No abstract

No abstract

Among kittens the first 3 weeks of life are spent within the limited confines of the home. The mother establishes a delivery site during parturition; soon after the birth of the kittens, this site becomes the home region where all of the interactions between the mother and young, and among the young, occur. The kittens remain in the home until the beginning of the fourth week, which is long after their eyes have opened (i.e., seventh to ninth day), and they can crawl o r walk the distance required t o leave the home and wander around the cage. Undoubtedly, huddling of the litter and maternal nursing in the home contribute to the kitten's attachment t o this region. There is an additional reason for the kitten's remaining in the home: We have found that the home becomes an orientation center f o r the kittens of the litter. The following is a study of the development of the home as an orientation center for kittens during the first 3 weeks of life.When an animal adopts a posture o r maintains locomotion which is related to the amount o r source of stimulation in the environment, this is referred to as orientation (i.e., kinesis o r taxis). Among lower invertebrates and vertebrates, orientation is based largely upon innate responses t o stimulation of sensory receptors by directionalized stimuli (i.e., beam of light, chemical gradient, thermal gradient) under the appropriate organic conditions. Among newly born mammals, orientation responses a r e also based upon innate (i.e., present at birth) approach and withdrawal processes which enable the newborn to approach sources of weak stimulation and withdraw from sources of strong stimulation.2, 3

No abstract

No abstract