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Developmental changes in the suckling behavior of hamster pups: A comparison with rat pups
Author(s) -
Hall W. G.,
Rosenblatt Jay S.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
developmental psychobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.055
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1098-2302
pISSN - 0012-1630
DOI - 10.1002/dev.420120605
Subject(s) - hamster , psychology , developmental psychology , zoology , biology , endocrinology , medicine
The suckling behavior of hamster pups was observed to undergo several transitions during the preweaning period. Pups 10 days of age and younger attached to the nipples of their anesthetized mothers and suckled. After 10 days of age, however, only animals which had been deprived of suckling (and food and water) reliably attached to their mothers' nipples. By 25 days of age, deprived pups no longer suckled. The pattern of response after nipple attachment also changed during development: pups younger than 5 days of age remained on 1 nipple after initial attachment, whereas older pups shifted from 1 nipple to another. The development of suckling in hamster pups resembles that in rat pups, although certain changes or transitions occur at different ages in the 2 species. These changes may provide important markers for neural and behavioral development in each species and for comparisons between the two.