Forty-two neutered domestic cats were tested for their preference for photographs of intact male and female domestic cats and kittens. The experiment consisted in simultaneously presenting the subject cat with 3 items of an identical food treat, each one positioned in front of a life-size picture of, respectively, an adult tom, an adult female and a kitten. The trial was repeated 3 times for each experimental subject at a 14-day interval, using images of different individuals and shifting the spatial position of the male, female and juvenile’s portraits in order to avoid orientation biases. On the whole, each experimental subject was presented with 3 different males’, 3 different females’ and 3 different kittens’ pictures, each category being placed on turn on the right, the left and in the central position of the row of photographs. Experimental cats were unfamiliar to depicted subjects and tested singly, in a familiar room where the apparatus was completed by a ! set of camcorders. Initial orientation of the subject cat upon entrance, gaze and movement directions, time lag to approach and final choice of food item across trials were averaged for each subject and analysed. A consistent choice of the food item placed in front of one of the 3 age/sex categories of feline images was interpreted as a preference for (greater tolerance of) that category. Results are discussed in relation to the sex and social experience of the experimental subjects
CARLONI E., Accorsi P.A. (2008). Preference for Feline Images according to Their Sex and Age by Domestic Cats. A Pilot Study.. SL : cn.
Preference for Feline Images according to Their Sex and Age by Domestic Cats. A Pilot Study.
ACCORSI, PIER ATTILIO
2008
Abstract
Forty-two neutered domestic cats were tested for their preference for photographs of intact male and female domestic cats and kittens. The experiment consisted in simultaneously presenting the subject cat with 3 items of an identical food treat, each one positioned in front of a life-size picture of, respectively, an adult tom, an adult female and a kitten. The trial was repeated 3 times for each experimental subject at a 14-day interval, using images of different individuals and shifting the spatial position of the male, female and juvenile’s portraits in order to avoid orientation biases. On the whole, each experimental subject was presented with 3 different males’, 3 different females’ and 3 different kittens’ pictures, each category being placed on turn on the right, the left and in the central position of the row of photographs. Experimental cats were unfamiliar to depicted subjects and tested singly, in a familiar room where the apparatus was completed by a ! set of camcorders. Initial orientation of the subject cat upon entrance, gaze and movement directions, time lag to approach and final choice of food item across trials were averaged for each subject and analysed. A consistent choice of the food item placed in front of one of the 3 age/sex categories of feline images was interpreted as a preference for (greater tolerance of) that category. Results are discussed in relation to the sex and social experience of the experimental subjectsI documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.