# Touchscreen Tasks for Cognitive Testing in Domestic Goats (Capra hircus): A Pilot Study Using Odd-Item Search Training

## TL;DR

This study shows that domestic goats can be trained to use touchscreens for cognitive tests, suggesting they may use perceptual strategies rather than rule-based learning.

## Contribution

A step-by-step touchscreen training method for naïve domestic goats in cognitive testing is introduced.

## Key findings

- Goats could be trained to use touchscreens for cognitive tasks with smooth and accurate touches.
- Some goats performed above chance in odd-item search tasks, showing potential rule learning.
- Results suggest a perceptual strategy was used by some goats rather than understanding the odd-item rule.

## Abstract

The use of touchscreens for cognitive tests in animals has many advantages. In this study, a step-by-step method was used to train naïve goats to use a touchscreen successfully. The subsequent odd-item search tasks confirmed that they were able to perform cognitive tests using the touchscreen. The results from these tasks also suggested that the goats may have relied on a perceptual strategy rather than acquiring the rule of selecting the odd item.

The cognition of large farm animals is important for understanding how cognitive abilities are shaped by evolution and domestication. Valid testing methods are needed with the development of cognitive studies in more species. Here, a step-by-step method for training four naïve domestic goats to use a touchscreen in cognitive tests is described. The goats made accurate touches smoothly after training. Follow-up tests were conducted to confirm that they could do cognitive tests on a touchscreen. In the pilot test of odd-item search, all the goats had above-chance level performances in some conditions. In the subsequent odd-item search tasks using multiple novel stimulus sets, one goat could achieve the criterion and complete several stages, and the results showed a learning effect. These suggest a potential ability to learn the rule of odd-item search. Not all goats could pass the criteria, and there were failures in the transfer, indicating a perceptual strategy rather than using the odd-item search rule. The experiment confirmed that goats could use the touchscreen testing system for cognitive tasks and demonstrated their approaches in tackling this problem. We also hope that these training methods will help future studies training and testing naïve animals.