Effects of rearing condition,gender, and sexual experience on odor preferences and urine marking in Long-Evans rats

Two experiments investigated the effects of isolation rearing on olfactory communication in rats. In Experiment 1, there were significant rearing and gender effects on the time spent investigating conspecific odors, the preferences for these odors, and the amount of urine marking over these odors by sexually naive male and female rats. Experiment 2 found significant effects of rearing condition and sexual experience on the responses of male rats to conspecific odors. In general, isolation rearing increased the time spent investigating conspecific odors, but reduced the amount of urine marking over these odors and altered the odor preference scales. These results suggest that the responses of both male and female rats to the odors of conspecifics are modified by rearing experience. The importance of learning conspecific odor signals for the development of normal social behavior is discussed.