Animal Studies Commons^™

Experience In Substrate-Enriched And Substrate-Impoverished Environments Affects Behaviour Of Pigs In A T-Maze Task, Michael Mendl, Hans W. Erhard, Marie Haskell, Françoise Wemelsfelder, Alistair B. Lawrence

Sentience Collection

Previous research showed that pigs reared in substrate-impoverished conditions performed a smaller proportion of their total behavioural repertoire in their home pens (showed lower behavioural diversity), than pigs reared in substrate-enriched conditions. This study examined whether these differences were the result of fundamental changes in behavioural organisation. A T-maze task was used to test the hypothesis that substrate-impoverished pigs are prone to develop fixed, unvarying behaviour which may underlie their reduced behavioural diversity. They were predicted to be poorer at reversing previous response patterns in the maze, and less able to alter their behaviour in response to a novel (distracting) …

Language-Naive Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes) Judge Relations Between Relations In A Conceptual Matching-To-Sample Task, Roger K.R. Thompson, David L. Oden, Sarah T. Boysen

Sentience Collection

Three chimpanzees with a history of conditional and numeric token training spontaneously matched relations between relations under conditions of nondifferential reinforcement. Heretofore, this conceptual ability was demonstrated only in language-trained chimpanzees. The performance levels of the language-naive animals in this study, however, were equivalent to those of a 4th animal—Sarah—whose history included language training and analogical problem solving. There was no evidence that associative factors mediated successful performance in any of the animals. Prior claims of a profound disparity between language-trained and language-naive chimpanzees apparently can be attributed to prior experience with arbitrary tokens consistently associated with abstract relations and …

Harry F. Harlow And Animal Research: Reflection On The Ethical Paradox, John P. Gluck

Experimentation Collection

With respect to the ethical debate about the treatment of animals in biomedical and behavioral research, Harry F. Harlow represents a paradox. On the one hand, his work on monkey cognition and social development fostered a view of the animals as having rich subjective lives filled with intention and emotion. On the other, he has been criticized for the conduct of research that seemed to ignore the ethical implications of his own discoveries. The basis of this contradiction is discussed and propositions for current research practice are presented.

Institutional Animal Care And Use Committees: A Flawed Paradigm Or Work In Progress?, John P. Gluck, F. Barbara Orlans

Animal Welfare Collection

In his challenging article, Steneck (1997) criticized the creation of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) system established by the 1985 amendments to the Animal Welfare Act. He saw the IACUC review and approval of biomedical and behavioral research with animals as an unnecessary "reassignment" of duties from existing animal care programs to IACUC committees. He argued that the committees are unable to do the work expected of them for basically three reasons: (a) the membership lacks the expertise in matters relevant to animal research and care, (b) there exists an inherent and disabling conflict of interest, and …

Interactions Among Dogs, People, And The Environment In Boulder, Colorado: A Case Study, Marc Bekoff, Carron A. Meaney

Pets Collection

From September 1995 to April 1996 we studied interactions among dogs, people, and the environment in Boulder, Colorado. Data on behavioral disturbances by off-leash dogs who were accompanied by a person were collected with respect to dog-dog and dog-human interactions, dog-wildlife encounters, dogs trampling vegetation, and dogs entering and disturbing bodies of water. A questionnaire also was administered. Behavioral data showed that off-leash dogs generally did not travel far off trail, that when they did it was for short periods of time, and that they rarely were observed to chase other dogs, disturb people, chase wildlife, destroy vegetation, or enter …

A Scientific Conception Of Animal Welfare That Reflects Ethical Concerns, D. Fraser, D. M. Weary, E. A. Pajor, B. N. Milligan

Ethics and Animal Welfare Collection

Scientific research on 'animal welfare' began because of ethical concerns over the quality of life of animals, and the public looks to animal welfare research for guidance regarding these concerns. The conception of animal welfare used by scientists must relate closely to these ethical concerns if the orientation of the research and the interpretation of the findings is to address them successfully.

