Scientists Confirm That Rats Love To Have Their Bellies Tickled

September 7, 2020

A team of researchers with the University of Bern in Switzerland has found that as part of feeling happiness, rats undergo a slight physical change by lowering their ears.

Prior research has suggested that rats like to have their bellies tickled — they come back for more and emit a noise (in a range too high for humans to hear) that some researchers have compared to laughing. Because of that, the researchers use tickling as a basis for testing happiness in rats.

Exhibit A:

Rats like belly rubs