TY - JOUR
T1 - Measuring paw preferences in dogs, cats and rats
T2 - Design requirements and innovations in methodology
AU - Isparta, Sevim
AU - Töre-Yargın, Gülşen
AU - Wagner, Selina C.
AU - Mundorf, Annakarina
AU - Cinar Kul, Bengi
AU - Da Graça Pereira, Goncalo
AU - Güntürkün, Onur
AU - Ocklenburg, Sebastian
AU - Freund, Nadja
AU - Salgirli Demirbas, Yasemin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Studying behavioural lateralization in animals holds great potential for answering important questions in laterality research and clinical neuroscience. However, comparative research encounters challenges in reliability and validity, requiring new approaches and innovative designs to overcome. Although validated tests exist for some species, there is yet no standard test to compare lateralized manual behaviours between individuals, populations, and animal species. One of the main reasons is that different fine-motor abilities and postures must be considered for each species. Given that pawedness/handedness is a universal marker for behavioural lateralization across species, this article focuses on three commonly investigated species in laterality research: dogs, cats, and rats. We will present six apparatuses (two for dogs, three for cats, and one for rats) that enable an accurate assessment of paw preference. Design requirements and specifications such as zoometric fit for different body sizes and ages, reliability, robustness of the material, maintenance during and after testing, and animal welfare are extremely important when designing a new apparatus. Given that the study of behavioural lateralization yields crucial insights into animal welfare, laterality research, and clinical neuroscience, we aim to provide a solution to these challenges by presenting design requirements and innovations in methodology across species.
AB - Studying behavioural lateralization in animals holds great potential for answering important questions in laterality research and clinical neuroscience. However, comparative research encounters challenges in reliability and validity, requiring new approaches and innovative designs to overcome. Although validated tests exist for some species, there is yet no standard test to compare lateralized manual behaviours between individuals, populations, and animal species. One of the main reasons is that different fine-motor abilities and postures must be considered for each species. Given that pawedness/handedness is a universal marker for behavioural lateralization across species, this article focuses on three commonly investigated species in laterality research: dogs, cats, and rats. We will present six apparatuses (two for dogs, three for cats, and one for rats) that enable an accurate assessment of paw preference. Design requirements and specifications such as zoometric fit for different body sizes and ages, reliability, robustness of the material, maintenance during and after testing, and animal welfare are extremely important when designing a new apparatus. Given that the study of behavioural lateralization yields crucial insights into animal welfare, laterality research, and clinical neuroscience, we aim to provide a solution to these challenges by presenting design requirements and innovations in methodology across species.
KW - behavioural laterality
KW - design requirements
KW - methodological innovations
KW - Paw preference
KW - species-specific
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85191695357&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/1357650X.2024.2341459
DO - 10.1080/1357650X.2024.2341459
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85191695357
SN - 1357-650X
VL - 29
SP - 246
EP - 282
JO - Laterality
JF - Laterality
IS - 3
ER -