Measuring psychological well-being: a methodological approach using heart rate telemetry, space utilization and behavioral time budgets in common marmosets The Housing of Non-Human Primates Used for Experimental Research and Other Scientific Purposes: Issues for Consideration (1997)

Kerl, J.

Abstract

In studies on Callithrix jacchus some sensitive parameters of the animals reaction to experimental environmental change (cage-size and cage-equipment) were found: the mean heart rate, space utilization and behavioral time budgets. The mean day heart rate responded to variations in cage-size when the cages were equipped very simply but not when they were richly equipped. The mean night heart rate responded only to cage size, irrespectively of its equipment. The most useful heart rate parameter in detecting influences of cage-size and cage-equipment is the difference between the mean day and the mean night heart rate. Via quantification of the space utilization the places for feeding devices and sleeping boxes were proved to be wrong in the simply equipped cages in comparison to the situation when additional feeding devices and sleeping boxes were offered in the same-sized enriched cages. Furthermore the calculated behavioral time budgets showed to be sensitive especially in detecting differences between the responses of the marmosets to different cage equipments. The problems of calculating behavioral time budgets as well as the lack of standardization in order to obtain comparable results are discussed.