This thesis puts forward a theory for a new basis of the rights and dignities of animals. The first chapter explains how the neurobiological output / input model can be applied to animal behavior, and suggests that animals—from fruit flies to chimpanzees—and humans are most similar in their desire to experiment with the world around them. The remaining chapters explore the practical implications of considering animals through the output / input model, using literature, the author’s personal experience, biological observations, and historical anecdotes. These chapters seek to prove that animals have much more to offer us than milk and meat. / Master of Arts / This is a draft of a book that lays down a new basis for the rights and dignities of animals. Rather than emphasizing the intelligence of various species, their communication abilities, or capacity to feel pain, the author emphasizes the impulse to experiment, which new research suggests may be a universal characteristic of the animal kingdom. The second half of the book is a series of essays that attempts to show how this new model might change human relations with various animals.

Having an appropriate understanding of the behavioral and physiological impact of a disease requires thoroughly fielded tests and wide-ranging animal models to properly deduce generalized impacts of the disease under investigation. Through novel animal models, we acquire diverse insights into the mechanisms at play so that we may approach the problem at hand with fresh perspective and renewed vigor. Using the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber), a species becoming increasingly common in the medical sciences, my dissertation aimed to accomplish the aforementioned goals in two parts: 1) take the naked mole-rat through a battery of behavioral tasks to bolster our capabilities of using this animal model in medical research; and 2) introduce the naked mole-rat as an alternative model for the investigation of how loss of dental sensation alters behavior and neuroanatomy. Chapter two describes the many methods with which I tested the naked mole-rat across a variety of typical behavioral tasks for social dominance, learning and memory, anxiety, depression, and sociability. Included herein were tests to determine appropriate motivators for this subterranean species to perform such tasks. Additionally, due to the naked mole-rat’s unique disposition for biting, I measured their biting behaviors and compared them across rodent and other mammalian species. The results show that naked mole-rats exhibit large evolutionary divergence in their sensory capabilities and great consideration needs to be given to the proper behavioral tasks and subsequent evaluations of these behavioral paradigms. In chapter three, I evaluated the impact of tooth extraction on affective behaviors, learning and memory, and sociability. Chapter four sought to uncover underlying neuroplasticity associated with the behavioral tasks performed in chapter three. Additionally, in chapter four, I investigated plasticity of the traditional somatosensory pathway for tooth sensation. Tooth loss decreased neuronal density of contralateral ventral posteromedial nucleus of the thalamus and increased the neuronal density of the contralateral ventral dentate gyrus, indicating that tooth-loss induced neuronal plasticity may be more related to plasticity of pain circuitry or resultant from alterations in the muscles of mastication following tooth loss. Though no significant changes in the hippocampus arose from one year of living with no right incisor, I theorized as to which of the physiological idiosyncrasies exhibited by Heterocephalus glaber may have inhibited any observable plasticity due to tooth loss.

Master of Science / Food Science / Edgar Chambers IV / Palatability of pet foods is judged by the use of animals in colonies. Pet food manufacturers would like to understand how palatable a food is compared to another food. This generally is accomplished by a two pan test where a pet has the opportunity to freely choose between two foods. Preference is evaluated through the use of an intake ratio, the ratio of the amount of test food consumed divided by the total amount of the foods consumed. Although this is easy to do in laboratories, another option would be to do such studies with animals in more ‘real-life’ home environments. The purpose of this study was to develop, and test a method to capture feeding information from a study of canines in the home environment and analyze the results of the palatability tests. Individual dog owners were screened for information on the household and pets. Twenty-five dogs of different ages, breeds and sizes were selected to participate on the in-home panel. Seven different palatability tests were performed using the in-home panel with four of those tests being replicated; a total of 11 comparative tests. These dogs were tested using a proprietary computer-based technology that collected information about intake of each food for each individual dog for a duration of seven days for each of the 11 comparative studies. Data was analyzed and resulted in showing that differences between foods can be found. Statistical analyses compared initial day one data to subsequent day data collected during each study to determine whether a full seven day test was needed. In addition, comparisons were made to compare the impact of prior foods eaten to subsequent preferences of the dogs. Results of the in-home panel were the same on day one as for all seven days of testing. Also, previous exposure to a food did not alter subsequent preference for that food. Such data has implications for pet food manufacturers related to timing and cost of testing.

