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      A small-N study of body weight during free-feeding in the brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula)

      Cameron, Kristie Elizabeth; Bizo, Lewis A.; Starkey,Nicola J.
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      Cameron-etal 2022 possum weight paper.pdf
      Published version, 538.1Kb
      DOI
       10.34074/piahw.001103
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      Permanent link to Research Commons version
      https://hdl.handle.net/10289/15463
      Abstract
      Animals in captivity can develop physiological characteristics such as obesity that could negatively affect their health. In the captive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), it is unknown what effect long-term free-feeding has on body weight. In this study, which took place over 12 months, three possums were fed according to a free-feeding regime. Food intake was measured daily, and the possums were weighed every four days. The possums all gained weight but showed bouts of stable body weights across the year. Stability was evaluated using mathematical models. It was concluded that long-term free-feeding is not recommended for animals-in-waiting for use in operant experiments to mitigate weight gain due to overeating.
      Date
      2022
      Type
      Journal Article
      Publisher
      Te Pukenga
      Rights
      © 2022. This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 license.
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      • Science and Engineering Papers [3124]
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