What Animals Want: A Pilot Study With Rats

This pilot study and larger follow-up projects will enhance our understanding when animals seek what kind of resources. At the same time, we learn about the specific needs of the species studied, the rat. An experimental situation will be set up, which provides different resources in different cages. Overall, the choice of resources will reflect a close to natural environment. When rats move from resource to resource in this system, we can study when they choose which resource and how long they stay with it. Accordingly, the rats how what they need in a lab or home environment. This knowledge can be used to improve the rat’s housing conditions (refinement).