Asian elephants utilize two chemical signals that have been described to function in reproduction: (1) (Z)-7-dodecenyl acetate (Z7-12:Ac) is released by females near ovulation, and (2) frontalin is released by males around the time of musth. Signaling theory posits that the concentration at which either compound is emitted should have implications for the response of the receiver, varying with factors such as sex and reproductive experience. Here, the objectives were to: (1) investigate the effect of concentration on receiver chemosensory behavior in an effort to identify detection thresholds and concentrations of maximum response for reproductively experienced or inexperienced male and female Asian elephants, and (2) characterize the broader behavioral impacts of each of these compounds in an effort for application as environmental enrichment in captive settings. Concentrations from 0.0 mM to 2.0 mM of both frontalin and Z7-12:Ac were bioassayed simultaneously with captive elephants housed at facilities across North America in two experiments: one that tested mid-range concentrations and a second that tested low and high concentrations. There was a general increase in chemosensory response with increasing concentration of both compounds regardless of sex or reproductive experience. Females exhibited a lower detection threshold for frontalin, and the opposite was true for males with Z7-12:Ac. Reproductive experience also influenced thresholds: inexperienced males had a higher threshold than experienced males for frontalin (the same was true for females), and experienced males were able to detect Z7-12:Ac samples as low as 10–7 mM. Aside from inexperienced males, all elephants responded maximally to the 1.0 mM samples of both compounds. Elephants exposed to mid-range concentrations of either compound showed no notable changes in behavior after application of the signals, although inexperienced males spent less time inactive and more time walking after frontalin bioassays, and inexperienced females foraged more after exposure to Z7-12:Ac. Interpreted together, this suggests that the concentration at which either compound is emitted has strong implications for chemosensory response based on the identity of the receiver in Asian elephants, although it is unclear whether these compounds have other behavioral effects that can be targeted for a goal-oriented olfactory enrichment program.

Tobacco dependence is high in women who suffer from anxiety disorders yet little is known about the contributions of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) on anxiety-like behavior. β2*nAChRs (*denotes assembly with other subunits) are the most abundantly expressed nAChRs in the brain yet little is known about the contributions of β2*nAChRs on anxiety-like behavior in female mice. In this study, antagonism and nicotine effects on anxiety-like behavior was investigated across the life span in 6, 12 and 24-month-old drug-naïve knockout (KO), heterozygous (HET) and a gain of function α6L9S mice and wild type (WT). HET mice showed increased sensitivity to di-hydrobeta-erythroidine compared to WT mice. Aged mice showed decreased locomotor activity and exploratory behavior compared to younger mice. Low doses of nicotine produced anxiolytic-like effects, whilst a high dose of nicotine produced anxiogenic-like effects. Activation of the α6*nAChRs supports an anxiolysis-like phenotype. These results implicate α4β2*nAChRs and α6β2*nAChRs in anxiety-like behavior.

Orientador: Mateus José Rodrigues Paranhos da Costa / Coorientador: Aline Cristina Sant'Anna / Banca: Evaldo Antônio Lencioni Titto / Banca: Flávio Dutra de Resende / Resumo: O objetivo com o presente estudo foi avaliar a evolução do temperamento de bovinos de corte mantidos em sistema de pastejo com um método de lotação rotativa e avaliar como essa evolução do temperamento afeta o ganho de peso dos animais. O estudo foi realizado com bovinos machos inteiros, em fase de terminação, pertencentes a três diferentes fazendas, sendo avaliados um lote de 565 animais na fazenda 1 (F1), quatro lotes totalizando 758 bovinos na fazenda 2 (F2) e quatro lotes totalizando 656 animais na fazenda 3 (F3). Os bovinos foram mantidos em sistema de pastejo com método de lotação rotativa, manejados para troca de piquete a cada quatro dias e conduzidos ao curral, para realização de manejo de pesagem, em média a cada 35 dias. Foram realizadas duas sessões de avaliação do temperamento na F1, três na F2 e quatro na F3, com intervalo médio de 35 dias entre as avaliações. Foram utilizados três indicadores do temperamento durante o manejo de pesagem dos animais no curral: i) escore composto de reatividade (ECR); ii) Velocidade de saída (VS em m/s) e iii) avaliação qualitativa do comportamento (QBA). Para os dados do QBA foi aplicada Análise de Fatores, que permitiu a obtenção de um índice qualitativo de temperamento (IQT), assumindo que quanto menor o valor deste índice, melhor era o temperamento. Para avaliar se houve alteração no temperamento dos animais ao longo do tempo, as médias de ECR, VS e IQT foram comparadas ao longo das sessões de avaliação (AV) com uso da análise de variância (ANOVA) para medidas repetidas no tempo, utilizando o procedimento MIXED do SAS. Para avaliar se houve efeito da alteração no temperamento sobre o desempenho, as médias do ganho de peso médio diário (GMD) foram comparadas em função de três classes de mudança do temperamento ao longo do tempo (aumentaram, mantiveram ou reduziram a expressão do temperamento), com uso de ANOVA. Esta classificação foi feita ... / Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the temperament of beef cattle kept in grazing system with rotational stoking method and evaluate the association between temperament evolution and the animals' weight gain. The study was carried out with finishing bulls from three different farms, being assessed one group of 565 animals from farm 1 (F1), four groups totaling 758 animals from farm 2 (F2) and four groups totaling 656 animals from farm 3 (F3). The animals were kept in grazing systems with rotational stoking method and handled for picket exchanging every four days and taken to the corral to weighing on average of 35 days. Two temperament assessment sessions were performed on F1, three sessions on F2 and four on F3, on an average of 35 days between assessments. Three indicators of temperament were used during weighing in the corral: i) reactivity composed score (RCE); ii) flight speed (FS in m/s) and iii) qualitative behavior assessment (QBA). QBA data was analyzed by using Factors Analysis, obtaining a Temperament Qualitative Index (TQI) for each animal, assuming that the lower the value of the TQI, the best the animal's temperament. To evaluate whether there was a change in animal's temperament over time the averages of RCE, FS and TQI were compared over the evaluation sessions (EV) using variance analysis (ANOVA) for repeated measures using the MIXED procedure of SAS. To evaluate whether there was effect of temperament changing on animal's performance, the average gain and average daily gain (ADG in g.day-1) were compared according to three classes of temperament changing over time (increased, remained or reduced the temperament expression), using ANOVA. This ranking was done in a group of animals per farm (groups 1, 2 and 6), which were composed only of Nelore cattle. Significant decrease (P <0.05) was observed between the assessment averages of all farms for the three indicators used (RCE, VS and QBA), which can be ... / Mestre

