Researchers are working hard to show that many farm animals are just as conscious as the pet who is sleeping on your couch.
The animal that’s currently in the spotlight? Goats.
The video below shows some of that research. Here’s what these scientists are up to:
“The research[ers] placed a box with food in it in front of an array of goats, with a researcher standing quietly nearby. After teaching the goats to open the box and retrieve the food, which the goats successfully did a few times, the sneaky researchers secretly locked the box, making it impossible for the goat to open,” Modern Farmer reports.
“What the goat did next might seem small, but isn’t. Those goats, upon figuring out that the box could no longer be open, turned and looked at the researcher—holding a gaze even longer if the researcher was facing the goat. This kind of behavior is seen in domesticated pets like dogs and cats; it indicates a bond between an animal and human, and the animal’s understanding that a human can help it do things the animal can’t do itself.”
Related on EcoSalon
Cleaner Cow Burps to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
15 Hilarious Photos of Interspecies Mingling
Let Wallabies Mow Your Lawn
Image of a cute goat via Shutterstock