9/27/2017  

The first task will be testing the animals' ability to learn. Through the process of classical conditioning, I will test the learning capabilities of the chosen animals. In order to compare the results, I will replicate my experiment exactly with each group. 

   Independent Study Update   

             I started the process of classical condition on September 19th with the ewes (female sheep). The ewes already know to associate the bucket with food. In my experiment, the neutral stimulus I added was a bell noise. The unconditioned stimulus is their food bucket. Each time I go out I ring the bell just before I pour some food on the ground for them. I continue to ring it until they finish eating.  My goal is for the animals to associate the bell noise with getting their food. Eventually with the ring of the bell, they will learn to expect food without having to see the bucket first. 

The first day I performed this process, these ewes were very cautious around me. It was the first time I had been in their presence and some of them were skeptical of who I was.  Two of the ewes came to the bucket while another two kept their distance and waited a few minutes before coming to get food. None of them looked up to acknowledge me, or the bell noise. They quickly ate their food and left. The second time I completed this task, all four of the ewes willingly came over. A few of the ewes would pick up their heads, and stare at me for a few seconds and continue eating. They could possibly be showing signs of acknowledging the bell noise. It will be interesting to see if the ewes will learn to associate the bell noise with food overtime, and if so, how long it will take.