Canine Behaviour Foundation Course
Module 3 - Section - 9 - Some Anatomy & Nervous System
Module 3 - Section - 9 - Some Anatomy & Nervous System
The Nervous System
- The Dog’s Brain
- The Cerebrum
- Limbic System
- The Midbrain
- The Cerebellum
- The Spinal Cord
- Autonomic Nervous System
- Sympathetic
- Parasympathetic
- The Skeleton
- The Organs
- The Parts of the Dog
An intimate knowledge of dog anatomy is not necessary, although it is a good idea to know the subject your are working with from all perspectives.
What is an important factor, is that over the years it has become more and more important to understand how a dog’s brain and nervous system works as the treatment of canine behaviour problems becomes more veterinary based, using drug-assisted therapy to help with certain conditions, such as separation anxiety, phobias and reactive behaviour, so I do suggest that you make yourself as familiar as possible with this aspect of dogs.
Additionally, especially when dealing with reactive behaviour, one has to rule out any physical causes that may be contributing to the behaviour, so having a sound knowledge of what is ‘normal’ and what is not, as well as the more common diseases, will aid you with your work and assessment of the behavioural concern. When you have your TTouch practical sessions, you will learn more about how to gauge if there is any discomfort in a dogs body.
1.The Nervous System
If you have never done any courses on anatomy or physiology before, on first reading through what is involved, it sounds very confusing and it really can be, just as human anatomy and physiology is complicated. What we are going to try and do is to simplify and summarize it so that you get an understanding of the basics, which we hope will make it easier to understand. This really is a fascinating subject and if you get the time, or it interests you, do make the effort to read more.
Basically, a dog’s nervous system is composed of the peripheral (PNS) and central nervous systems (CNS). The peripheral systems mostly consists of sensory fibres and motor neurons (can be described as the basic building blocks of the nervous system), which are gathered together into bundles and are called nerves. The central system has segregated neurons and lies within the skull and spinal cavities. The central nervous system is divided into two parts i.e. the brain and the spinal cord.
One of the areas where TTouch can make such a difference with behaviour is that when we do the TTouches on the dog, we are giving information to both the nervous system and the neurotransmitters which carry information to and from the brain. What would be a good ideas to to re-read the excellent article by Kathy Cascade (An International TTouch Instructor) where she describes exactly how the sensory side of TTouch works to give you a better understanding as to how it impacts on the nervous system and why this modality makes such a difference in changing a dogs behaviour - this is in your TTouch notes
2. The Dog’s Brain
The brain is the largest and most complex and has three main parts — the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain. The forebrain consists of the cerebrum, thalamus, and hypothalamus (part of the limbic system). The midbrain consists of the tectum and tegmentum. Hindbrain consists of the cerebellum, pons and medulla and is referred to together as the brainstem.
The delicate tissue of the brain is protected with a sturdy covering of tissue called the meninges in addition to being protected by the bones of the skull.
What is an important factor, is that over the years it has become more and more important to understand how a dog’s brain and nervous system works as the treatment of canine behaviour problems becomes more veterinary based, using drug-assisted therapy to help with certain conditions, such as separation anxiety, phobias and reactive behaviour, so I do suggest that you make yourself as familiar as possible with this aspect of dogs.
Additionally, especially when dealing with reactive behaviour, one has to rule out any physical causes that may be contributing to the behaviour, so having a sound knowledge of what is ‘normal’ and what is not, as well as the more common diseases, will aid you with your work and assessment of the behavioural concern. When you have your TTouch practical sessions, you will learn more about how to gauge if there is any discomfort in a dogs body.
1.The Nervous System
If you have never done any courses on anatomy or physiology before, on first reading through what is involved, it sounds very confusing and it really can be, just as human anatomy and physiology is complicated. What we are going to try and do is to simplify and summarize it so that you get an understanding of the basics, which we hope will make it easier to understand. This really is a fascinating subject and if you get the time, or it interests you, do make the effort to read more.
