Interactive effects of parity and early pup stress on the open field behavior of laboratory rats

Pups of primiparous and multiparous Sprague Dawley rats received 0-, 2-, or 5-min cold stress on Days 2-6 postpartun. Stressed offspring of primiparous mothers had shorter latencies to move in an open field than did control offspring of primiparous mothers. However, stressed offspring of multiparous mothers had longer latencies than did the controls. The results suggest differences in maternal responsiveness immediately following return of stressed pups to the nest.