Ein Vergleich des Lernerfolges von Zwergziegen bei simultaner Zweifach- oder Vierfachwahlmöglichkeit in visuellen Differenzierungsaufgaben

Abstract. Title of the paper: A comparison of learning Performance of dwarf goats in Visual discrimination tasks with two or four simultaneously offered Stimuli
A comparison of learning Performance of dwarf goats in visual discrimination tasks with two or four simultaneously offered Stimuli (two-choice and four-choice design) was carried out with the automatic learning device 'Field Monitor'. One S+ Stimulus and three identical S- Stimuli by the four-choice design, and one S+ Stimulus and one S− Stimulus (the same patterns as by four choice) by two-choice design were offered. In both experimental designs the positions of Stimuli (simple geometric figures) on the screen changed pseudo-randomly after each choice.

Since the seventh test day the proportion of successfully learning kids by the four-choice design was substantially higher than that for the two-choice design. Our finding makes it questionable whether the internationally accepted two-choice design is really optimal. In our further experiments in which over 200 animals have been examined for several months the four-choice design has been involved providing a very successful learning.