Does training chimpanzees to present for injection lead to reduced stress? (2005)

Videan, E. N., Fritz, J., Murphy, J. et al.

Abstract

Subjects were 17 captive chimpanzees living at the Primate Foundation of Arizona, aged 10.6 to 34.5 years at the time of the study. The sample included 8 males and 9 females. Eleven of the subjects were trained, using positive reinforcement techniques, over 21 months (Videan et al., 2005). Individuals were trained to present an arm or leg to the cage mesh for anesthetic injection, using the verbal cues "arm" and "leg". Training procedures were transferred from the trainer to either the colony manager or the assistant colony manager, after behaviors were under stimulus control, in 5 of the trained subjects. .. When all trained individuals were pooled, trained subjects exhibited significantly lower levels of cortisol than untrained (U=7, p<0.010, Table 1).