Environmental features determining successful rearing in the mutant mouse staggerer.

The mutant mouse staggerer is unable to rear her pups to weaning unless special precautions are taken. The following environmental conditions were found to contribute to compensate for the maternal behavioral deficits of the staggerer: (1) the foster pups used in a constraining box to stimulate the lactating staggerer mother are 4 days old. (2) The mother is enforced to stay in close physical contact with these pups for at least 12 hours immediately after delivery. (3) The staggerer pups are transferred to a normal lactating mother to suckle her for the first 12 hours of life.