OPERANT STUDIES ON SHAPE DISCRIMINATION IN GOATS

Goats have been trained, using an operant conditioning method in which they pressed panels with their muzzles in order to obtain food, to discriminate between simultaneously presented shapes. In the discrimination task the goats faced two response panels above each of which a shape was projected on a small screen. Only presses on the panel associated with the correct shape were reinforced and after each reinforcement the position of the positive stimulus was randomly varied. The results obtained demonstrate that goats are capable of discriminating between a wide variety of similar shapes. © 1979.