At least three overlapping ethical concerns are commonly expressed regarding the quality of life of animals: (1) that animals should lead natural lives through the development and use of their natural adaptations and capabilities, (2) that animals should …

Effect Of Room Arrangement And Blood Sample Collection Sequence On Serum Thyroid Hormone And Cortisol Concentrations In Cynomolgus Macaques (Macacafascicularis), Bryan L. Flow, John T. Jaques

Research Methodology and Laboratory Animals Collection

We evaluated the relationship, in cynomolgus macaques (Macacafascicularis), between rank for order of blood collection with serum concentrations of 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), free thyroxine (FT4), and serum cortisol. These relationships were determined for males and females that were housed in two room arrangements. For both room arrangements, males and females were housed separately. For room arrangement 1, macaques were housed on both sides of the animal holding room. The sides of the animal holding room were designated as side A or side B. Blood was initially collected from animals on side A, then from animals on side B. Animals …

Summer Home Range Size Of The Eastern Cascade Mountain Beaver (Aplodontia Rufa Rainieri) In Relation To Availability Of Preferred Food, Robert Julian Stagg

All Master's Theses

Optimal foraging theories relate food preference to nutrient content and nutrient availability to home range size. After synthesizing these theories, I hypothesized that the availability of preferred food plants influences the home range size of generalist herbivores. I also hypothesized that the availability of preferred foods does not affect weight gain of time-minimizing generalist herbivores, but should affect the weight gain of energy-maximizing generalist herbivores. To test these hypotheses, I studied the home ranges, weights, weight gains, food habits, and habitats of six adult female mountain beavers (Aplodontia rufa) from six separate sites where bracken fern was either …

Sow Preference For Types Of Flooring In Farrowing Crates, P. A. Phillips, D. Fraser, B. K. Thompson

Housing and Confinement of Farm Animals Collection

A preference-testing apparatus was used to provide sows with continuous access to three identical farrowing crates, each with a different type of flooring. The crates radiated from a central hub area sufficiently large for sows to enter or leave any crate freely. In exp. 1, nine sows from a concrete-floored gestation room were offered crates over concrete, plastic-coated rod, and galvanized metal rod. In exp. 2, sows were pre-exposed for a period of 1 wk to one of the three floors before entry into the preference testing apparatus. Video recording was used to determine sow position from 3 d before …

The Power Of One: How The Individual Activist Can Make A Difference, Henry Spira

Articles

No abstract provided.

Companion Animal Populations In Massachusetts, Dorr Research Corporation

Demography and Statistics for Companion Animal Populations Collection

This report contains the findings of a marketing and opinion research study conducted for the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals during October, 1996.

The research addressed a variety of issues associated with ownership of cats and dogs by Massachusetts households:

• Selected characteristics of owned cats and dogs
• Means of obtaining owned cats and dogs
• Spaying and neutering data on owned cats and dogs
• Frequency with which owned cats and dogs are outdoors
• Veterinary care of owned cats and dogs
• Degree of owner involvement with owned cats and dogs
• Opinions about overpopulation of cats and dogs

Some …

The First Step In The Case For Great Ape Equality: The Argument For Other Minds, Kristin Andrews

Psychology Collection

No abstract provided.

Social Assemblages And Mating Relationships In Prairie Dogs: A Dna Fingerprint Analysis, Steven E. Travis, Con Slobodchikoff, Paul Kefan

Reproductive Behavior Collection

Mating system characterizations have been hindered by difficulties in accurately assigning parentage to offspring. We investigated the relationship between social assemblages and mating relationships in a territorial harem polygynous mammal, the Gunnison's prairie dog, using a combination of behavioral and molecular analyses. We demonstrate multiple paternity and an extraordinarily high incidence of extraterritorial fertilizations (i.e., 61% of all progeny), in combination with the existence of female kin groups. On this basis, we conclude that social assemblages alone provide a poor description of the Gunnison's prairie dog mating system, and suggest several potential reasons for the maintenance of territoriality in this …

Bad Ethics, Good Ethics And The Genetic Engineering Of Animals In Agriculture, Bernard Rollin

