Analysis of sexual behaviour in male rabbits across successive tests leading to sexual exhaustion

Pedro Jimenez; M.A. Serrano-Meneses; E. Cuamatzi; G. González-Mariscal

doi:10.4995/wrs.2012.1034

Authors

Pedro Jimenez Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala
M.A. Serrano-Meneses Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala
E. Cuamatzi Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala
G. González-Mariscal Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2012.1034

Keywords:

male sexual behavior, sexual satiety, copulation, ejaculation, intervals, chinning.

Abstract

Various parameters of sexual behaviour were studied in ten male rabbits daily tested with sexually receptive females (ovariectomized, given estradiol benzoate s.c. 5 µg/day). The aim of this study was to analyse rabbit sexual behaviour during successive tests leading to sexual exhaustion. We allowed copulation ad libitum and determined if sexual satiety was reached within a day and sexual exhaustion across several days. The pair was allowed to copulate freely until the male failed to show sexual interest in that female for 30 minutes. The female was then removed and replaced by another; this procedure was repeated using as many does as needed, until the male showed no interest in any female for 2 hours. Scent-marking (chinning) was also recorded, before and after the copulation test. This whole procedure was repeated daily until the male showed no sexual behaviour at all on a given day. Within a test, copulation ad libitum led to a gradual increase in the time interval between successive mounts and ejaculations, regardless of the day of testing. Such increments predicted that the buck was reaching sexual satiety. The “miss” rate (i.e., the proportion of mounts that did not culminate in ejaculation) significantly increased from a median of 25 on the first day to 55 on the last day of testing. The mean time to reach copulatory inactivity decreased from 4 hrs on the first day to 1 hr on the last day. The total number of ejaculations within a test decreased from an average of 22 to 6 (first vs last day, respectively) and the number of chin marks was reduced by 69% compared with pre-mating values, regardless of the day of testing. All bucks eventually stopped copulating after a variable number of days (range=2-15 days). We concluded that, following copulation ad libitum with several females, male rabbits reach sexual satiety (i.e., they are unable to continue copulating on the same day) and, after several days, they also attain sexual exhaustion, a state in which copulation is totally arrested for at least 24 hours. Some behavioural parameters can be used as reliable predictors that a buck is approaching sexual satiety and sexual exhaustion.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Agmo, A., 1976. Cholinergic mechanisms and sexual behavior in the male rabbit. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 51, 43-45. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00426319

Agmo, A., Contreras, J.L., Paredes, R., 1991. Sexual behavior and copulatory thrusting patterns in male rabbits treated with GABA transaminase inhibitors. Physiology & Behavior. 49, 73-78. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(91)90233-E

Agmo, A., Paredes, R.G., Contreras, J.L., 1994. Opioids and sexual behavior in the male rabbit: the role of central and peripheral opioid receptors. Journal of Neural Transmission. General Section. 97, 211-223. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02336142

Agmo, A., Paredes, R.G., Ramos, J.I., Contreras, J.L., 1996. Dopamine and sexual behavior in the male rabbit. Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior. 55, 289-295. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0091-3057(96)00086-X

Ambriz, D., Rosales, A.M., Sotelo, R., Mora, J.A., Rosado, A., Garcia, A.R., 2002. Changes in the quality of rabbit semen in 14 consecutive ejaculates obtained every 15 minutes. Archives of Andrology 48, 389-395. https://doi.org/10.1080/01485010290099255

Beach, F.A., Jordan, L., 1956. Sexual exhaustion and recovery in the male rat. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 49, 121-133. https://doi.org/10.1080/17470215608416811

Beach, F.A., Rabedeau, G.R., 1959. Sexual exhaustion and recovery in the male hamster. Journal of Comparative & Physiological Psychology 52, 56-61. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0041896

Beyer, C., Velázquez, J., Larsson, K., Contreras, J.L., 1980. Androgen regulation of the motor copulatory pattern in the male New Zealand white rabbit. Hormones & Behavior. 14, 179-190. https://doi.org/10.1016/0018-506X(80)90027-6

Contreras, J.L., Beyer, C., 1979. A polygraphic analysis of mounting and ejaculation in the New Zealand white rabbit. Physiology & Behavior. 23, 939-943. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(79)90204-X

Fernandez-Guasti, A., Rodriguez-Manzo, G., 1992. Further evidence showing that the inhibitory action of serotonin on rat masculine sexual behavior is mediated after the stimulation of 5-HT1B receptors. Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior. 42, 529-533. https://doi.org/10.1016/0091-3057(92)90150-E

Fernandez-Guasti, A., Rodriguez-Manzo, G., 1997. 8-OH-DPAT and male rat sexual behavior: partial blockade by noradrenergic lesion and sexual exhaustion. Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior. 56, 111-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0091-3057(96)00165-7

Fuentes, V.O., Villagrán, C., Navarro, J., Fuentes, P.I., 2005. Effect of small doses of naloxone on sexual exhaustion in White New Zealand male rabbits. Animal Reproduction Science 90, 341-346. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anireprosci.2005.02.006

González-Mariscal, G., Alboneti, M.E., Cuamatzi, E., Beyer, C., 1997. Transitory inhibition of scent marking by copulation in male and female rabbits. Animal Behaviour 53, 323-333. https://doi.org/10.1006/anbe.1996.0327

