology (COAPE). The Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Lincoln (UK) welcomes applications from outstanding, enthusiastic and highly-motivated students from the EU (fully-funded) and worldwide (fees only). Funding for progression to a PhD is contingent upon satisfactory progress within the first 12 months of the project. The projects will involve extensive field work with cats in a variety of settings and so excellent communication skills, an ability to drive and a willingness to work irregular hours (including weekends) will be essential. The successful candidates will join a thriving and dynamic research environment, and will receive higher level training in clinical behaviour management, behavioural methods, experimental design, data handling and statistical analysis.
Supervisory team: Professor Daniel Mills, Dr Sarah Ellis, Dr Anna Wilkinson
This project is aimed ultimately at allowing the reliable prediction of the risk of human directed aggression by domestic cats and the prognosis for treatment of individual cases. Aggressive behaviour towards humans is the expression of many different emotional states, some of which may interact within an individual at any given time e.g. fear and frustration, while others are more independent e.g. appetitive SEEKING behaviour (sensu Panksepp 1998) and fear; the threshold of expression may vary with both underlying state (i.e. positive or negative affective mood) and temperament. This makes the reliable prediction of human directed aggression in cats a particularly challenging problem, since a simple behavioural test may reflect only the tendency towards aggression in one particular circumstance or the animal’s mood at that time rather than the more stable and general trait that it may purport to assess (Taylor and Mills 2006).
Much current knowledge of the ethology of feline aggressive behaviour is derived from the pioneering work of Leyhausen (1979). While this early work was ground breaking at its time, it was conceptually flawed, resulting in an ethogram which confused motivational states with behavioural descriptions. Thus aggression (a behaviour which can have multiple underlying emotional motivations) is described in opposition to fear (confounding the fact that fear can be expressed as a form of aggressive behaviour).
Therefore the first objective of the current study is to undertake a rigorous behavioural analysis of interaction of cats with people in a range of settings associated with the induction of different emotional states. The second objective is to develop and rationalise tests to assess human sociability in the domestic cat, in accordance with the protocol outlined in Taylor and Mills (2006). The third objective is to apply and assess intervention measures aimed at reducing the risk of human directed aggression from individual cats identified as “at risk” in order to provide precise prognostic information relating to this problem.
Informal enquiries can be made to Dr Wilkinson awilkinson@lincoln.ac.uk
Funding Notes
Successful candidates will be referred to as the “International Fund for Cat Welfare/ Centre for Applied Pet Ethology Scholar” (IFCW/COAPE) in all communications relating to the activity of their post and be expected to be ambassadors for the promotion of excellence in feline welfare in all their activities.
Applications for these positions are welcome from suitably qualified candidates worldwide. Candidates must hold or expect to obtain a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree (or equivalent) in the life science. Preference will be given to candidates with advanced training (e.g. MSc) in the key skills required for the successful completion of this project. The applicant must meet the minimum standard entry requirements for postgraduate courses: www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/postgraduate/entry_postgrad.htm.
Hands-on behavioural research experience will be an advantage, but full training will be provided for all techniques used. Post holders will be expected to contribute to the wider academic activity of the Department as part of their role. Applications will be reviewed from August 21st with initial interviews scheduled for early September but the position will remain open until filled. It is anticipated that the post-holder will commence in October 2011.
Application Process.
Students need to apply using the University of Lincoln application process (http://www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/postgraduate/application.htm). In addition to completing the application form, applicants should submit a CV detailing relevant skills and experiences and a covering letter highlighting their aptitude for the post.