Do the stereotypies of pigs, chickens and mink reflect adaptive species differences in the control of foraging?
The food-related stereotypies of some captive species (e.g. mink) are performed most often prior to feeding, while those of others (e.g. pigs and chickens) occur at low levels before feeding and increase after food consumption. It has been suggested that these differences reflect adaptive species differences in how feeding behaviour is controlled. However, this hypothesis […]
Using Differential Reinforcement to Improve Equine Welfare: Shaping Appropriate Truck Loading and Feet Handling
Inappropriate behavior during common handling procedures with horses is often subject to aversive treatment. The present study replicated and extended previous findings using differential reinforcement to shape appropriate equine handling behavior. In Study 1, a multiple baseline across subjects design was used with four horses to determine first the effects of shaping target-touch responses and […]