14 DAY TRIAL // Over the past few years, various research groups have shown that a large number of species exhibited personality traits, and also the ability to express and perceive emotions. This was evident for example when scientists determined that fish can feel pain. As the new knowledge accumulated, investigators started wondering whether animal emotions are not more common than we ever imagined. They say that, in order for us to understand how the world appears to animals, we need to learn more about these things.
The data could for example inform conservation efforts, or even new ways in which humans see themselves in relation to their animals. In a new scientific study of animal emotions, researchers at the Bristol University and the Lincoln University, in the United Kingdom, propose that emotions are what inform animals on the decisions they make, while at the same time providing important information about the environment, and the opportunities and threats it contains. The investigation was sponsored by the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
“Because we can measure animal choices objectively, we can use ‘optimistic’ and ‘pessimistic’ decision-making as an indicator of the animal’s emotional state which itself is much more difficult to assess. Recent studies by our group and others suggest that this may be a valuable new approach in a variety of animal species,” explains the head of the BU School of Clinical Veterinary Science Animal Welfare and Behaviour research group, professor Mike Mendl. He was an author of the review, alongside LU colleague Dr Oliver Burman.
“Public interest in animal welfare remains high, with widespread implications for the way in which animals are treated, used and included in society. We believe our approach could help us to better understand and assess an animal’s emotion,” the two researchers say. Details of their investigation were published in the latest online issue of the esteemed scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. One of the most interesting discoveries in the study was the fact that some animals are capable of developing anxiety, if they live in environments which contain numerous predators, for instance.