We conducted two conditioning experiments to investigate whether sheep are able to develop
preferences of aversions in response to an increase of rumen fill performed with 300 or 600 g chopped
straw introduced through the rumen fistula. When sheep where fed a basal diet of hay (Experiment
1) they developed aversions against the feeds associated with the increase of rumen fill without
a dose effect. When they were fed a diet of pellets of beet pulp (Experiment 2) they developed
neither preferences nor aversions. These results indicate that physical consequences of feed intake
are integrated by the animals and that they can contribute to diet choice via diet learning.
CITATIONS(2):
1.
Feeding behaviour of sheep fed lucerne v. grass hays with controlled post-ingestive consequences A. Favreau, C. Ginane, R. Baumont animal
Feeding behaviour in ruminants: a consequence of interactions between a reward system and the regulation of metabolic homeostasis C. Ginane, M. Bonnet, R. Baumont, D. K. Revell Animal Production Science
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