Environmental Enrichment

Food puzzles for cats: Feeding for physical and emotional wellbeing

Many pet cats are kept indoors for a variety of reasons (eg, safety, health, avoidance of wildlife predation) in conditions that are perhaps the least natural to them. Indoor housing has been associated with health issues, such as chronic lower...

Year Published: 2016Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Cat

Citation: Dantas, L. M., Delgado, M. M, Johnson, I. et al. 2016. Food puzzles for cats: Feeding for physical and emotional wellbeing. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery 18(9), 723-732.

Brief exposure to novel or enriched environments reduces sucrose cue-reactivity and consumption in rats after 1 or 30 days of forced abstinence from self-administration

Environmental enrichment (EE) reduces drug and sucrose cue-reactivity in rats. In a previous study we reported that 1 month of EE (large cage, toys, and social cohorts) significantly reduced sucrose cue-reactivity. In the present study, we examined whether overnight (22...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Grimm, J. W., Weber, R., Barnes, J. et al. 2013. Brief exposure to novel or enriched environments reduces sucrose cue-reactivity and consumption in rats after 1 or 30 days of forced abstinence from self-administration. PLOS ONE 8(1), e54164.

Differences in anticipatory behaviour between rats (Rattus norvegicus) housed in standard versus semi-naturalistic laboratory environments

Laboratory rats are usually kept in relatively small cages, but research has shown that they prefer larger and more complex environments. The physiological, neurological and health effects of standard laboratory housing are well established, but fewer studies have addressed the...

Year Published: 2016Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Makowska, I. J., Weary, D. M. 2016. Differences in anticipatory behaviour between rats (Rattus norvegicus) housed in standard versus semi-naturalistic laboratory environments. PLOS ONE 11(1), e0147595.

Effects of environmental complexity and social groupings upon the modification of emotional behavior

Environmental enrichment reduced open-filed defecation in rats.

Year Published: 1962Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Denenberg, V. H., Morton, J. R. C. 1962. Effects of environmental complexity and social groupings upon the modification of emotional behavior. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 55, 242-246.

Postweaning experiences and emotional responsiveness

Environmental enrichment reduces emotionality.

Year Published: 1964Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Duke, J. D., Seaman, J. L. 1964. Postweaning experiences and emotional responsiveness. Psychological Reports 14, 543-546.

Effects of enriched environment upon hoarding

95 mice from 2 inbred strains were exposed to a postweaning enriched environment or to a standard environment. The design allowed assessment of effects due to environment, genotype, and genotype * environment interactions. Environment enrichment differentially affected hoarding performance in...

Year Published: 1968Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Manosevitz, M., Campenot, R. B., Swencionis, C. F. 1968. Effects of enriched environment upon hoarding. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 66, 319-324.

Effect of differential environmental enrichment on brain weight and on acetylcholinesterase and cholinesterase activities in mice

Two inbred strains of mice were used in a replication of the Berkeley rat studies on the cerebral effects of differential environmental enrichment. Those raised in a complex environment and given extensive maze training showed significantly heavier brain weights and...

Year Published: 1968Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: La Torre, J. C. 1968. Effect of differential environmental enrichment on brain weight and on acetylcholinesterase and cholinesterase activities in mice. Experimental Neurology 22, 493-503.

Interaction of environmental enrichment and genotype

Assessed the effects of exposure to an enriched environment, from birth-38 days of age, using 3 behavioral tests: open field, exploration, and running wheels. 144 inbred mice from 3 strains (A/J, C3H/HeJ, and C57BL/10J) were used as Ss in a...

Year Published: 1972Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Manosevitz, M., Montemayor, R. J. 1972. Interaction of environmental enrichment and genotype. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 79, 67-76.

The effects of cage environment upon avoidance responding in aged rats

The beneficial effects of environmental enrichment are not restricted to a brief cricial period in development. Positive effects occur also in rats aged 300 days when first placed in an enriched environment.

Year Published: 1972Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Doty, B. A. 1972. The effects of cage environment upon avoidance responding in aged rats. Journal of Gerontology 27, 358-360.

Effects of environmental enrichment and impoverishment on rat cerebral cortex

The first part of this paper deals with rat brain anatomy as affected by variations of starting age and of duration of exposure to enriched (complex) or impoverished (restricted) environmental conditions. Cerebral cortical depth measurements and weights of brain samples...

Year Published: 1972Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Diamond, M. C., Rosenzweig, M. R., Bennett, E. L. et al. 1972. Effects of environmental enrichment and impoverishment on rat cerebral cortex. Journal of Neurobiology 3, 47-64.