FAT LAZY YANKEES use sheep to mow their lawn
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TaraDeS — 2 years ago(April 22, 2023 02:40 AM)
by Lara Croft April 22, 2023 03:26 AM
Member since November 17, 2017
D.C. communities use sheep to mow lawns
[video]
Sheep are the best mowers.
And sheep are much brighter than many people think.
The sharpest Mind on the Farm
Zoology – When it comes to animal intelligence, humans tend to get it wrong.
So sheep often have to serve as dumb herd animals. But this is not true.
At the University of Cambridge, the intelligence of sheep is systematically researched.
Lush grass may grow on the verdant hills of Yorkshire, but every now and then a well tended vegetable garden is very tempting to the sheep. And if they're hungry, they can be unexpectedly clever. At least that's what a farmer noticed when his herd came up with tricks to overcome a three meter wide pasture grate:
Some animals lay on their side and pulled themselves over the rollers, others rolled over them - and then their way into the garden was free.
The sheep had solved this problem of their own accord.
At the University of Cambridge, on the other hand, their intelligence is systematically researched:
"I initially did a test that patients with Huntington's disease and schizophrenia have difficulty with. These diseases are my actual field of work. After the Huntington's Chorea gene was introduced into sheep in Australia, I wanted to assess the abilities of the healthy animals so that we could recognize the course of the disease. In the first stage of our experiment, they should learn that there is always a reward in a yellow bucket. Sheep learn this, mice, rats, monkeys, humans - everyone. Then we changed the rules and the reward is no longer in the yellow bucket, but in the blue bucket."
Unlike patients with Huntington's disease or schizophrenia, the sheep grasped this reversal very quickly, explains neuroscientist Jennifer Morton:
"Then I made it harder and changed the bucket colors to green and purple. The sheep understood. Then it got really difficult. The colors remained, but instead of buckets there was a cone and a cube.
The sheep had to learn that it is no longer about colors, but about shapes.
Rats and mice never make it, but sheep do."
This puts them in a very exclusive class: only humans and primates have seen through this until now.
This allows conclusions to be drawn about the function of their brain.
"Apparently, they also play a major role in an area of the brain that is very developed in humans and that we know is important when learning rules."
The Cambridge researchers also found that sheep are excellent at spatial orientation and remember their surroundings very well. They can distinguish the faces of conspecifics and people - in real life as well as in photos. They also have a first-class memory.
They recognize their sheep friends even after years of separation.
"They live in a strong social hierarchy with a high level of attachment because they can only protect themselves from predators as a group. They need highly developed brains because their social interactions are also highly developed."
As well as their ability to distinguish plants, Cécile Ginane of the French Institute of Agriculture Inra explains:
"I'm studying how sheep learn to find their food in a complex environment like a species-rich meadow. Whether they notice that some plants have positive or negative effects on their digestion and metabolism. How do sheep learn to associate what they eat with the consequences?"
In order to find out, lambs were trained in a series of tests to develop an aversion to certain grasses and vegetables using, among other things, a nausea-triggering substance. Then Cécile Ginane observed their eating behavior. The result: The lambs also ignored food that was similar in shape, taste or smell.
"So they can categorize their food based on characteristics and develop likes or dislikes accordingly. They associate their food with the consequences and transfer that knowledge to similar plants."
Researchers at Utah State University also studied lambs' ability to learn. They provided their food with a nausea-inducing substance and shortly thereafter offered them the antidote. The lambs retained the lesson and, for months afterwards, remembered it and consciously sought out the wholesome substance.
Sheep are misjudged geniuses on the pasture.
https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/der-schaerfste-verstand-auf-dem-bauernhof-100.html -
TaraDeS — 2 years ago(April 22, 2023 03:55 AM)
by Lara Croft April 22, 2023 04:58 AM
Member since November 17, 2017
Kurzfassung erhältlich?
…yah, look above.
The short version is:
Sheep are the best mowers.
And sheep are much brighter than many people think. -
Lilith — 2 years ago(April 22, 2023 07:50 PM)
That's brilliant! No gas fumes polluting the air from lawn mowers. Plus, it's humane and animal friendly. It's win-win situation all the way around.
Folks up here also use goats and cows.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith -
TaraDeS — 2 years ago(April 22, 2023 09:12 PM)
by Lilith April 22, 2023 09:50 PM
Member since April 16, 2019
That's brilliant! No gas fumes polluting the air from lawn mowers. Plus, it's humane and animal friendly. It's win-win situation all the way around.
Folks up here also use goats and cows.
…and besides of a little
"Meh"
they're silent.
A few goats are helpful, depends on the area.
Back to the roots.
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MissMargoChanning — 2 years ago(April 22, 2023 10:00 PM)
FAT LAZY YANKEES use sheep to mow their lawn
Livestock has been doing the "mowing" for over a century! This has been going on for a long time!
Isn't this done in most places???
In any case, it ought to be the practice!
Feed the stock
Mow the grass
Save on the fuel!
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!
