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A comparison of dog–dog and dog–human play behaviour
Abstract
In the popular literature, it is often assumed that a single conceptual framework can be applied to both dog–dog and dog–human interactions, including play. We have, through three studies, tested the hypothesis that dog–dog and dog–human play are motivationally distinct. In an observational study of dogs being walked by their owners (N=402), dogs which were walked together, and had opportunities to play with one another, played with their owners with the same frequency as dogs being walked alone. This finding was supported by a questionnaire survey of 2585 dog owners in which dogs in multi-dog households played slightly more often with their owners than dogs in single-dog households. The performance of dog–dog play does not, therefore, seem to suppress the dogs' motivation to play with their owners as would be predicted if they were motivationally interchangeable. In an experimental comparison of dog–dog and dog–human toy-centred play, the dogs were more likely to give up on a competition, to show and present the toy to their play partner, if that partner was human. When two toys were available, dogs playing with other dogs spent less time showing interest in both toys and possessed one of the toys for longer, than dogs playing with people. Overall, the dogs were more interactive and less likely to possess the object when playing with a person. We conclude that dog–dog and dog–human play are structurally different, supporting the idea that they are motivationally distinct. We therefore suggest there is no reason to assume that the consequences of dog–dog play can be extrapolated to play with humans.
... Dogs were found to interact less with other dogs, including playing, when leashed (Westgarth et al., 2010;Řezáč et al., 2011), however in an off leash area, more non-contact behavior was initiated, when intermediate levels of dogs were present (Howse et al., 2018). Regarding the identity of the other individual, dogs have been found to differentiate playing with other dogs from playing with people (Rooney et al., 2000), but playing asymmetry did not differ between strange and familiar dogs (Cordoni et al., 2016). Indeed, the motivation to play with other dogs did not decrease with frequency of play with people, and vice versa, and the frequency of varying morphological patterns of play differed between the two situations (Rooney et al., 2000). ...
... Regarding the identity of the other individual, dogs have been found to differentiate playing with other dogs from playing with people (Rooney et al., 2000), but playing asymmetry did not differ between strange and familiar dogs (Cordoni et al., 2016). Indeed, the motivation to play with other dogs did not decrease with frequency of play with people, and vice versa, and the frequency of varying morphological patterns of play differed between the two situations (Rooney et al., 2000). Dogs were also found to play more with similarly sized individuals and, in the case of male dogs, with females rather than with other males (Řezáč et al., 2011). ...
... The results of the present study support the hypothesis that dogs, in particular whippets and IGs, modulate their play behavior dependent on breed and morphological characteristics of the other individual(s) involved in play, as found by Rooney et al. (2000) concerning play partners belonging to different species, and by Řezáč et al. (2011), concerning size and sex within the same species. The present study expands on the finding that the type of individual (other sighthounds vs non-sighthounds) within the same species and size can make a difference in preference for play partners. ...
Dogs modulate their social behaviour in response to the species of the other partner(s) and to the situation or context of the interaction. In the present study, reluctance to join other dogs in play, exhibited by whippets and Italian greyhounds (two sighthound breeds) was investigated, with regard to breed. The effects of the possible canine play partner being another sighthound vs other breed/type, and of being in a fenced vs an unfenced area, was considered with regard to caretaker perception. Data on a convenience sample of 75 dogs (38 Italian greyhounds, 37 whippets) were analysed using a generalized estimated equation with breed, age, sex as factors, the dog as individual, and the area, the breed/type of other dog and the interaction area*partner as within subject predictive variable. The dependent variable was the rating given to the dog by the caretaker regarding the reluctance of a dog to join other dogs in play in the four different situations resulting by the combination of area and partner. Overall, the sighthounds in the present study’s sample were quite willing to join other dogs in play, showing little reluctance (median 3 out of 10). Both investigated breeds (Italian greyhounds were more hesitant than whippets) and the breed/type of other dogs playing (dogs hesitating more if the prospective partner(s) was/were not (a) sighthound(s)) significantly influenced the hesitation, whereas the other factors in the model had no effect. Given the importance of play in the development of behaviour and for maintaining positive welfare, further studies investigating factors influencing willingness to play in animals are needed.
... Dogs' willingness to cooperate with humans is also seen in their frequent engagement in human-directed social play (121)(122)(123). Play solicitation in dog-human dyads is bidirectional, with humans engaging dogs in social play by imitating conspecific initiation signals such as the play bow, but also by using a lunge-signal unique to dog-human interaction (122). ...
... Likewise, dogs have been observed to actively re-engage a human play partner after an interrupted play session by increasing physical contact and offering a play toy to this partner in a choice test in preference to a passive test person (123). Dogs modify their play-behavioural repertoire when playing with humans when compared to playing with conspecifics (121). Furthermore, in social object play, dogs in dog-dog dyads showed more competitive object possession whereas interactive object presentation by the dog predominated in dog-human dyads (121). ...
... Dogs modify their play-behavioural repertoire when playing with humans when compared to playing with conspecifics (121). Furthermore, in social object play, dogs in dog-dog dyads showed more competitive object possession whereas interactive object presentation by the dog predominated in dog-human dyads (121). ...
While dogs represent an exceptional resource for studying ecological, behavioural and evolutionary processes, they are severely under-represented within these fields due to the anthropomorphisation of dog behaviour, and the view that dog domestication was solely human-driven. These widespread misconceptions have not only led to significant problems in understanding dog behaviour, but also inhibited the use of dogs as valuable study systems to advance diverse areas of biological sciences. Here we argue that dogs should be studied using the same fundamental principles of ecology and evolution applied to other species. Specifically, two of Tinbergen’s four questions remain critical, yet understudied, in understanding dog behavioural traits: 1) What is the current value of these behaviours, and 2) How did they arise and subsequently evolve? We address dog behaviour in a range of ecologies beyond just the pet niche. In doing so three main facts emerge: 1) dogs show a wide range of behavioural adaptations to human proximity, 2) the behaviour of dogs has changed rapidly over time within human niches, and 3) the behaviour of dogs can be understood as modifications of pre-existing variation in their ancestral species, wolves. As this point is commonly overlooked in the majority of the dog behavioural literature, the result is a growing body of biassed research that cannot be meaningfully integrated with, for example, canine functional genomic studies. Resituating dogs within biological research will: 1) advance behavioural genetics and genomics, 2) help establish how certain species are able to adapt to anthropogenic environments where so many fail, 3) enable dogs to serve as model organisms in a range of sciences.
... Spontaneous behaviours are more relevant than elicited ones. Hubrecht, 1993;Rooney et al., 2000;Coppola et al., 2006;Horváth et al., 2008;Belpedio et al., 2010;Bergamasco et al., 2010;Held and Špinka, 2011;Titulaer et al., 2013;Johnson et al., 2013;Shiverdecker et al., 2013;Conley et al., 2014;Bradshaw et al., 2015;Flower, 2016 Differences in trainability and motivation may influence results Harding et al., 2004;Mendl et al., 2009Mendl et al., , 2010Bateson et al., 2011;Burman et al., 2011;Owczarczak-Garstecka et al., 2016 Learning ability ...
... In other words, some dogs may not 'know' how to play (particularly with humans) and thus an assessment of their willingness to play may not reflect their current welfare status, but rather previous learning experiences. There may also be differences between dogs of different breed-types and those reared in different ways which may affect individuals' willingness to engage in play behaviour, or the style of play behaviour exhibited (Rooney et al., 2000). Furthermore, although dogs are naturally more playful throughout their whole lives than other species may be (Bradshaw et al., 2015), there is still a tendency for older dogs to be less playful than young dogs (Rooney et al., 2000), which should be taken into account when using playfulness as a measure. ...
... There may also be differences between dogs of different breed-types and those reared in different ways which may affect individuals' willingness to engage in play behaviour, or the style of play behaviour exhibited (Rooney et al., 2000). Furthermore, although dogs are naturally more playful throughout their whole lives than other species may be (Bradshaw et al., 2015), there is still a tendency for older dogs to be less playful than young dogs (Rooney et al., 2000), which should be taken into account when using playfulness as a measure. Finally, it should be noted that, when assessing play behaviours as an indicator of welfare, it is important that the behaviours are relatively spontaneous, particularly with working dogs, who may have been trained to 'play' on command (Horváth et al., 2008). ...
Hundreds of thousands of dogs are housed in kennels worldwide, yet there are no standard protocols for assessing the welfare of dogs in these environments. Animal science is focusing increasingly on the importance of animal-based measures for determining welfare states, and those measures that have been used with kennelled dogs are reviewed in this paper with particular focus on their validity and practicality. From a physiological standpoint, studies using cortisol, heart rate and heart rate variability, temperature changes, and immune function are discussed. Behavioural measures are also of great relevance when addressing canine welfare, thus studies on fear and anxiety behaviours, abnormal behaviours like stereotypies, as well as responses to strangers and novel objects are reviewed. Finally, a limited number of studies attempting to use cognitive bias and learning ability are also mentioned as cognitive measures. The literature to date provides a strong background for which measures may be useful in determining the welfare of kennelled canines, however more research is needed to further assess the value of using these methods, particularly in regard to the large degree of individual differences that exist between dogs.
... While it was traditionally thought that human-dog play aimed to compensate for a deficiency in dog-dog play, and that both forms of play involved the same behavioural patterns (Whitney, 1975), it has been shown that this is not the case. Rooney et al. (2000) observed the behaviour of dogs being walked alone with their carers and dogs being walked with other conspecifics as well, and demonstrated that the latter group, despite having the opportunity to play with each other, played with their humans with the same frequency as dogs walked alone. Subsequently, the researchers experimentally compared dog-dog and human-dog play by providing toys to these pairs and observing their behaviours. ...
... Theories about increases in dominance were based on the assumption that games are competitive and that winning possession of objects is the dogs' goal. However, human-dog play is less competitive than dog-dog play (Rooney et al., 2000). According to Bradshaw et al. (2015), most dogs do not seem to consider competitive games with a human partner as dominance contests; rather, winning possession of objects during play appears to be simply a reward. ...
... While it was traditionally thought that human-dog play aimed to compensate for a deficiency in dog-dog play, and that both forms of play involved the same behavioural patterns (Whitney, 1975), it has been shown that this is not the case. Rooney et al. (2000) observed the behaviour of dogs being walked alone with their carers and dogs being walked with other conspecifics as well, and demonstrated that the latter group, despite having the opportunity to play with each other, played with their humans with the same frequency as dogs walked alone. Subsequently, the researchers experimentally compared dog-dog and human-dog play by providing toys to these pairs and observing their behaviours. ...
... Theories about increases in dominance were based on the assumption that games are competitive and that winning possession of objects is the dogs' goal. However, human-dog play is less competitive than dog-dog play (Rooney et al., 2000). According to Bradshaw et al. (2015), most dogs do not seem to consider competitive games with a human partner as dominance contests; rather, winning possession of objects during play appears to be simply a reward. ...
Play is a regulated activity that occurs spontaneously in animals. An indicator of health, development and positive affection, this chapter aims to conceptualize play in its various forms and analyse its implications, particularly in the human–dog relationship. Domestic dogs, known for exhibiting high levels of play, engage in this activity throughout their adult life both asocially, with objects, and socially, with other dogs and humans. During domestication, this play tendency may have been selected to facilitate training and bonding with humans. Human–dog play is structurally different from, and motivated differently to, dog–dog play. In addition to enhancing the bond, human–dog play has been associated with benefits for human health, such as reduced stress, increased physical activity and oxytocin release, as well as benefits for dogs, such as improved socialization and reduced cortisol. The chapter highlights the importance of studying human–dog play, especially in Latin America, where it has been scarcely researched, and its potential practical applications.
... During their daily playful inter-species interactions, pet dogs need to restrain their motor actions (e.g. highly controlled biting and pawing) while being particularly attentive to humans' actions (Affenzeller, 2020;Brooks & Burghardt, 2023;Rooney et al., 2000Rooney et al., , 2001. The ability developed by dogs to restraining their actions during inter-species play can be transferred into intra-specific play, thus making dog-dog interactions reciprocal and balanced. ...
... Yet, we cannot exclude that the different duration of the sessions we found between CWDs and wolves could be due to the different play motivation of the two species emerging from the paedomorphic nature of the domestic dog (Hare et al., 2002). Dogs possess a set of social-cognitive abilities allowing them to effectively communicate with humans (Hare et al., 2002;Miklósi et al., 2003) and show a high propensity to engage in inter-specific play (dog-horse play, Maglieri et al., 2020;dog-human play, Brooks & Burghardt, 2023;Hansen Wheat et al., 2018;Rooney et al., 2000). For these reasons, we expected to find a larger playful behavioral repertoire in dogs compared to wolves, but we failed to find any difference (Prediction 5 not supported). ...
The behavioral outcomes of wolf domestication include high tameness and playful motivation Wolves and dogs exhibit extended play into adulthood, making adult play a key model to explore domestication effects We collected data on mother-reared wolves and Czechoslovakian Wolfdogs (CWDs), analyzing play fighting behaviors. CWDs are a good comparison model due to their genetic closeness to wolves. Wolves played in a more competitive and less reciprocal way compared to dogs, although they avoided biting playmates' throat, the most vulnerable body part. Compared to CWDs, wolves also shortened play sessions to limit escalation risks. Despite studying one wolf colony and a few CWD groups, domestication's effect on making play 'tamer' is evident even in less selected dog breeds. Both species shared about 78% of play patterns. Interestingly, the level of play variability was comparable between wolves and dogs thus suggesting that both species require a certain level of unpredictability to make their sessions rewarding. In conclusion, variation and constancy in adult play fighting within the genus Canis offer insights into its functional role in mature animals. Our data highlight Canis species' potential for future adult play studies, presenting them as excellent research models.
... Yet, others suggest that intraspecific social play may be structurally different from interspecific play (Aldis, 2013;Loizos, 2017). Rooney et al. (2000) showed that having opportunities to engage in intraspecific play does not reduce or satisfy the motivation for dog-human play; the structure of dog-human object-oriented play differs to its intraspecific counterpart, specifically the motivation to possess an object and to interact with the partner differ, indicating that these play types are not homogeneous. Dogs' playfulness, in social contexts, may have been selected during domestication as an adaptive trait to facilitate the formation of emotionally based bonds between dog and owner (Rooney et al., 2000). ...
... Rooney et al. (2000) showed that having opportunities to engage in intraspecific play does not reduce or satisfy the motivation for dog-human play; the structure of dog-human object-oriented play differs to its intraspecific counterpart, specifically the motivation to possess an object and to interact with the partner differ, indicating that these play types are not homogeneous. Dogs' playfulness, in social contexts, may have been selected during domestication as an adaptive trait to facilitate the formation of emotionally based bonds between dog and owner (Rooney et al., 2000). Play frequency and form may indicate the quality of dog-owner relationships. ...
... Similarly, it would be predicted that having the opportunity to play more in one way should reduce the likelihood of playing in a different way. In contrast to this prediction, it has been found that dogs living in multidog households play more with humans than dogs living in single dog households, suggesting that dog-human play is not just a substitute for dog-dog play (Rooney, Bradshaw & Robinson, 2000). Both these studies indicate that playing in one domain does not satisfy the motivation to play in another domain. ...
... Reports of rats playing with humans (Panksepp, 1998) show that it is the humans who modify their speciestypical behavior to accommodate the rat. In contrast, dogs playing with humans modify their behavioral responses (Rooney et al., 2000). Similarly, preliminary data suggest that older rats do not modify their age-typical pattern of play fighting to accommodate younger play partners (work in progress), as some primates appear to do (Fagen, 1981). ...
... While playfulness in domestic dogs may be a result of anthropomorphic selection and a tendency for humans to value paedomorphosis (an animal's retention of juvenile traits into later life) [31], play is an important aspect of dogs' behaviour that continues into adulthood [3]. Dogs engage in locomotor-rotational (running and circling), object (manipulating) and social (interacting with others) play, usually with both conspecifics and humans [39]. As well as being intrinsically pleasurable and self-rewarding [7], play has multiple potential benefits, such as reducing social tension [17] and fostering positive dog-human relationships [33,38]. ...
... While no explanation is given by the authors as to why, we surmise that it could be either because the egg-shape toy was easier to pick up with the mouth or that the egg-shape resembled a ball, a common toy used in dog-human play. Rooney et al. [39] studied object social play, whereby two participants play with an object, as in a game of fetch or tug of war between dog-human and dog-dog dyads. The authors found that in the dog-human dyad, the interaction with the human was more important for the dog than the possession of the object, whereas the opposite was the case for the dog-dog dyad. ...
... Domesticated animals, and particularly companion dogs (Canis lupus familiaris), offer a particularly convenient opportunity to study the proximate functions of play. Dogs are identified as a species with characteristically high levels of interspecific and intraspecific play (Russell 1936;Rooney et al. 2000;Bauer and Smuts 2007;Ward et al. 2008;Cordoni 2009;Wheat et al. 2018). Dogs have repeatedly been shown to be extremely perceptive at recognizing the attentional states of their owners due to their selection and their close, direct relationships with humans during their lifetimes (Horowitz 2009;Udell et al. 2012;Kaminski et al. 2017). ...
... Although a number of studies have examined the structure of human-dog play (Koda 2001;Rooney et al. 2000Rooney et al. , 2001Rooney et al. , 2002Tóth et al. 2008;Horowitz and Hecht 2016), few studies have directly assessed the role of human interaction Content courtesy of Springer Nature, terms of use apply. Rights reserved. ...
Domestic dogs are a highly playful species that are evidently sensitive to the attentional state of conspecifics as well as humans. Given that an animal’s social environment can influence play, audience effects may catalyze social play. While prior research has shown that intraspecific attention maintains social play in dog–dog dyads, it is unknown whether interspecific (specifically, human) attention maintains social play between dogs. Our objective in the present study was to examine whether a relationship exists between the availability of human attention and social play in domestic dogs. Familiar dog–dog dyads were exposed to three sessions each consisting of three experimental conditions that differed in the degree of availability of owner attention. Observed levels of social play were significantly higher during conditions in which an attentive owner was present than during conditions in which an owner was either inattentive or absent. Furthermore, this effect was maintained across repeated sessions. This is the first experimental evidence of an interspecific audience effect facilitating social play in domestic dogs. The availability of caretaker attention may be a proximate explanation for social play in canids that have ontogenetically rich histories with humans and also retain neotonized behavior as adults. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms contributing to the relationship between interspecific attention and social play in these populations and establish a more comprehensive understanding of play behavior in animals.
... Lastly, another study showed that when faced with a stranger, dogs copied their owner's behaviour, by approaching the person or staying back based on their owner's behaviour [66]. Dogs are sensitive to human behavioural cues: they follow gaze direction, pointing gestures, and head orientations [21,67,68] and discriminate facial expressions [69] and body postures [50,70]. Dogs adjust their behavioural responses based on perceived human cues [20,26,71,72]. ...
Simple Summary
It is widely acknowledged that dogs synchronise their behaviours with those of humans. In this article, we delve into the neural and cognitive bases of this form of behavioural adjustment. Using knowledge of cerebral processes underlying behavioural synchronisation in humans, namely motor resonance and the activation of mirror neurons, we investigated whether dogs’ behavioural synchronisation with humans could be based on similar mechanisms. In humans, both perceiving and executing an action activate the motor representations of that action. Motor resonance occurs when motor representations of an action are simultaneously activated in both the observer and the individual being observed. Mirror neurons are the neural substrate for motor resonance as these motor neurons activate both when an individual performs or perceives an action. Our review of existing literature shows that motor resonance could occur in dogs, suggesting that dogs’ behavioural synchronisation with humans relies on the activation of both human and canine mirror neurons. Behavioural studies suggest but do not prove the existence of motor resonance between the two species, and thus further research is needed to confirm this hypothesis. Revealing the mechanisms underlying dogs’ behavioural synchronisation with humans would contribute to a better understanding of how dogs and humans have evolved together since the beginning of their cohabitation.
Abstract
Dogs’ behavioural synchronisation with humans is of growing scientific interest. However, studies lack a comprehensive exploration of the neurocognitive foundations of this social cognitive ability. Drawing parallels from the mechanisms underlying behavioural synchronisation in humans, specifically motor resonance and the recruitment of mirror neurons, we hypothesise that dogs’ behavioural synchronisation with humans is underpinned by a similar mechanism, namely interspecific motor resonance. Based on a literature review, we argue that dogs possess the prerequisites for motor resonance, and we suggest that interspecific behavioural synchronisation relies on the activation of both human and canine mirror neurons. Furthermore, interspecific behavioural studies highlight certain characteristics of motor resonance, including motor contagion and its social modulators. While these findings strongly suggest the potential existence of interspecific motor resonance, direct proof remains to be established. Our analysis thus paves the way for future research to confirm the existence of interspecific motor resonance as the neurocognitive foundation for interspecific behavioural synchronisation. Unravelling the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying this behavioural adjustment holds profound implications for understanding the evolutionary dynamics of dogs alongside humans and improving the day-to-day management of dog–human interactions.
... How do receivers perceive different tail wagging parameters? -systematically quantify dog tail wagging parameters in both intra-and inter-specific contexts (for an example of how differences in dog-dog and dog-human interactions can be investigated, see [108]) and investigate the effect on the receiver (human or conspecific, e.g. [22]). ...
Tail wagging is a conspicuous behaviour in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). Despite how much meaning humans attribute to this display, its quantitative description and evolutionary history are rarely studied. We summarize what is known about the mechanism, ontogeny, function and evolution of this behaviour. We suggest two hypotheses to explain its increased occurrence and frequency in dogs compared to other canids. During the domestication process, enhanced rhythmic tail wagging behaviour could have (i) arisen as a by-product of selection for other traits, such as docility and tameness, or (ii) been directly selected by humans, due to our proclivity for rhythmic stimuli. We invite testing of these hypotheses through neurobiological and ethological experiments, which will shed light on one of the most readily observed yet understudied animal behaviours. Targeted tail wagging research can be a window into both canine ethology and the evolutionary history of characteristic human traits, such as our ability to perceive and produce rhythmic behaviours.
... "Fetching" can be defined as the retrieval of an object, often thrown by a pet owner 23 . Fetching is a very common social bonding and play activity between owners and domestic dogs that is frequently seen in younger dogs 23,24,27,52 . Playing fetch has also been shown to reduce stress and develop motor skills in dogs 52,53 . ...
Domesticated animals are famous for the ease with which they can accommodate to diverse human environments and roles, but less well-studied is the ease with which domestic animals can manipulate their human caregivers to their own ends. For example, domestic animals may start and end their play behaviour with humans at times of their choice. Here we present the results of a survey of 924 cat owners who report fetching behaviour in 1154 cats. The overwhelming majority (94.4%) of these owners report that fetching emerged in the absence of explicit training. Fetching was primarily first noticed when the cats were less than one year old (n = 701) or 1–7 years old (n = 415). Cats initiated and terminated fetching bouts more often than did their owners. Thus, cats who fetch demonstrate independent and co-ordinated agency in the onset and maintenance of fetching behaviour with their human partners. Additional findings highlight the diversity of objects fetched and the diversity in household demographics. Our thematic analysis reveals owners’ perspectives on (a) the process of a fetching session, (b) the initial acquisition of fetching, and (c) the circumstantial factors that influence fetching patterns. In summary, cats who fetch largely determine when they engage in fetching sessions and actively influence the play behaviour of their owners.
... That is, dominant dogs tend to maintain their advantageous position over subordinate partners, even during the play bouts (Bauer and Smuts, 2007). Rooney et al. (2000) and Rooney and Bradshaw (2002) showed that dog-human play are structurally (and presumably motivationally) different, and seem to be less competitive regarding possession demands, than dog-dog play. ...
Nonhuman animals often use specific signals to initiate playful interactions. There is evidence also for different forms of play-maintenance. Playful encounters include out-of-context and exaggerated behavioural sequences. Scientists have already collected knowledge about virtual size modification via acoustic signalling in particular animal species during competitive/agonistic interactions, but the same was unknown in playful encounters. Using the cross-modal matching paradigm, we tested whether dogs prefer to look at the picture of a matching size dog when they are offered two differently sized projected pictures simultaneously with a playback of a playful or a food-guarding growl. We found that dogs looked at the matching picture when they heard the food-guarding growl, but they looked at rather the larger than the matching size dog when play growls were played back. These are the first results to show that dogs may communicate an exaggerated body size by the means of their growls during play, which may help in maintaining or enhancing the playful interaction. As agonistic dog growls were proven to be honest regarding their referential and size-related information content, our results gave evidence that exaggeration may work as play signal in the case of animal vocalizations.
... The play behaviours are cognitively and physically sophisticated and complex, including 'constructive play' and 'fantasy play' (Pellegrini et al., 2007). Indeed, humans also engage in interspecific play with domesticated companion animals, such as dogs (Rooney et al., 2000). ...
Play is a suite of apparently non‐functional, pleasurable behaviours observed in human and non‐human animals. Although the phenomenon has been studied extensively, no adaptationist behavioural theory of how play evolved can be supported by the available evidence. However, the advancement of the extended evolutionary synthesis and developments in systems biology offer alternative avenues for non‐adaptationist physiological hypotheses. I therefore propose a hypothesis of play, based upon a complex ACh activity that is under agential control of the organism, whereby play initiates ACh‐mediated feedforward and feedback processes which act to: (i) regulate metabolic processes; (ii) form new ACh receptors via ACh mRNA activity; (iii) mediate attention, memory consolidation and learning; and (iv) mediate social behaviours, reproduction and embryonic development. However, play occurs across taxa, but does not occur across all taxonomic groups or within all species of a taxonomic group. Thus, to support the validity of the proposed hypothesis, I further propose potential explanations for this anomaly, which include sampling and observer biases, altricial versus precocial juvenile development, and the influence of habitat niche and environmental conditions on behaviour. The proposed hypothesis thus offers new avenues for study in both the biological and social sciences, in addition to having potential applications in applied sciences, such as animal welfare and biomedical research. Crucially, it is hoped that this hypothesis will promote further study of a valid and behaviourally significant, yet currently enigmatic, biological phenomenon. image
... The play behaviours are cognitively and physically sophisticated and complex, including 'constructive play' and 'fantasy play' (Pellegrini et al., 2007). Indeed, humans also engage in interspecific play with domesticated companion animals, such as dogs (Rooney et al., 2000). ...
Play is a suite of apparently non-functional, pleasurable behaviours observed in human and non-human animals. Although the phenomenon has been studied extensively, no adaptationist behavioural theory of how play evolved can be supported by the available evidence. However, the advancement of the extended evolutionary synthesis and developments in systems biology offer alternative avenues for non-adaptationist physiological hypotheses. I therefore propose a hypothesis of play, based upon a complex ACh activity that is under agential control of the organism, whereby play initiates ACh-mediated feedforward and feedback processes which act to: (i) regulate metabolic processes; (ii) form new ACh receptors via ACh mRNA activity; (iii) mediate attention, memory consolidation and learning; and (iv) mediate social behaviours, reproduction and embryonic development. However, play occurs across taxa, but does not occur across all taxonomic groups or within all species of a taxonomic group. Thus, to support the validity of the proposed hypothesis, I further propose potential explanations for this anomaly, which include sampling and observer biases, altricial versus precocial juvenile development, and the influence of habitat niche and environmental conditions on behaviour. The proposed hypothesis thus offers new avenues for study in both the biological and social sciences, in addition to having potential applications in applied sciences, such as animal welfare and biomedical research. Crucially, it is hoped that this hypothesis will promote further study of a valid and behaviourally significant, yet currently enigmatic, biological phenomenon.
... Play may be considered a window into communication [63]. Most play research has focused on intraspecies social play, but evidence suggests that dogs may use objects to initiate and maintain playful interactions with humans more so than during object play with other dogs [64]. Dogs have evolved to have a heightened interspecific (human-dog) responsiveness, though this is not necessarily a sign of cognitive advancement [65]; rather, this may be a shift through artificial selection from conspecific cooperation in the ancestor (the wolf) to human-dog cooperation [66]. ...
Simple Summary
The development of object play in animals, including dogs, has been understudied compared to social play behavior. The aims of the present study are to describe the development of a detailed ethogram of object play for dogs that can also be applied to studies of related canids. Moreover, we describe the ontogeny (i.e., the development) of object play in three breeds of domestic dogs from 3–7 weeks of age as they interacted with five different pet toys (objects). Individual behaviors were then categorized into three groups as follows: those that occurred only in the solitary context; those that occurred only in the social context; and those that occurred in both contexts. Theses behavior groups were analyzed for differences across breed and age. Solitary object play developed first, and social object play developed later across breeds. Uncovering early developing breed differences in object play behaviors may aid in understanding both how play develops and the role that selection and domestication has played in the evolution of dogs and their behavioral variability.
Abstract
Play behavior is a prominent aspect of juvenile behavior for many animals, yet early development, especially play with objects, has received little attention. Our previous study on object play introduced our general methods, focusing on litter differences in the developmental trajectory of object play and toy preferences. Here, we present a detailed ethogram of more than 30 observed object play behaviors. We focus on breed differences in the development of play in the three following breeds: Welsh Terriers, Vizslas, and standard Poodles. Puppies were video recorded from 3 to 7 weeks of age at half-week intervals upon the introduction of a standard set of five toys into their home environments. Ten minutes of video from each session for each puppy were analyzed using the Noldus Observer XT program. Aside from analyzing individual behaviors, they were also grouped into three behavioral categories. These were behaviors that occurred only in a solitary context, only in a social context, or in both contexts. Solitary object play developed first, and social object play developed later across breeds. There was a significant three-way interaction between breed, developmental age, and the context in which play occurred. Pairwise comparisons within each breed, age, and context are discussed, but a prominent result is that the onset of many behaviors occurred later in Welsh Terriers compared to the other breeds.
... One of the most widely used tools for collecting information directly from owners or caretakers are questionnaires. The use of questionnaires to describe an individual's behavioral characteristics is growing in popularity, both in human personality research (e.g., [14]), as well as in research with companion animals, (e.g., [15][16][17][18]). ...
Simple Summary
A large percentage of dogs expresses problematic behaviors that can be explored using questionnaires. However, due to the subjectivity of owners’ replies, before their use in research, questionnaires should undergo a process evaluating their reliability and validity. This is also necessary when an existing and valid questionnaire is translated into a different language. The aim of this study was to validate an Italian translation of the widely used Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ), originally developed in English. The statistical analysis showed that 62 of the 100 questionnaire items could be grouped into 13 factors, each underlying a category of dog behaviors, as expected from the original structure of C-BARQ as well as from previous research using this tool. The main differences between the Italian factorial structure and that of the most recent English version regarded: items related to stranger-directed fear and aggression, which are represented by two separate factors in the English version, were grouped in a single factor in the Italian one; the factor Dog rivalry, present in the English version but not in the Italian one; and factors Dog-directed aggression and Touch sensitivity, which emerged in our analysis, but are not present in the English one. In spite of these differences, there is large overlap between our factorial structure and that of studies using C-BARQ in other languages, indicating that the 62-item Italian version presented in the current study can be reliably used in research.
Abstract
The aim of this study is to develop an Italian translation of the 100-item Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ) version and to validate its psychometric properties, in order to facilitate systematic, large-scale studies on dog behavior for Italian-speaking dog owners. A total number of 803 responses by dog owners were collected online. Using the Principal Axis Method and Common Factor Analysis with Quartimin oblique rotation (p < 0.05), a factorial structure was found including 13 factors composed of 62 items and explaining 53.5% of the total variance. Eight factors showed high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha > 0.70), namely: stranger-directed aggression/fear, dog-directed fear, owner-directed aggression, separation-related behavior, chasing, dog-directed aggression, attachment/attention seeking, and elimination problems. Three factors were slightly under the threshold and two had only modest reliability (non-social fear, energy level, touch sensitivity, excitability and trainability). A potential explanation for factors with low reliability is that the composing items do not describe behaviors resulting from homogeneous stimuli or situations. Although our factorial structure resembled in most respects that of the most recently published Canadian version, some important exceptions are present regarding dog rivalry, intraspecific aggression, fear/aggression towards strangers, touch sensitivity and chewing inappropriate objects. Such differences may be due to demographic and/or cultural differences between the sampled populations. Overall, the results suggest that a 62-item Italian C-BARQ can be reliably used in studies on dog behavior.
... Dogs are a social species and interactions with known conspecifics are important (Mariti et al., 2014), and possibly irreplaceable by human interaction. For example, the level of play with conspecifics is independent of how much play dogs engage in with their owners (Rooney et al., 2000). Compared to the opportunities available to village dogs to be routinely around another dog or two, the companion dogs that lack this interaction with conspecifics potentially suffer from reduced welfare. ...
Over the past two centuries, the typical life of dogs has changed dramatically, especially in the Global North. Dogs have moved into human homes, becoming human companions. In many respects, this change seems to have led to improvements in dog welfare. However, the shift into family homes from the free-roaming lifestyle characteristic of dogs as they lived and co-evolved with humans in the past, has created a typically more confined and isolated lifestyle for dogs. In addition, over the same period, selective breeding of dogs, largely driven by human aesthetic ideals and concepts of breed purity, has transformed dog populations. In this discussion paper, based on a narrative literature review, we compare the welfare of companion dogs with that of modern village dogs. We adopt this comparison because dogs have lived in ways resembling village dog life for most of their history. As such, the comparison may serve as a good basis for assessing the effects of the ‘petification’ of dogs. We argue that compared to the typical village dog, the typical modern suburban or urban companion dog experiences good welfare in a number of respects. This is especially the case when it comes to security, satisfaction of nutritional needs (though companion dogs have problems with a high prevalence of obesity), and proper veterinary care. However, in other ways the modern companion dog often suffers from a range of human-created challenges leading to poor welfare. We examine two key challenges for companion dogs: 1) unrealistic social demands that can lead to anxiety, depression, and aggression, and 2) ill devised breeding schemes that result in breeding-related diseases for many companion dogs.
... The degree of enrichment available per cat might also depend on the number of cats found in a household. For dogs, Rooney et al. (2000) found a slightly higher mean frequency of playing in single-dog compared to multi-dog households. Owners of single cats might try to compensate for the missing conspecific by interacting more with the animal or by providing more toys. ...
Owners may enhance their cats’ welfare by social enrichment (e.g. positive human-animal interactions), and physical enrichment (e.g. play objects). The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between owner characteristics (e.g. attitudes, attachment), household characteristics (the keeping of one or more cats) and owner behaviours enriching their cats’ lives. Another aim was to use the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB, using question sets targeting attitudes towards behaviours directed/activities provided to cats, normative and control beliefs) to identify predictors of owner behavior, represented by duration of a play session, number of toys constantly available/cat and frequency of outdoor access. Finally, we aimed to investigate associations between owner and cat behaviours. To this end, an online survey was conducted among cat owners. Questions assessing general attitudes, beliefs about cats’ needs, attachment, frequencies of owner-cat interactions, access to play opportunities and cat behaviour (play, unwanted behaviours) were summarised to components after principal component analyses.
Owner attitudes and attachment systematically correlated with frequencies of human-cat interactions (e.g. tactile and non-tactile) and access to various play objects (p < 0.05). The general attitude that cats are ‘Beneficial’ and the TPB attitude ‘Important to play with cats’ were significant predictors of the duration of a play session (β = 0.15/0.14), accounting for 8% of the variance. Owner age, the husbandry decision to keep one or more cats and the TPB attitude ‘Important to offer different toys’ significantly predicted the number of toys constantly available/cat (β = -0.12/-0.47/0.45), accounting for 36% of the variance. Predictors of the frequency of outdoor access were the TPB attitude ‘Important to offer outdoor access’ and the control belief that the outdoors were too dangerous (β = 0.23/-0.60), accounting for 62% of the variance. According to structural models, an effect of attachment on owner behaviour is mediated by attitudes. Owner behaviours systematically correlated with cat play (p < 0.05) but not problem behaviours.
The overall results suggest clearly identifiable relationships between attitudes, owner and animal behaviour. They provide insight into attitudes and owner behaviours to target when designing interventions to influence cat owner behaviour. Since positive owner–cat interactions were associated with cat play behaviour, a potential indicator of enhanced welfare, this study underlines the important role of the owner for cat welfare.
... Furthermore, a recent genetic comparative analysis of more than 100 modern dog breeds shows that common ancestry of a human-directed playfulness trait seems to have been a driving force in the domestication of the wolf that may have arisen due to selection by humans (Garamszegi et al. 2020). Human-directed play reinforces the social relations between dogs and humans (Bradshaw et al. 2015;Rooney et al. 2000). Another central behavioural trait in the context of the dog domestication is the tendency of prosocial behaviour towards humans. ...
Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the initial steps in the domestication process of the wolf. We discuss the human-initiated model in which wolf pups were brought to camp sites by male hunters and cared for by nursing women. A good relation between the more sociable and playful pups and the women and their children likely formed affiliative bonds and led to the survival of such pups into maturity. Some of these animals could have reproduced and delivered at least one litter. A selection on the behaviour of subsequent generations could ultimately have led to Palaeolithic dogs.
... In the U.S. and U.K., there are an estimated 77,000,000 (American Veterinary Medical Association, 2018) and 9,000,000 (Pet Food Manufacturers' Association, 2019) pet dogs, respectively. Therefore, a thorough understanding of human-dog interactions is warranted, particularly in the fields of interspecific communicative skills (Hare and Tomasello, 2005), play (Rooney et al., 2000), stress modulation (Bergamascoa et al., 2010) and the gender differences in human-dog interaction (Aliabadi et al., 2011). ...
Human personality influences the way people interact with dogs. This study investigated the associations between the personality of animal shelter volunteers and behavior during on-leash walks with shelter dogs. Video recording and a canine leash tension meter were used to monitor the on-leash walking. Personality was measured in five dimensions (neurotic, extroverted, open, agreeable and conscientious) with the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI). Neurotic volunteers pulled the leash harder and tended to interact with dogs using more body language; dogs being walked by neurotic volunteers in turn displayed more lip-licking and body shaking and were more likely to be rated as well-behaved. Extroverted volunteers were associated with stronger maximal leash tension at both the human and dog ends of the leash, and they praised the dog more, often in a high pitched voice. These volunteers eliciting more tail-wagging and body shaking by the dog. Extroverted volunteers were also more tolerant of different dog behaviors. Volunteers with personalities characterized by “openness to experiences” were less likely to verbally attract the attention of dogs, praise dogs and talk to them in a high-pitched voice; however, dogs walked by these volunteers were more likely to pull on the leash, and engaged in more lip-licking but less sniffing. “Agreeable” volunteers liked to verbally attract the attention of the dogs and more commonly initiated hand gestures and physical contact, causing the dogs to pull less frequently; dogs in these dyads displayed more gazing and lip-licking behaviors. Conscientious volunteers were less likely to pull the leash and tended to have more physical contact with the dogs but did not favor verbal communication and did not use a high pitched voice.
... Les propriétés de ces contacts restent indéterminées. Chez de nombreuses espèces telles que les chiens, les chevaux…, les contacts humains provoquent une diminution de la Rooney (2000), basé sur ce principe, ont montré que les comportements de jeu des chiens n'étaient pas les même selon que leur partenaire était un chien ou un humain. ...
Soutenue le 2 février 2006 Diplôme : Dr. d'Université
... Bekoff (1984) notes that play is one of those things that is immediately identifiable when it occurs, even if we cannot define it properly, although others have argued that it is not so simple. Genuine aggression versus playful aggression in dog play, e.g., can be hard to distinguish (e.g., see Rooney et al. 2000;Ward et al. 2008). Part of this difficulty stems from the fact that play is quite contextsensitive. ...
I argue that an enactivist framework has more explanatory power than traditional philosophical theories of cognition when it comes to understanding the mechanisms underlying human-animal relationships. In both intraspecies and interspecies exchanges, what we often find are novel forms of cognition emerging from such transactions, but these “co-cognitive” processes cannot be understood apart from the interaction itself. I focus on a specific form of human-animal interaction—play, as it occurs between humans and domestic dogs—and argue that the best theory suited to the task of explaining how these two species create unique thought processes is a “sympoietic enactivism.” Rather than the more common “autopoietic” arguments defended by many enactivists, I argue that what is more accurately occurring during bouts of human–dog play is sympoietic, or “collectively producing.” Drawing on several different disciplines that converge on similar conclusions about creativity and collaboration, I show that human–dog play is a quintessential case of cognition that cannot be readily understood by appealing to the inner workings of either individual among the dyad. Thinking, on this view, is a form of play, and in playful interaction what gets created are wholly intersubjective modes of thought.
... In terms of dog welfare, and providing additional enrichment for dogs during lockdown, the greater tendency to increase the frequency of play/training opportunities involving human interaction, rather than providing toys for the dog to play with alone (or with other dogs), is preferable for two reasons. Firstly, not all dogs will have the company of another household dog and, secondly, although individual differences might exist research has shown that dogs tend to choose dog-human play rather than dog-dog play, and to be more interactive when playing with people than dogs [53]. Furthermore, although few studies have explored the extent to which pet dogs play with toys, studies of dogs kept in research establishments report conflicting results on the extent to which toys and chews are used by dogs from rarely [54] to 24% of their time [55] and dogs housed in rescue shelters may benefit little, if at all, from toys placed in their kennel without accompanying human interaction [56]. ...
