11/7/17  

The conclusion of the classical conditioning experiment with the sheep.  

Independent Study Update   

The first step in my study of animal intelligence was testing the learning abilities of the sheep using the method of classical conditioning, the process of learning a new behavior through association. After 6 weeks of reinforcement, the sheep learned to associate the bell stimulus with food.  

When I began this experiment project on September 19th, the sheep had minimal prior human socialization.  They kept quite a large distance between themselves and any humans. Even when presented with food, they hesitated to approach me.  

By mid- October, after replicating the experiment once to twice each week, the sheep were slowly beginning to respond. One or two would lift their heads and acknowledge my presence. Also, by this time, if the sheep saw their feeding bucket, they would readily approach without fear. However, they were not fully responding to the stimulus yet.  

I replicated the experiment again when I went to the farm this past week (November 7th). The sheep paid little attention to me when I first arrived. They were not phased by the noise of the golf cart or the sounds of human voices.  However, when I rang the bell, all of them immediately perked their heads up in response.  Four of the sheep began approaching me expecting their food, the rest planning to follow. After they had demonstrated a clear response to the stimulus, they received their snack.  

One question to pose is, "Would the results of my experiment have been different if the sheep were more socialized before I began my experiment?" I had consciously made the choice to start this experiment when the sheep were still unsocialized. I wanted a definitive conclusion that the sheep were learning to respond to the bell stimulus and not responding to seeing me. I do believe their initial antisocial behavior added slightly more time to the experiment as they were learning to respond to both the stimulus and approaching humans for their first time.   

What does this say about the intelligence of the sheep?? 

            This experiment with the sheep on the Home Winds Farm proves that, despite the stereotype of sheep being "dumb", they are capable of being very intellectual animals. They have demonstrated that they have the ability to learn new processes and retain that information.  It is interesting to note that classical conditioning is something humans are influenced by everyday. The influence of classical conditioning can be seen in responses such as phobias. A common example is conditioned nausea, in which the sight or smell of a particular food causes nausea because it caused an upset stomach in the past. Similarly, when the sight of a dog has been associated with a memory of being bitten, the result may be a conditioned fear of dogs. Classical conditioning has also been used as a successful form of treatment for substance abuse and smoking. Some therapies associated with classical conditioning include aversion therapy, systematic desensitization, and flooding.