Genetics Collection

Genetic engineers have been remiss in addressing ethical and social issues emerging from this powerful new technology, a technology whose implications for agriculture are profound. As a consequence of this failure, society has been uneasy about genetic engineering of animals and has had difficulty distinguishing between genuine and spurious ethical issues the technology occasions. Many of the most prominent concerns do not require a serious response. On the other hand, concerns about a variety of possible risks arising from genetic engineering of animals require careful consideration and dialogue with the public. Such concerns are an admixture of ethics and prudence. …

A Rodent For Your Thoughts: The Animal Model Strategy In Psychology, Kenneth J. Shapiro

Experimentation Collection

In this second of three essays, I describe how the early modern psychologists adopted the strategy of further transforming rats and other species into models of human thought, feeling, and behavior, and, particularly, of disorders of these - in effect taking "a rodent for your thoughts." In the third essay I will provide a critique and empirically-based evaluation of animal model research. Here I indicate what the model strategy in the biomedical sciences, properly understand, is intended to achieve and how, by contrast, particular models are presented to the public and funding agencies. Finally, I describe how they are utilized …

The Caring Sleuth: Portrait Of An Animal Rights Activist, Kenneth J. Shapiro

Animal Welfare Collection

The present study of the psychology of animal rights activists utilizes a qualitative analytic method based on two forms of data: a set of questionnaire protocols completed by grassroots activists and of autobiographical accounts by movement leaders. The resultant account keys on the following descriptives: (1) an attitude of caring, (2) suffering as an habitual object of perception, and (3) the aggressive and skillful uncovering and investigation of instances of suffering. In a final section, the investigator discusses tensions and conflicts arising from these three themes and various ways of attempting to resolve them.

The Ingrown World Of Animal Model Research In Psychology, Kenneth J. Shapiro

Experimentation Collection

In the previous essay, I described the proper function of models in science as heuristic, as a way of generating hypotheses about the actual object of study. Turning to animal models in psychology, I offered a general characterization of that enterprise using sham feeding, an animal model of the eating disorder called bulimia, as an example. In this final of three essays, I offer an evaluation of this animal model strategy that largely employs the tools of social science. I close with a recommendation and a prediction.

Rodeo And Recollection-Applied Ethics And Western Philosophy, Bernard E. Rollin

Sports and Entertainment Collection

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Substrate-Enriched And Substrate-Impoverished Housing Environments On The Diversity Of Behaviour In Pigs, Marie Haskell, Françoise Wemelsfelder, Michael T. Mendl, Sheena Calvert, Alistair B. Lawrence

Sentience Collection

In intensive farming situations, growing animals are housed in relatively barren environments. The lack of opportunity to perform substrate-interactive and manipulative behaviour patterns may affect the expression and organization of these behaviours. However, making direct comparisons of the behaviour expressed in environments of differing physical complexity is difficult. In this experiment a relative diversity index was used to compare the behavioural repertoires of pigs housed in two different environments for a period of five months. One group of pigs (substrate-enriched) had straw, forest bark and branches added to the standard pens and the other group (substrate-impoverished) did not. The pigs …

Quantity-Based Interference And Symbolic Representations In Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes), S. T. Boysen, G. G. Berntson, M. B. Hannan, J. T. Cacioppo

Sentience Collection

Five chimpanzees with training in counting and numerical skills selected between 2 arrays of different amounts of candy or 2 Arabic numerals. A reversed reinforcement contingency was in effect, in which the selected array was removed and the subject received the nonselected candies (or the number of candies represented by the nonselected Arabic numeral). Animals were unable to maximize reward by selecting the smaller array when candies were used as array elements. When Arabic numerals were substituted for the candy arrays, all animals showed an immediate shift to a more optimal response strategy of selecting the smaller numeral, thereby receiving …

Mechanisms Of American English Vowel Production In A Grey Parrot (Psittacus Erithacus), Denice K. Warren, Dianne K. Patterson, Irene M. Pepperberg

