Neonatal handling affects durably bonding and social development.
Abstract: The neonatal period in humans and in most mammals is characterized by intense mother-young interactions favoring pair bonding and the adaptation of neonates to their new environment. However, in many post-delivery procedures, human babies commonly experience combined maternal separation and intense handling for about one hour post-birth. Currently, the effects of such disturbances on later attachment and on the development of newborns are still debated: clearly, further investigations are required. As animals present good models for controlled experimentation, we chose domestic horses to investigate this issue. Horses, like humans, are characterized by single births, long lactating periods and selective mother-infant bonds. Routine postnatal procedures for foals, as for human babies, also involve intense handling and maternal separation. In the present study, we monitored the behavior of foals from early stages of development to "adolescence", in a normal ecological context (social groups with adults and peers). Experimental foals, separated from their mothers and handled for only 1 hour post-birth, were compared to control foals, left undisturbed after birth. Our results revealed short- and long-term effects of this unique neonatal experience on attachment and subsequent social competences. Thus, experimental foals presented patterns of insecure attachment to their mothers (strong dependence on their mothers, little play) and impaired social competences (social withdrawal, aggressiveness) at all ages. We discuss these results in terms of mother-young interactions, timing of interactions and relationships between bonding and subsequent social competences. Our results indicate that this ungulate species could become an interesting animal model. To our knowledge, this is the first clear demonstration that intervention just after birth affects bonding and subsequent social competences (at least until "adolescence"). It opens new research directions for studies on both humans and other animals.
Publication Date: 2009-04-08 PubMed ID: 19352503PubMed Central: PMC2662428DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005216Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.
The research paper explores how handling newborns immediately after birth and separating them from their mothers can have lasting effects on their bonding and social development, using foals as a model. The study found that foals that were separated and handled for an hour after birth showed insecure attachment to their mothers and poorer social competences.
Objective and Methodology
- The research aimed to investigate the effects of immediate post-birth handling of newborns and their separation from mothers, on their bonding and social behavior in future. The focus was on whether such an experience could affect the newborn’s attachment to the mother and social abilities.
- Domestic horses were chosen as models for this study due to their similarities with humans such as single births, lengthy lactation periods, and selective mother-infant bonds.
- The researchers compared the behavior of two groups – one where foals were separated from their mothers and handled for an hour immediately after birth (experimental foals) and the other where foals were left undisturbed (control group).
Results
- Both short-term and long-term effects of neonatal handling and separation were observed on the foals’ attachment to their mothers and their future social abilities.
- The handled and separated foals displayed signs of insecure attachment to their mothers e.g., they were overly dependent on their mothers and played less.
- These foals also showed reduced social abilities – they were less social and more aggressive, regardless of their age.
Discussion and Conclusion
- The findings were discussed in terms of mother-offspring interaction, appropriate timing for interaction, and how bonding is related to subsequent social competences.
- The researchers suggested that the domestic horse could serve as an interesting animal model to further investigate these effects.
- This research is the first to definitively show that intervention just after birth can affect bonding and future social competence, at least until adolescence, thus opening new avenues for research in human and animal studies.
Cite This Article
APA
Henry S, Richard-Yris MA, Tordjman S, Hausberger M.
(2009).
Neonatal handling affects durably bonding and social development.
PLoS One, 4(4), e5216.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0005216 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- UMR CNRS 6552 Ethos, Ethologie animale et humaine, Université de Rennes 1, Rennes, France. severine.henry@univ-rennes1.fr
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Animals, Newborn
- Horses / physiology
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
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Citations
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