
At home, Leonard Green has only been able to keep pet snakes due to his daughter’s allergies. But what Green lacks in animals domestically, he makes up for at work.
A professor in the Department of Psychology, Green works extensively with animals. The department has a long history of animal research, spanning from mice and hamsters to wolves, and has even worked with bats that were kept in a free flight room.
Currently, Green works with rodents and humans and is overseeing undergraduate work with pigeons.
“Our research is mostly involved in models of choice behavior,” said Green. “We investigate different variables of reward influence in decision making.”
Pigeon number 84 demonstrated the influence of food rewards on its behavior. The pigeon was taken from its pristine cage and placed by undergraduate assistants in a metal box referred to as the “experimental chamber.”
The box, according to Green, is “highly modal,” meaning that it can be configured in many different ways to serve a variety of experimental purposes. Panes can be removed, levers added and buttons installed in just a matter of seconds. In this case, the students slid two levers into place so that number 84 could flaunt his skills.
It took a few tries, but once the white pigeon realized that pressing on the right-hand lever resulted in reward, he was hooked. In this case, mixed grains were the reward. Other times, sucrose water, flavored food pellets, root beer and even Tom Collins Mix (“without the alcohol,” noted Green) serve as the prize.
Located on the third floor of the psychology building, Green’s laboratory is spotless. It shines with cleaning solution, as the lab is cleaned regularly by a crew of trained and certified individuals.
The room is brightly lit overhead. In the “non-animal area” there isn’t a trace-not even a hint-of a smell to suggest that animals are present. The animals rest peacefully in their individual cubicles and containers that are stacked on shelves and hidden behind doors. All of the animals, from the psychology department’s pigeons and mice to the biology department’s turtles, reside in their own areas. The temperature and humidity are fixed to the comfort of the individual species and other specifications are also followed that vary from animal to animal.
The amount of space that the individual animals receive is regulated. Pigeons are allowed 0.8 square feet of floor space each and an unspecified height, while larger animals, such as rabbits, are promised 1.5 square feet of floor space and 14 inches in height.
The rigidity and amount of control used in the lab, coupled with its immaculate, gleaming nature scream compliance with standards. As Green noted, “[Compliance is the] only way.”
All animal research must observe the federal standards and regulations set by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Researchers can choose to be accredited by other organizations, including the AAALAC, (Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care) which has accredited Green and his lab. This is dually enforced by the University, where any animal testing, “creates a culture of compliance to ensure adherence to all Federal regulations and University policies and procedures regarding the judicious and humane use of animals in research,” as a statement released to all faculty and staff members reads.
Green understands and obeys. All of his animals have been procured through a certified registered supplier and approved through a special department.
All of these precautions are taken with the research in mind. Green said that the first reason for performing his work is “to establish a whole behavioral model of self-control.” He hopes this model will lead to the treatment of self-control problems in humans. He used obesity and diabetes as examples of diseases that can hinge on self-control.
“Our research can also help us understand basic evolution, to recognize what’s similar and different across the evolutionary spectrum,” said Green.
Green also related that some researchers are genuinely interested in the animals themselves. Research is conducted to design better environments for the animals and develop improved drugs and treatments.
Green noted that researchers have been known to become personally attached to their subjects. This happened a few years ago when researchers in the lab were working with rats. Normally the animals are simply labeled in an alphabetic or numeric sequence. However, this researcher chose to give each rat the name of a famous feminist. One rat was named “Bella” after Bella Abzug, who is remembered for her forceful approach to women’s rights.
Of course, there are people who are against animal testing, and Green knows this. Groups like PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and those who are proponents of animal rights tend to have qualms with the use of animals in research.
“I absolutely cannot believe that there is animal testing done on campus,” said one emphatic student who wished to remain anonymous. “It is completely morally and ethically wrong to subject these creatures who have caused us no harm to graphic and inhumane research.”
Green has his own view. He said that because they follow all required regulations, treat the animals in humane, civil ways and do not practice “invasive intervention,” there shouldn’t be much to argue about.
“I don’t think we engender serious problems, although [I understand that] some are opposed to any animal use,” said Green.