Natural Behavior

Exploring the effect of play on heart rate variability as a measure of positive emotional states in pigs (2025)

Play behaviour has been suggested to be inherently rewarding for animals, inducing positive emotional states. The psychophysiological effect of emotions can be assessed through heart rate variability (HRV), serving as a proxy measure of sympathovagal balance. This study investigated how...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural Behavior, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Steinerová, K., Krause, A., Parker, S. E. et al. 2025. Exploring the effect of play on heart rate variability as a measure of positive emotional states in pigs. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 12.

Functional significance and welfare implications of chewing in dogs (Canis familiaris) (2025)

Dogs chew on both nutritive and non-nutritive items as part of their food acquisition, ingestive behaviour, self-care, and social interactions. Various definitions distinguish chewing from related oral activities, such as gnawing, masticating, and biting. Surprisingly, despite chewing being a ubiquitous...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Dog

Citation: Quinn, R., Masters, S., Starling, M. et al. 2025. Functional significance and welfare implications of chewing in dogs (Canis familiaris). Frontiers in Veterinary Science 12.

Juvenile male rats form preferences based on strain when playing in groups but not in pairs (2025)

Like many young mammals, juvenile rats engage in rough-and-tumble play. Play occurs naturally both in wild and laboratory rats, making it a suitable, ethologically relevant behavior to investigate. In the laboratory, rats are typically housed and tested in dyads, despite...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Ham, J. R., Jaiswal, D., Waner-Mariquito, R. et al. 2025. Juvenile male rats form preferences based on strain when playing in groups but not in pairs. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience 19.

Rabbit Behaviour, Health and Care

This book is an essential, thorough, very practical guide to understanding and caring for your rabbit. By following the advice in this book, both rabbit owners and veterinary health professionals report healthier and more content rabbits. Developed from the successful...

Year Published: 2015Topics: Housing, Husbandry & Management, Natural Behavior, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Rabbit

Citation: Buseth, M. E., Saunders, R. 2015. Rabbit Behaviour, Health and Care. CABI, Wallingford, Oxfordshire. 225 p.

Exploring the effect of play on heart rate variability as a measure of positive emotional states in pigs

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Steinerová, K., Krause, A., Parker, S. et al. 2025. Exploring the effect of play on heart rate variability as a measure of positive emotional states in pigs. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 12.

Study of tree shrew biology and models: A booming and prosperous field for biomedical research

The tree shrew ( Tupaia belangeri) has long been proposed as a suitable alternative to non-human primates (NHPs) in biomedical and laboratory research due to its close evolutionary relationship with primates. In recent years, significant advances have facilitated tree shrew...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Tree Shrew

Citation: Yao, Y.-G., Lu, L., Ni, R.-J. et al. 2024. Study of tree shrew biology and models: A booming and prosperous field for biomedical research. Zoological Research 45(4), 877–909.

The promotion of play behaviour in grow-finish pigs: The relationship between behaviours indicating positive experience and physiological measures

The provision of opportunities to express rewarding behaviours is a promising concept to support a better quality of life for intensively farmed pigs. Play behaviour has been associated with excitement and fun, suggesting that playing animals experience pleasurable states. Pigs...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Steinerová, K., Parker, S. E., Brown, J. A. et al. 2024. The promotion of play behaviour in grow-finish pigs: The relationship between behaviours indicating positive experience and physiological measures. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 275, 106263.

Teeth baring as a model to understand complex facial signals in a tolerant macaque species

Facial communication regulates many aspects of social life in human and nonhuman primates. Empirically identifying distinct facial expressions and their underlying functions can help illuminate the evolution of species' communicative complexity. We focused on bared-teeth faces (BTFs), a highly versatile...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Macaque, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: Fantoni, F., Maglieri, V., Giusti, N. et al. 2025. Teeth baring as a model to understand complex facial signals in a tolerant macaque species. American Journal of Primatology 87(1), e23697.

Chimpanzee activity and behavioral diversity extends across 24 hours in both captive and wild settings

Studying nocturnal behavior is crucial for understanding the full scope of a species' behavioral flexibility so as to inform the conservation of wild populations and the care of captive individuals. However, this aspect of primate behavior is understudied, especially in...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Chimpanzee, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: Funkhouser, J. A., Boostrom, H., Hellmuth, H. et al. 2025. Chimpanzee activity and behavioral diversity extends across 24 hours in both captive and wild settings. American Journal of Primatology 87(1), e23729.

Are you serious? Relaxed open mouth may unveil the competitive/cooperative nature of play fighting in two feline species

Play fighting is a multifunctional behaviour allowing the development of both cooperative and competitive skills. During play fighting, animals perform ‘competitive' actions that are typical of the agonistic context and/or ‘cooperative' actions to avoid escalation into aggression. Several structural features...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: Cat, Other Animal

Citation: Demuru, E., Collarini, E., Menon, A. et al. 2025. Are you serious? Relaxed open mouth may unveil the competitive/cooperative nature of play fighting in two feline species. Animal Behaviour 220, 123042.