The effects of chlordiazepoxide on the development of adjunctive drinking in rats

Intermittent delivery of food pellets induces high levels of adjunctive drinking in rats, a pattern of behaviour which some have suggested is due to emotional arousal. In this experiment, however, chronic administration of a dose of chlordiazepoxide, a minor tranquillizer, did not prevent the development of adjunctive drinking after food pellets delivered at 1-min intervals. Indeed, the drug was found slightly to enhance the development of drinking, an effect assumed to be due to the drug's ability to facilitate the performance of several patterns of responding. When chlordiazepoxide was withdrawn a disruption in the pattern of adjunctive drinking was observed.