• Question: What environmental and welfare-wise factors can change the behavior of animals? i.e. a certain disorder in rats (forgotten the name :S) which is famous for two stages, one; the rat eating more than its body weight in a short amount of time, and then being protective of its weight, the only way to get rid of the weight being force feeding the rat until it thinks it has got its value out of the meal, losing weight very slightly. What causes that and similar mental disorders?

    Asked by qedmiester to Charlotte, Jo, Kevin, Louise, Valeria on 13 Jun 2012.
    • Photo: Joanna Cruden

      Joanna Cruden answered on 13 Jun 2012:

      I have tried to find out the answer to this but I am not sure where this study happened or if it is even possible for a rat to eat its own bodyweight in food. I don’t think rats are protective of their weight; I would really need more information on this to answer the question.

      However many things can cause mental disorders in animals (and humans for that matter), including parasites, illness, old age and boredom, stress, imagine living in a cage for your whole life with no stimulation, it is the same for an animal and if they have nothing else to do they will eat and eat.

Comments

  • Photo: qedmiester

    qedmiester commented on :

    Joanna, I believe I did read this in an A-level psychology book, it confirmed very directly that these studies have taken place. It said the cause was unknown… its a psychological disorder. All of these symptoms are to do with this, two famous phases: eating over its own body weight in food and then refusing to lose the weight, thus being very protective.

  • Photo: Jo

    Jo commented on :

    ok I will look more into this and ask my work colleagues and try and get an answer for you, I am intriged by it so I have been looking more today but not asked anyone yet 🙂

  • Photo: Jo

    Jo commented on :

    you have caused some discussion at work, we think there may have been some research like this in the early 80s and before, some rats were fed highly palatable diets to make the fat so we could research obesity but we have developed a strain of rats who are ‘naturally’ obese, I have not been able to find anything about your specific study, if I do I will pass it on to the moderators for you after this event is over