Basically, a dog’s nervous system is composed of the peripheral (PNS) and central nervous systems (CNS). The peripheral systems mostly consists of sensory fibres and motor neurons (can be described as the basic building blocks of the nervous system), which are gathered together into bundles and are called nerves. The central system has segregated neurons and lies within the skull and spinal cavities. The central nervous system is divided into two parts i.e. the brain and the spinal cord.
One of the areas where TTouch can make such a difference with behaviour is that when we do the TTouches on the dog, we are giving information to both the nervous system and the neurotransmitters which carry information to and from the brain. What would be a good ideas to to re-read the excellent article by Kathy Cascade (An International TTouch Instructor) where she describes exactly how the sensory side of TTouch works to give you a better understanding as to how it impacts on the nervous system and why this modality makes such a difference in changing a dogs behaviour - this is in your TTouch notes
2. The Dog’s Brain
The brain is the largest and most complex and has three main parts — the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain. The forebrain consists of the cerebrum, thalamus, and hypothalamus (part of the limbic system). The midbrain consists of the tectum and tegmentum. Hindbrain consists of the cerebellum, pons and medulla and is referred to together as the brainstem.
The delicate tissue of the brain is protected with a sturdy covering of tissue called the meninges in addition to being protected by the bones of the skull.
2. The Cerebrum (or cerebral cortex) (Forebrain)
Forms the largest part of the brain and as the dog has a well-developed cerebral cortex, in addition to sustaining life and control survival strategies, it is capable of complex behaviour patterns and thought processes. This is the part of a dog's brain that controls emotional, behavioral and learning functions.
The Thalamus acts as a sort of relay station for sensory pathways making their way to the cerebral cortex, motor control, receives auditory, somatic sensory and visual sensory signals and controls sleep and awake states.
The Hypothalamus sits beneath the Thalamus and is involved in the ingestion behaviour, body temperature, reproductive system and the ANS (Autonomic Nervous System). It is also involved in the control of the endocrine system, and as a limbic system structure, influences various emotional responses.
Forms the largest part of the brain and as the dog has a well-developed cerebral cortex, in addition to sustaining life and control survival strategies, it is capable of complex behaviour patterns and thought processes. This is the part of a dog's brain that controls emotional, behavioral and learning functions.
The Thalamus acts as a sort of relay station for sensory pathways making their way to the cerebral cortex, motor control, receives auditory, somatic sensory and visual sensory signals and controls sleep and awake states.
The Hypothalamus sits beneath the Thalamus and is involved in the ingestion behaviour, body temperature, reproductive system and the ANS (Autonomic Nervous System). It is also involved in the control of the endocrine system, and as a limbic system structure, influences various emotional responses.
3. Limbic System
Within the Cerebrum (cerebral cortex), lies the limbic system which is a network of cells and is known as the Emotional Brain, or the ‘seat’ of emotions in TTouch, and as such plays an important part in reactive behaviour, anxiety, fear, joy etc.
The limbic system is also known as the centre of all learning. This system contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus. The amygdale is responsible for survival strategies and defence responses.
As the mouth connects to the Limbic system of the brain, by working around and inside a dogs mouth using TTouch (as well as taping on the roof of the mouth where the vomeronasal organ is found) we can influence the dog’s emotions and assist in changing behaviour and showing a dog a new way to react. Mouth work is wonderful for dogs that chew, bark, bite, and even affects a dog that is OTT. When nothing else seems to be helping to get the dog to settle down, a bit of mouth work can make an amazing difference.
Within the Cerebrum (cerebral cortex), lies the limbic system which is a network of cells and is known as the Emotional Brain, or the ‘seat’ of emotions in TTouch, and as such plays an important part in reactive behaviour, anxiety, fear, joy etc.
The limbic system is also known as the centre of all learning. This system contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus. The amygdale is responsible for survival strategies and defence responses.
As the mouth connects to the Limbic system of the brain, by working around and inside a dogs mouth using TTouch (as well as taping on the roof of the mouth where the vomeronasal organ is found) we can influence the dog’s emotions and assist in changing behaviour and showing a dog a new way to react. Mouth work is wonderful for dogs that chew, bark, bite, and even affects a dog that is OTT. When nothing else seems to be helping to get the dog to settle down, a bit of mouth work can make an amazing difference.
4. The Midbrain
The midbrain, which consists of the tectum and tegmentum, is located underneath the middle of the forebrain, and acts as a master co-ordinator for all the messages going in and out of the brain to the spinal cord.
- 5. The Cerebellum (Hindbrain)
The cerebellum, which is responsible for co-ordinated movement and the rest of the nervous system, is not fully developed at birth.
In an article by Sara Martwig M.S. who earned her Master’s Degree in Physical Education with a specialization in Motor Learning, says that with children “Research has shown that the cerebellum is responsible for integrating sensory information to allow efficient learning to take place. If the cerebellum is not fully developed, you will typically start to see problems with coordination, memory, restlessness or high activity levels, distractibility, and difficulty with learning. You may even see enough of these symptoms for a diagnosis of ADD/ADHD, or dyslexia.”
The same principle is being studied in dogs to see if intervention such as placing a young pup a bit away from the dam and allowing it to find its way back, or placing objects in its way, will stimulate the cerebellum and result in dogs that have better balance, co-ordination, learning ability etc and from results to date, although not 100% confirmed, it does seem to make a difference.
Ongoing study on the stimulation of the Cerebellum on dogs and other animals is underway and one of these, in pdf format can be found at Intracerebellar conditioning — Brogden and ... - neuro.iastate.edu for those of you that would like to read further.
Additionally, this is an area where TTouch can have a large impact, as when we walk a dog, using various movements over the Groundwork section of TTouch we are giving proprioceptive input to this section of the brain – as we often stop and do some TTouches on the dog, we are also giving tactile information to the nervous system. The combination of the touches and Groundwork can bring about amazing changes.
6. The Spinal Cord
The spinal cord is embedded into the vertebral column of the dog and starts at the back of the brain and almost to the tip of the tail. The spinal cord has two major tasks: it transmits information to and from the brain, and it handles reflex actions.
7. Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)
This is situated in the medulla oblongata in the lower brainstem and is controlled primarily by the hindbrain. The nerves of the autonomic nervous system originate in the spinal cord and pass out between the vertebrae to serve the various organs. Its function is to control mostly unconscious body processes such as breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, reproductive organs and digestion and is operational even when unconscious. An example is that a dog sees something that threatens it and the ANS automatically increases the rate of breathing and heart rate. When the threat is no longer there and the dog feels safe again, the nervous system slows down and resumes all the normal body functions such as the digestion of food. In the signs of stress section, you will see that one of the signs that a dog is in major stress is that it will totally refuse food; you will now understand that the ANS is responsible.
The ANS divides into two main systems which operate independently in some functions and inter co-operatively in others. In many cases the two have opposite actions, where one activates a physiological response and the other inhibits it.:-
Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) – stimulates the “flight, fright, fight” response that allows a dog to confront a threat or make a rapid departure. It increases the heart and respiratory rates, as well as the amount of blood flowing to the skeletal muscles while blood flow to less critical regions like the gut and skin is reduced. It also causes the pupils of the eyes to dilate (whale eye in dogs).
Parasympathetic Nervous System – performs exactly the opposite of the sympathetic system. It maintains the normal functions of the relaxed body. These are sometimes known as the “housekeeping” functions. It aids effective digestion, stimulates defecation and urination and maintains a regular heartbeat and rate of breathing.
If the SNS is over-stimulated and especially for long periods of time, in humans, problems such as anxiety, hypertension and digestive disturbances can occur. In dogs over stimulation can lead to a variety of stress related symptoms and problem behaviours.
Over-stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system can result in low blood pressure and fatigue. Both imbalances lead to poor adaptation to stress.
In humans it has been shown that if children of pre-school age were not allowed to cope with stressful situations in the home environment, that their ability to cope when they went to school was greatly reduced. We believe the same is to be said for our dogs and what we need to aim for, is a happy balance between the two to create harmony.
As mentioned previously, because TTouch has a direct effect on a dog’s nervous system, it can be helpful to balance the ANS.
