Presented By: Faith Oster, The Ohio State University
Co-Authors: Kimberly Cole, The Ohio State University

Animals are often used as educational resources in post-secondary educational settings across the United States, especially in animal science curricula. Yet, little is known about the impact of student-animal interactions (SAI) on the animals used as educational resources, specifically regarding the effect on their emotional states. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the emotional states of the animals used as educational resources through measurements of behavioral responses observed during SAI. The two hypotheses tested were (1) the animals will exhibit negative emotional states when the interaction has a higher level of invasiveness and/or positive emotional states to non-invasive interactions, and (2) the animals will exhibit negative emotional states during nonfamiliar student interactions and positive emotional states during familiar student interactions. This study was conducted at The Ohio State University during Autumn semester of 2022. Animal species (n = 6) used as educational resources in animal sciences courses exhibited a higher frequency of negative emotional states the higher the level of invasiveness and positive emotional states during non-invasive interactions (p < 0.05). Moreover, animals exhibited a higher frequency of negative emotional states during nonfamiliar student interactions and invasive activities and a higher frequency of positive emotional states during familiar student interactions or less invasive activities (p < 0.05). In conclusion, animals exhibited more negative emotional states when the interaction was invasive and non-familiar students were present versus exhibiting higher levels of positive emotional states when the interaction was non-invasive and familiar students were present. Thus, indicating the welfare of the animals used during these courses could be enhanced by minimizing the number of invasive interactions, increasing the quantity of non-invasive interactions, and familiarizing the animals with the students. Overall, these findings indicate that the nature of the SAI influences an animal’s behavioral responses.