Animal models provide a simple and reliable method to study the effects of alcohol on the developing brain and eliminate many of the obvious confounds associated with human studies. These models can be used to understand the mechanism of the toxic effects of ethanol on the developing brain and to develop and test potential therapies to combat these effects. Animal models enable the experimenter to manipulate social and behavioral contexts; to control for stress and nutritional variables; and to do all of this in an organism that has a condensed lifespan in relation to human beings. In this review, the different animal models of FASD will be outlined and the advantages and disadvantages of each model will be discussed. This will be followed by an in depth discussion of the cognitive deficits that have been observed in the animal models of PNEE.
