Your browser does not fully support modern features. Please upgrade for a smoother experience.
Please note this is an old version of this entry, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Gnawing behaviour comprises repeated incisal biting, scraping and abrasion of hard substrates, and is the behaviour around which the rodent masticatory apparatus is organised, all rodents retaining a conserved mechanical complex for gnawing despite extensive diversification of jaw form [1]. In lagomorphs the incisors grow continuously and are worn down during normal function, so that tooth length depends on the abrasiveness of food, occlusal contact and resting tooth grinding [2]. In captivity, gnawing is also directed at cage bars and wire mesh, where it can develop into a stereotypic pattern in laboratory mice [2][3]. Gnawing blocks are provided as cage enrichment, giving rabbits an outlet for substrate-directed gnawing [4].
- gnawing behaviour
- incisors
- rodents
- lagomorphs
- stereotypic behaviour
References
- Robert E. Druzinsky. The oral apparatus of rodents: variations on the theme of a gnawing machine; Cambridge University Press (CUP): Cambridge, United Kingdom, 2015; pp. 323-349. [CrossRef]
- Smaranda Crăciun; George Cosmin Nadăş; Odontogenic Abscesses in Pet Rabbits: A Comprehensive Review of Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Treatment Advances. Animals 2025, 15, 1994, 10.3390/ani15131994.
- Hanno Würbel; Rosemary Chapman; Craig Rutland; Effect of feed and environmental enrichment on development of stereotypic wire-gnawing in laboratory mice. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 1998, 60, 69-81, 10.1016/s0168-1591(98)00150-6.
- Luc Maertens; Stephanie Buijs; Chantal Davoust; Gnawing blocks as cage enrichment and dietary supplement for does and fatteners: intake, performance and behaviour. World Rabbit Sci. 2013, 21, 1195, 10.4995/wrs.2013.1195.
This entry is offline, you can click here to edit this entry!