González-Mariscal, G., Melo, A.I., Zavala, A., Beyer, C., 1990. Variations in chin-marking behavior of New Zealand female rabbits throughout the whole reproductive cycle. Physiology & Behavior 48, 361-365. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(90)90328-2

González-Mariscal, G., Melo, A.I., Zavala, A., Beyer, C., 1992. Chin-marking behavior in male and female New Zealand rabbits: onset, development, and activation by steroids. Physiology & Behavior 52, 889-893. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(92)90367-B

Grunt, J.A., Young, W.C., 1952. Psychological modification of fatigue following orgasm (ejaculation) in the male guinea pig. Journal of Comparative & Physiological Psychology 45, 508-510. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0063596

Hull, E.M., Domínguez, J.M., 2007. Sexual behavior in male rodents. Hormones & Behavior 52, 45-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2007.03.030

Larsson, K., 1956. Conditioning and sexual behavior in the male albino rat. Stockholm.

Larsson, K., 1979. Features of the neuroendocrine regulation of masculine sexual behavior. In: Beyer, C. (Ed.) Endocrine control of sexual behavior. Raven Press, New York, 77-163.

Marshall, F.H.A., Verney, E.B., 1935. The ocurrence of ovulation and pseudo-pregnancy in the rabbit as a result of central nervous stimulation. J Physiol. 86, 327-336. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.1936.sp003368

Melin, P., Kihlström, J.E., 1963. Influence of oxytocin on sexual behavior in male rabbits. Endocrinology 73, 433-435. https://doi.org/10.1210/endo-73-4-433

Oshio, S., Kaneko, S., Mohri, H., 1986. Characterization of rabbit sperm by equilibrium sedimentation in Percoll during frequent ejaculation. Arch. Androl 17, 189-194. https://doi.org/10.3109/01485018608990195

Paredes, R.G., Contreras, J.L., Agmo, A., 1998. GABAergic drugs and sexual behaviour in the rabbit: evidence for species-specific effects. J Psychopharmacol. 12, 186-191. https://doi.org/10.1177/026988119801200211

Paredes, R.G., Contreras, J.L., Agmo, A., 2000. Serotonin and sexual behavior in the male rabbit. J Neural Transm. 107, 767-777. https://doi.org/10.1007/s007020070057

Phoenix, C.H., Chambers, K.C., 1988. Old age and sexual exhaustion in male rhesus macaques. Physiol Behav. 44, 157-163. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9384(88)90132-1

Rodriguez-Manzo, G., 1999a. Blockade of the establishment of the sexual inhibition resulting from sexual exhaustion by the Coolidge effect. Behav Brain Res. 100, 245-254. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0166-4328(98)00137-5

Rodriguez-Manzo, G., 1999b. Yohimbine interacts with the dopaminergic system to reverse sexual satiation: further evidence for a role of sexual motivation in sexual exhaustion. Eur J Pharmacol. 372, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0014-2999(99)00140-5

Rodríguez-Manzo, G., Fernández-Guasti, A., 1994. Reversal of sexual exhaustion by serotonergic and noradrenergic agents. Behav Brain Res. 62, 127-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/0166-4328(94)90019-1

Rodriguez-Manzo, G., Fernandez-Guasti, A., 1995. Participation of the central noradrenergic system in the reestablishment of copulatory behavior of sexually exhausted rats by yohimbine, naloxone, and 8-OH-DPAT. Brain Res Bull. 38, 399-404. https://doi.org/10.1016/0361-9230(95)02007-E

Rodriguez-Manzo, G., Lopez-Rubalcava, C., Hen, R., Fernandez-Guasti, A., 2002. Participation of 5-HT(1B) receptors in the inhibitory actions of serotonin on masculine sexual behaviour of mice: pharmacological analysis in 5-HT(1B) receptor knockout mice. Br J Pharmacol. 136, 1127-1134. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bjp.0704827

Romano-Torres, M., Phillips-Farfan, B.V., Chavira, R., Rodriguez-Manzo, G., Fernandez-Guasti, A., 2007. Relationship between sexual satiety and brain androgen receptors. Neuroendocrinology 85, 16-26. https://doi.org/10.1159/000099250

Rubin, H.B., Azrin, N.H., 1967. Temporal patterns of sexual behavior in rabbits as determined by an automatic recording technique. J Exp Anal Behav. 10, 219-231. https://doi.org/10.1901/jeab.1967.10-219

Sachs, B.D., Meisel, R.L., 1988. The physiology of male sexual behavior. In: Knobil, E and Neill, J (Eds.) The Physiology of Reproduction. Raven, New York, 1393-1485.

Sokal, R.R., Rohlf, F.J., 1981. Biometry. Freeman, New York.

Villagrán, C., Navarro, J., Fuentes, V.O., 2003. Sexual exhaustion in White New Zealand male rabbits of different ages. Anim Reprod Sci. 76, 251-255. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-4320(02)00242-7

Wilson, J.R., Kuehn, R.E., Beach, F.A., 1963. Modification in the sexual behavior of male rats produced by changing the stimulus female. J Comp Physiol Psychol. 56, 636-644. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0042469

Young, W.C., Grunt, J.A., 1951. The pattern and measurement of sexual behavior in the male guinea pig. J Comp Physiol Psychol. 44, 492-500. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0055063