We evaluated the behavioral recovery of mice with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-induced lesions using a pole test. T(LA) (locomotor activity time) 1, 2, and 3 days after intracerebroventricular 6-OHDA injection (T(LA)(1-3D)) was correlated significantly with the levels of dopamine (DA), dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), and homovanillic acid (HVA) in the striatum 7 days after the injection of 6-OHDA, but 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) and serotonin (5-HT) had no correlation with T(LA)(1-3D). The mice whose T(LA)(1-3D) was more than the median showed about 60% depletion of striatal DA and increased DA turnover, and recovered from movement disorders 4 days after injection. These results show that presynaptic neuroadaptations and behavioral recovery exist in this animal model. Thus, the pole test appears to be useful in predicting the extent of the lesion to select a mouse in which the receptive fields of the dopaminergic cells are denervated.