Relevance of Brain and Behavioural Lateralization to Animal Welfare
Submitted on Aug 01, 2010 (Original item from 2010)
Animal Experimentation | International Research | Research for Academic Learning
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Short Description:
Research on a range of animal species shows that the left hemisphere of the brain controls patterns of behavior in non-stressful situations, while the right hemisphere of the brain responds to unexpected stimuli and other emergency situations. The authors suggest that developing animals with left-hemisphere dominance may enhance animal welfare.
Abstract:
This paper discusses the functions of each side of the brain and hypothesizes that stressed animals rely on the use of the right hemisphere of the brain; furthermore, a bias to use one side over the other may explain the behavioral difference between animals with a negative versus positive cognitive bias. For example, a preference of a use of a certain limb over the other to pick up food when the animal is in a relaxed states reflects the dominant hemisphere of the brain and may be used to assess stress and tendency towards positive versus negative bias.
In addition, this author suggest that the welfare of domestic animals may be improved by enhancing development of left-hemisphere dominance and by shifting right to left hemisphere dominance in animals with negative cognitive bias.
Spot Check Number:
1437
Sponsor:
University of New England (Australia)
Animal Type:
Research Animals
Record Type:
Academic Paper, Journal Article
Research Method:
In Person Interview/Survey
Geographic Region:
International
Number of Participants:
Not applicable
Population Descriptors:
Various animal species
Year Conducted:
2010
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