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Failure of Growth in Disturbed Laboratory Rats

Abstract

LABORATORY rats can be very sensitive to disturbances of their accustomed environment or routine, and they may react by modifying their eating and drinking behaviour in various ways1–4. If some kinds of disturbance are prolonged, the body-weight may be affected, and we have previously found this a particularly useful measure: rats which were exposed to disturbances either lost weight or they failed to gain it as quickly as undisturbed controls5,6.

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STEINBERG, H., WATSON, R. Failure of Growth in Disturbed Laboratory Rats. Nature 185, 615–616 (1960). https://doi.org/10.1038/185615a0

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