Rat 50 kHz calls reflect graded tickling-induced positive emotion.

ABSTRACT: Positive animal emotion (affect) is a key component of good animal welfare [1] and plays an important role in stress-coping and resilience [2]. Methods for reliably inducing and measuring positive affect are critical, but both have been limited in availability. In rats, one promising way of inducing positive affective states is by human-simulated rough and tumble play or 'tickling' [3,4]. However, in humans tickling induces both pleasure and displeasure, and neither an established non-verbal indicator of positive affect, the Duchenne smile, nor laughter detects this variation [5,6]. Rats also show individual differences in response to tickling [7], and this variation needs to be readily quantified if we are to ensure that tickling is only implemented where it generates positive affect. Her

SUBMITTER: Hinchcliffe JK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7533284 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature