Exploring breed differences in dogs (Canis familiaris): does exaggeration or inhibition of predatory response predict performance on human-guided tasks?

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What did domestication do to dogs? A new account of dogs' sensitivity to human actions.

R Dorey, Clive D L Wynne, Monique Udell (2010)

Over the last two decades increasing evidence for an acute sensitivity to human gestures and attentional states in domestic dogs has led to a burgeoning of research into the social cognition of this highly familiar yet previously under-studied animal. Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) have been shown to be more successful than their closest relative (and wild progenitor) the wolf, and than man's closest relative, the chimpanzee, on tests of sensitivity to human social cues, such as following points to a container holding hidden food. The "Domestication Hypothesis" asserts that during domestication dogs evolved an inherent sensitivity to human gestures that their non-domesticated counterparts do not share. According to this view, sensitivity to human cues is present in dogs at an early age and shows little evidence of acquisition during ontogeny. A closer look at the findings of research on canine domestication, socialization, and conditioning, brings the assumptions of this hypothesis into question. We propose the Two Stage Hypothesis, according to which the sensitivity of an individual animal to human actions depends on acceptance of humans as social companions, and conditioning to follow human limbs. This offers a more parsimonious explanation for the domestic dog's sensitivity to human gestures, without requiring the use of additional mechanisms. We outline how tests of this new hypothesis open directions for future study that offer promise of a deeper understanding of mankind's oldest companion.

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Wolves outperform dogs in following human social cues

Monique A.R. Udell, Nicole R. Dorey, Clive D.L. Wynne (2008)

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Agility and search and rescue training differently affects pet dogs' behaviour in socio-cognitive tasks.

Sarah Marshall-Pescini, Chiara Passalacqua, Shanis Barnard … (2009)

Both genetic factors and life experiences appear to be important in shaping dogs' responses in a test situation. One potentially highly relevant life experience may be the dog's training history, however few studies have investigated this aspect so far. This paper briefly reviews studies focusing on the effects of training on dogs' performance in cognitive tasks, and presents new, preliminary evidence on trained and untrained pet dogs' performance in an 'unsolvable task'. Thirty-nine adult dogs: 13 trained for search and rescue activities (S&R group), 13 for agility competition (Agility group) and 13 untrained pets (Pet group) were tested. Three 'solvable' trials in which dogs could obtain the food by manipulating a plastic container were followed by an 'unsolvable' trial in which obtaining the food became impossible. The dogs' behaviours towards the apparatus and the people present (owner and researcher) were analysed. Both in the first 'solvable' and in the 'unsolvable' trial the groups were comparable on actions towards the apparatus, however differences emerged in their human-directed gazing behaviour. In fact, results in the 'solvable' trial, showed fewer S&R dogs looking back at a person compared to agility dogs, and the latter alternating their gaze between person and apparatus more frequently than pet dogs. In the unsolvable trial no difference between groups emerged in the latency to look at the person however agility dogs looked longer at the owner than both pet and S&R dogs; whereas S&R dogs exhibited significantly more barking (always occurring concurrently to looking at the person or the apparatus) than both other groups. Furthermore, S&R dogs alternated their gaze between person and apparatus more than untrained pet dogs, with agility dogs falling in between these two groups. Thus overall, it seems that the dogs' human-directed communicative behaviours are significantly influenced by their individual training experiences.

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Journal

Title: Animal Behaviour

Abbreviated Title: Animal Behaviour

Publisher: Elsevier BV

ISSN (Print): 00033472

Publication date Created: March 2014

Publication date (Print): March 2014

Volume: 89

Issue:

Pages: 99-105

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DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.12.012

SO-VID: 65a4a885-61bf-464c-9f6a-16e7de79f6b0

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Exploring breed differences in dogs (Canis familiaris): does exaggeration or inhibition of predatory response predict performance on human-guided tasks?

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Most cited references 24

What did domestication do to dogs? A new account of dogs' sensitivity to human actions.

Wolves outperform dogs in following human social cues

Agility and search and rescue training differently affects pet dogs' behaviour in socio-cognitive tasks.

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