Do newborn rabbits learn the odor stimuli releasing nipple‐search behavior?

Abstract

Rabbit pups do not need to learn postnatally the pheromonal cues releasing nipple‐search behavior. Pups delivered by caesarian section were able to attach to nipples as quickly as normally delivered controls in their first encounter with a lactating doe (Experiment I), and pups hand raised to Day 5 without postnatal experience of the nipple‐search pheromone even showed an improvement in their reactivity to it similar to normally raised controls (Experiment II). However, 1‐day‐old pups could be conditioned during the first nursing episode to respond with nipple‐search behavior to artificial odors painted on the mother's ventrum (Experiment III). Finally, pups conditioned on Day 1 but subsequently raised by hand or normally nursed showed retention of the conditioned responsiveness when tested on Day 5 (Experiment IV). These experiments suggest that although rabbit pups are capable of rapidly associating odors with suckling, they do not appear to depend on this ability under normal nursing conditions.