COMPANION ANIMALS SYMPOSIUM: …

1 C. L. Morris, T. Grandin and N. A. Irlbeckexotic, and laboratory animalsCOMPANION ANIMALS symposium : environmental enrichment for COMPANION ,doi: , 89 ANIM SCI World Wide Web at: The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is located at Colorado State Univ Lbrs on March 27, from COMPANION ANIMALS symposium : environmental enrichment for COMPANION , exotic, and laboratory animals1C. L. Morris,*2 T. Grandin, and N. A. Irlbeck *Omaha s Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, NE 68107; and Department of animal Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523 ABSTRACT: animal scientists have an extraordi-nary burden to promote the health and well-being of all ANIMALS in their care.

2 Promoting species- or breed-appropriate behaviors through proper training and enrichment, regardless of animal housing, should be a paramount concern for all animal scientists work-ing with exotic ANIMALS , laboratory ANIMALS , shelter ANIMALS , or privately owned pet ANIMALS . Developing ideal training and enrichment programs for any spe-cies begins with understanding basic behavior patterns and emotional systems of ANIMALS . The basic emotional systems in mammals have been extensively mapped; however, most of these studies are in the neuroscience literature and seldom read by animal science profes-sionals.

3 The emotional circuits for fear have been well documented through studies demonstrating that le-sions to the amygdala will block both conditioned and unconditioned fear behaviors. Additionally, other core emotional systems including seeking ( , approaching a novel stimulus), rage, panic ( , separation stress), play, lust ( , sex drive), and care ( , mother-young nurturing behavior) have been identified. More recent neuroscience research has discovered the subcorti-cal brain regions that drive different types of seeking behaviors. Research to increase the understanding of the emotional systems that drive both abnormal and normal animal behaviors could greatly improve animal welfare by making it possible to provide more effective environmental enrichment programs.

4 Enrichment de-vices and methods could be specifically designed to en-able the expression of highly motivated behaviors that are driven by emotional circuits in the brain. The ob-jective of this paper is to increase awareness of animal scientists to the field of neuroscience studying animal emotions and the application of that science to improve the welfare of captive exotic ANIMALS , laboratory ani-mals, and pets with environmental words: animal welfare, COMPANION animal , emotion, environmental enrichment, laboratory animal , nondomestic animal 2011 American Society of animal Science. All rights reserved. J. Anim.

5 Sci. 2011. 89:4227 4238 , farms, and laboratories are often faced with public criticism regarding animal welfare. animal sci-entists may be able to use neuroscience research to im-prove the understanding of animal behavior and im-prove environmental enrichment programs. Research in animal science, veterinary science, and ethology has demonstrated that ANIMALS have behavioral needs. Re-search studies have demonstrated that certain innate behaviors, such as building a secluded nesting area for laying hens, rooting and chewing in pigs, and nest build-ing in mice are highly motivated (Duncan and Kite; 1989; Olsson and Dahlborn, 2002; Day et al.)

6 , 2008; van de Weerd and Day, 2009). Duncan (2004) was one of the first animal scientists to state that feelings or emo-tions were driving those behaviors. Unfortunately, most mainstream animal science literature does not discuss the underlying neural mechanisms that drive species-specific innate neuroscience literature demonstrates that animal brains have emotional systems that are more specific than simply stating an animal exhibits psychological stress. The core emotional systems that serve as moti-vators for behavior are seeking ( , novelty seeking), fear, rage, panic ( , separation stress), lust ( , sex drive), caring ( , mother-young nurturing behavior), 1 Based on a presentation at the COMPANION ANIMALS symposium titled Microbes and Health at the Joint Annual Meeting, July 11 to 15, 2010, Denver, Colorado.

7 The symposium was sponsored, in part, by Hill s Pet Nutrition Inc. (Topeka, KS) and The Procter & Gamble Company (Cincinnati, OH), with publication sponsored by the Journal of animal Science and the American Society of animal Science. 2 Corresponding author: November 20, July 9, at Colorado State Univ Lbrs on March 27, from and play (Panksepp, 1998, 2005). This body of neuro-science literature may provide a background for animal scientists to better understand innate animal behaviors and implications for effective enrichment enrichment programs should provide ANIMALS opportunities for expressing behaviors driven by the positive emotional systems of seeking, play, and car-ing (Grandin and Johnson, 2009).

8 Some examples of behaviors that are driven by these systems include for-aging, grooming, play, and positive social interactions. The basic goals should be to increase positive emotions and decrease time that ANIMALS are subjected to fear, panic, and rage. Although it is impossible to eliminate all fear or short-term stress, it is essential to reduce conditions that promote constant fear or deprive op-portunities for LOOK INTO THE EMOTIONAL LIVES OF ANIMALSD istinct Brain Systems for Different EmotionsExperiments show clearly that ANIMALS have specific neurological systems for different emotions, such as fear and rage (Bard, 1928; Hess, 1957; Fernandez de Molina and Hunsperger, 1959; Panksepp, 1971; Davis, 1992).

9 Jaak Panksepp was one of the first neuroscientists to introduce the concept of core emotional systems. He referred to them as fear, rage, panic ( , separation stress), and seeking ( , novelty seeking; Panksepp, 2005). More recent research has subdivided the seek-ing system in the rat brain into liking something and wanting something, the latter being the motivation to obtain it (Berridge et al., 2009). Some additional emo-tional systems are lust ( , sex), play, and caring ( , mother-young nurturing behavior; Panksepp, 2005). These emotional systems are all located in the subcor-tical parts of the brain and are similar in both anatomy and response to stimuli in people and other mammals (Fernandez de Molina and Hunsperger, 1959; Pank-sepp, 2003; Burgdorf and Panksepp, 2006).

10 In the next section of this paper, research on each core emotional system and how it may influence animal well-being will be circuits in both ANIMALS and humans have been extensively studied and mapped (Davis, 1992; LeDoux, 2000). Fear is the most primitive emotion that moti-vates ANIMALS to avoid predators and other dangerous situations (LeDoux, 2000). Some of this literature was first introduced to animal scientists by Grandin (1997). All vertebrate ANIMALS can be fear conditioned (Davis, 1992). An example of fear conditioning would be an animal avoiding a place where it was subjected to a frightening stimulus.