Sentience Collection

Parrots are known for their capacity to reproduce the sounds of human speech, but few studies have investigated their mechanisms for producing such vocalizations. Using three methods of noninvasive video imaging (Super VHS video, infrared, X-ray radiography), we examined correlations between several elements of a Grey Parrot's (Psittacus erithacus) vocal-tract configuration and the bird's production of two vowels, /i/ ("eat") and /a/ ("rock"). This parrot uses mechanisms that both resemble and differ from those used by: (a) humans to produce English speech; and (b) some avian species to produce conspecific vocalizations. This Grey Parrot, for example, uses its vocal apparatus …

Gender Differences In Attitudes Toward Animal Research, Jennifer J. Eldridge, John P. Gluck

Experimentation Collection

Although gender differences in attitudes toward animal research have been reported in the literature for some time, exploration into the nature of these differences has received less attention. This article examines gender differences in responses to a survey of attitudes toward the use of animals in research. The survey was completed by college students and consisted of items intended to tap different issues related to the animal research debate. Results indicated that women were more likely than men to support tenets of the animal protection movement. Likewise, women were more likely than men to favor increased restrictions on animal use …

Taking Evolution Seriously: A Matter Of Primate Intelligence, Maxine Sheets-Johnstone

Intelligence Collection

No abstract provided.

Hyperactivism: The Phenomenon Of Doing Without Achieving, Henry Spira

Commentaries and Editorials

No abstract provided.

Less Meat, Less Misery: Reforming Factory Farms, Henry Spira

Farm Animal Campaign

No abstract provided.

Observational Learning In Sable Ferrets (Mustela Putorius Furo), Amy E. Scott, Todd Wiebers

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Animal Issues In The Media: A Groundbreaking Report, George Gerbner

Film and Television Production Collection

What kinds of animals do we see on television and in print media? What are the trends, themes, scenes, and contexts in which animals appear? How are they treated? What are the roles for which they are cast and the fate for which they are destined? What issues drive press and magazine coverage, and how do animal activism, legislation, science and other issues play out in the coverage? Finally, what are some implications for further research, activity, and policy?

These are questions we shall address in this report. The report presents the findings of a benchmark study that begins the …

Scientists And Animal Research: Dr. Jekyll Or Mr. Hyde?, Andrew N. Rowan

Experimentation Collection

Why is the public so sensitive about the use of a few tens of millions of animals in research when they do not object to killing hundreds of millions of pigs and cows and billions of chickens for our meat diet? Why is animal research considered so bad despite the public's high opinion of science (and scientists)? Perhaps it is the image of the scientist as an objective and cold individual who deliberately inflicts harm (pain, distress, or death) on his (the public image is usually male) innocent animal victims that arouses so much horror and concern. This paper does …

Evaluation Of Animal Welfare By The Self-Expression Of An Anxiety State, M. P. Carey, J. P. Fry

Assessment of Animal Welfare Collection

Although mental well-being has long been accepted as an important aspect of animal welfare, the subjective feelings of farm or laboratory animals are regarded as lying beyond the scope of scientific enquiry. We now report that pharmacological conditioning of pigs with a drug, pentylenetetrazole, known to induce anxiety in man, permits investigation of the presence or absence of this psychological state during exposure to a variety of environmental stimuli encountered during normal husbandry. Such pharmacological conditioning therefore provides a valuable means to assess and improve elements of animal welfare and should be applicable to other species that show operant behaviour.

Chimpanzees In Laboratories: Distribution And Types Of Research, Martin L. Stephens

Laboratory Experiments Collection

This review presents the results of an informal 1993 survey of the distribution of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) in the world's laboratories, and the types of research conducted on them. Based on the available information, there are over 2200 chimpanzees in.laboratories, most of which are located in several US facilities. Europe apparently has less than 200 chimpanzees housed in two facilities. Worldwide, an estimated 80% of the chimpanzees in laboratories are used in studies on AIDS and hepatitis. It is concluded that, if Europe terminated its use of chimpanzees in research, for either financial, moral or political reasons, the impact on …