The Sargassum community consists of a unique and idverse assemblage of fauna critical to pelagic food chains. Associated organisms presumably have adaptations to assist in finding Sargassum. This study investigated cues used for habitat location and selection by the Sargassum crab, Portunus sayi. Chemical detection trials were conducted with a two-chamber choice apparatus with Sargassum spp. and Thalassia testudinum as source odors. Visual detection trials (devoid of chemical cues) and habitat selection trials were conducted in which crabs were given a choice of habitats. Results showed that P. sayi respoded to chemical odors from Sargassum spp. Crabs visually located habitats but did not visually distinguish between different habitats. In habitat selection trials, crabs selected Sargassum spp. over artificial Sargassum and T. testudinum. These results suggest that crabs isolated from Sargassum likely use chemoreception from longer distances ; within visual proximity of a potential patch, crabs use both chemical and visual information. / by Lorin E. West. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

The sea anemone Bartholomea annulata, is an ecologically important member of Caribbean coral reefs. This anemone serves as symbiotic host to crustacean associates, some of which may control parasite loads by "cleaning" reef fishes. Associates may gain protection from predation by dwelling with anemones. B. annulata was the most abundant anemone documented on three reefs, with 52% host to crustacean symbionts. Of those occupied by multi-species groups, 92% included Alpheus armatus shrimp. A. armatus is an important anemone associate providing protection to the anemone from predators such as Hermodice carunculata, in laboratory and field trials. H. carunculata can completely devour or severely damage prey anemones. Here I show that anemones hosting symbiotic alpheid shrimp are extremely less likely to sustain damage by predators than solitary anemones. The role of protector may be reciprocally provided by anemone and decapod associates. / by Amber McCammon. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

The photopollution of beaches caused by artificial light sources can interfere with sea turtle hatchlings' ability to orient properly towards the sea. Exhaustion due to extended disorientation crawling may then increase hatchling mortality. This study evaluated the energetic consequences of long-distance crawls in green and loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings. Turtles crawled for 200 m or 500 m on a treadmill, followed by a 30 minute evaluation of swim performance. Metabolic activity was quantified via measures of blood glucose, blood lactate, and oxygen consumption. No significant changes in metabolism resulted from long-distance crawling activity in loggerheads ; however, loggerheads rested for extended periods of time during the crawl trials, often unresponsive to stimuli. This behavior implies that loggerhead hatchlings would be vulnerable to predation or temperature stress due to exhaustion from extended periods of crawling. Further data is required to draw any significant conclusions about long-term disorientatin crawling in green hatchlings. / by Sean Williams. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

Kangaroo care (KC), has been shown to promote healthy development for both pre-term and full-term infants, and to improve mother-infant bonding (Ludington-Hoe, 2011; Charpak et al., 2005). Current research on the maternal benefits of kangaroo care is scarce, primarily focuses on early KC, and is mostly qualitative in nature (Fegran, Helseth, & Fagermoan, 2008; Matos et al., 2010). The present study examined the effect of late KC on maternal behaviors, sensitivity, and mother-infant interactive mutuality when infants were 3 months of age. Mothers who used kangaroo care as directed were found to have greater bonding scores and less anxiety about caring for their infants as measured through the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire. Kangaroo care was also found to have an effect on mothers’ ability to effectively calm their infants after an arm restraint task. Further research on the usefulness of late intermittent KC with full-term infants is needed. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection