A concept of welfare based on reward evaluating mechanisms in the brain: anticipatory behaviour as an indicator for the state of reward systems
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In this review we attempt to link the efficiency by which animals behave (economy of animal behaviour) to a neuronal substrate and subjective states to arrive at a definition of animal welfare which broadens the scope of its study. Welfare is defined as the balance between positive (reward, satisfaction) and negative (stress) experiences or affective states. The state of this balance may range from positive (good welfare) to negative (poor welfare). These affective states are momentary or transient states which occur against the background of and are integrated with the state of this balancing system. As will be argued the efficiency in behaviour requires that, for instance, satisfaction is like a moving target: reward provides the necessary feedback to guide behaviour; it is a not steady-state which can be maintained for long. This balancing system is reflected in the brain by the concerted action of opioid and mesolimbic dopaminergic systems. The state of this system reflects the coping capacity of the animal and is determined by previous events. In other words, this integrative approach of behavioural biology and neurobiology aims at understanding how the coping capacity of animals may be affected and measured. We argue that this balancing system underlies the economy of behaviour. Furthermore we argue that among other techniques anticipation in Pavlovian conditioning is an easy and useful tool to assess the state of this balancing system: for estimating the state of an animal in terms of welfare we focus on the conditions when an animal is facing a challenge.
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Foraging is often regarded as a high priority behavior, an internally motivated behavioral pattern that should be performed, or otherwise may induce a state of chronic stress, which may result in behavioral pathology like ARBs as described in many other animal species.
“Foraging is often regarded as a high priority behavior [75,76], i.e., an internally motivated behavioral pattern that should be performed, or otherwise may induce a state of chronic stress, which may result in behavioral pathology like ARBs as described in many other animal species [77,78,79].”
From A One Health Perspective on the Human-Companion Animal Relationship with Emphasis on Zoonotic Aspects. (2020) · cites this paper as [75]
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- Authors
- Spruijt, B. M., van den Bos, R., & Pijlman, F. T. A.
- Affiliations
- Utrecht University (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Spruijt, Berry M.
- Venue
- Applied Animal Behaviour Science
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2001-04
- Volume
- 72
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 145-171
- ISSN
- 0168-1591 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2033630018
- Cited by
- 436
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 15 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 37 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 20 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 17.87
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- research.wur.nl
- Locations
- Applied Animal Behaviour Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Socio-Environmental Systems Modeling (acceptedVersion)
- WBI Studies Repository (submittedVersion)
- Adelaide Research & Scholarship (AR&S) (University of Adelaide) (submittedVersion)
- University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) (submittedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
- Keywords
- animal welfare, reward systems, anticipatory behavior, classical conditioning, mesolimbic dopamine system, opioid system, stress, coping capacity, affective states, welfare analysis
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