The Dog’s Anatomy
In addition to having a basic knowledge on the skeleton and the organs and their functions, we would suggest than you make yourself familiar with some of the common problems dogs encounter, such as wrist, knee and elbow problems, especially cruciate ligament (connects the bones of the knee) and also possible HD problems (Hip Dysplasia)
1. The Skeleton
Although it is not a perquisite for you to know the names of the bones and their position in the body, or the information about the organs, it is a good idea to have a good knowledge of where they are, in the event you are talking to a vet and also where the organs are situation in respect to the skeleton. Here is a site that covers both the organs and the skeleton for those of you that would like to research further. http://www.gsdhelp.info/ortho/internalanatomy.html and
http://www.petplace.com/dogs/structure-and-function-of-the-skeleton-in-dogs/page1.aspx for the skeleton.
Other facts about dogs that are relevant:-
http://www.friendsofthedog.co.za/tail-docking.html
In addition to having a basic knowledge on the skeleton and the organs and their functions, we would suggest than you make yourself familiar with some of the common problems dogs encounter, such as wrist, knee and elbow problems, especially cruciate ligament (connects the bones of the knee) and also possible HD problems (Hip Dysplasia)
1. The Skeleton
Although it is not a perquisite for you to know the names of the bones and their position in the body, or the information about the organs, it is a good idea to have a good knowledge of where they are, in the event you are talking to a vet and also where the organs are situation in respect to the skeleton. Here is a site that covers both the organs and the skeleton for those of you that would like to research further. http://www.gsdhelp.info/ortho/internalanatomy.html and
http://www.petplace.com/dogs/structure-and-function-of-the-skeleton-in-dogs/page1.aspx for the skeleton.
Other facts about dogs that are relevant:-
- Dogs do not have collarbones.
- A dog has approximately 319 bones in its body.
- A dog perspires through its paws and for this reason many behaviourists will have a type of flooring in their rooms where this can be observed, such as slate. Sweaty feet in a dog are a sign of major stress if the weather is not a factor.
- The dog’s tail, unless docked, usually consists of between six and 23 highly mobile vertebrae. In TTouch you will see how much importance is placed on the tail. Many dogs with fear issues do not like their tails being touched and carry a lot of tension along the spine and down the tail. We will be looking at how much a dog communicates with its tail.
- Tail Docking – as I believe that tail docking can impact on behaviour, here are several links to articles on tail docking.
http://www.friendsofthedog.co.za/tail-docking.html
- There are 42 teeth present in adult dogs. There are 12 incisors, 4 canine teeth, 16 premolars, and 10 molars. Puppies only have 28 deciduous teeth.
- Dogs are Crepuscular – this means that they are more active at twilight or before sunrise. This works in owner’s favour in that dogs are normally happy to wait patiently at home while their owners are at work. You will find that most dogs will be active at one (sometimes both) of these times and I have had many owners referring to their dog’s ‘mad hour’ and it normally occurs that these times. Although we are not talking behaviour here, if you do come across a client with a dog that has the ‘mad hour’, suggest that the client walks or plays with the dog at the times when the behaviour occurs – it is often easier to tie in with what is happening naturally with the dog, rather than change the behaviour at this time. If a walk or exercise is not an option, then often a nice big chewy bone can help the dog to settle.
Pictures of different tail sizes
2. The Organs
As mentioned previously, it is not necessary for you to learn the various organs or their functions, but I do believe it is a good idea to have at least an understanding of where they are situated and what their function is. Here is a good link for you to have a look at if you want to find out more of what the various organs do:-
http://www.infovisual.info/02/069_en.html
As mentioned previously, it is not necessary for you to learn the various organs or their functions, but I do believe it is a good idea to have at least an understanding of where they are situated and what their function is. Here is a good link for you to have a look at if you want to find out more of what the various organs do:-
http://www.infovisual.info/02/069_en.html
3. Parts of the Dog
As with the skeleton and the organs, it is not a prerequisite to know all the parts of a dog for a behaviourist, however we believe that this will just make more professional.
As with the skeleton and the organs, it is not a prerequisite to know all the parts of a dog for a behaviourist, however we believe that this will just make more professional.