Simple Summary
Initial COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in the United Kingdom (23 March–12 May 2020) prompted many people to change their lifestyle. We explored the impact of this lockdown phase on pet dog welfare using an online survey of 6004 dog owners, who provided information including dog management data for the 7 days prior to survey completion (4–12 May 2020), and for February 2020 (pre-lockdown). Most owners believed that their dog’s routine had changed due to lockdown restrictions. Many dogs were left alone less frequently and for less time during lockdown and were spending more time with household adults and children. During lockdown, dogs were typically walked less often and for less time daily, with factors related to the dog, owner, household, and location of the home associated with the extent to which dog walking had been reduced. Dogs were more likely to be walked on a lead and had fewer opportunities to interact with other dogs during lockdown. However, many dogs had more play/training sessions with their owners and were given toys more frequently during lockdown. These changes to dog management have the potential for longer-term welfare problems such as increased likelihood of dogs displaying separation-related behaviour as lockdown measures relax.
Abstract
Initial COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in the United Kingdom (23 March–12 May 2020) prompted lifestyle changes for many people. We explored the impact of this lockdown phase on pet dogs using an online survey completed by 6004 dog owners, who provided information including dog management data for the 7 days prior to survey completion (4–12 May 2020), and for February 2020 (pre-lockdown). We explored associations between potential predictors and four outcomes relating to changes pre-/during lockdown (reduction in number and duration of walks; increased frequency of play/training, and provision of toys). Most owners (79.5%) reported their dog’s routine had changed compared to pre-lockdown. There was a four-fold increase in the proportion not left alone for >5 min on any day during a weekly period (14.6% pre-lockdown, 58.0% during lockdown), with the proportion being left for ≥3 h at a time decreasing from 48.5% to 5.4%. Dogs were walked less often and for less time daily during lockdown, with factors related to the dog, owner, household, and home location associated with changes to walking practices. Many dogs had more play/training sessions and were given toys more frequently during lockdown. Decreased walk duration was associated with increased odds of play/training opportunities and toy provision. These changes to dog management have the potential for immediate and longer-term welfare problems.
... Previous research on human-dog interactions has mainly investigated behavioural interactions while dogs were off-leash [12,13]. Mandatory dog leash laws have been implemented in many countries around the world to protect wildlife [14], reduce disease transmission [15], prevent dog attacks and dog involvement in road traffic accidents [16,17]. ...
Simple Summary
The gender of humans and the sex of dogs influence human–dog interactions. This study investigated human–dog interactions when volunteers take shelter dogs for an on-leash walk, using video recording and a canine leash tension meter. Male dogs tended to pull more frequently and created higher leash tensions than female dogs. Dogs displayed more stress related behaviours when interacting with men than women, with the signs including spending less time holding the tail in a high position, and more frequent gazing and lip-licking behaviours. Finally, during the walk, there was a greater pre-disposition in women to use verbal commands and language typically associated with talking to babies, while men were more inclined to have physical contact with the dogs. These results may be used to match shelter dogs with appropriate men and women volunteers for dog walking exercise, and to improve potential socialisation of the dogs before rehoming.
Abstract
Previous studies have indicated that human gender and canine sex influences human–dog interactions. However, the majority of studies have considered the interaction when dogs were off-leash and the behavioural interactions when dogs are walked on a leash have not been addressed. This study investigated human–dog interactions when shelter volunteers take shelter dogs for an on-leash walk. Video records were made of 370 walks, involving 74 volunteers and 111 shelter dogs, and a leash tension meter was used to determine the pull strength of dogs and walkers. Human gender and canine sex had dyadic effects during the walk. Male dogs tended to pull more frequently and created increased leash tensions. Dogs displayed more stress related behaviours when interacting with men than women, with the signs being spending less time holding the tail in the high position, and more frequent gazing and lip-licking behaviours. Finally, there was a greater pre-disposition in women to use verbal commands, and language typically used with babies, while men were more inclined to have physical contact with dogs. This study’s results may be used to match shelter dogs with appropriate men and women volunteers for walking exercise of the dog, and to improve potential dog socialisation efforts by shelters.
... A repertoire of social play in dogs expanded during domestication from unique dog-dog play into dog-human play, and studies show that social play in dogs is a marker of healthy development with a positive effect on social bonds [10,11]. However, we must remember that dog-dog play and dog-human play appear to be motivationally distinct [12] so we focused our study on the intraspecies social play. ...
Simple Summary
Social interactions within canine groups have been studied for decades. In relation to egalitarianism in social play (the “rule of 50:50”), most discussed attributes were body size or age of the play participants. We observed the social play of 14 German Shepherd puppies (two litters) at the age of 7 weeks, and once again at the age of 9 weeks (in total we observed 43 play pairs, also known as dyads). These litters were observed separately (litter 1: n = 28, litter 2: n = 15), and we evaluated 2542 interactions of social play in total. This total number included all interactions observed between the 43 dyads—1287 interactions at the age of 7 weeks old and 1255 interactions at 9 weeks old were recorded. The aim of our study was to evaluate symmetry within play interactions of puppies. Symmetry within the play has been confirmed for litter 1 at the age of 7 and 9 weeks and for litter 2 at the age of 7 weeks, but the final interpretation of our results is limited due to the small sample size and it is impossible to generalize our results for domestic dogs or a specific breed. For further studies, we would suggest an evaluation of breed differences (and including more individuals of each breed), ecological backgrounds and environmental factors regarding the development of egalitarian (or some other) play style.
Abstract
The symmetry of social play in Canids has been previously studied, especially in wolves, free-ranging dogs, and within mixed-aged groups, however our study focused on symmetry and asymmetry within play interactions in two litters (14 puppies) of German Shepherd dogs (GSDs). At the age of 7 weeks, we evaluated 1287 dyadic interactions (litter 1: n = 339 interactions, litter 2: n = 948 interactions), and at the age of 9 weeks we evaluated 1255 dyadic interactions (litter 1: n = 433 interactions, litter 2: n = 822 interactions). Dyadic interactions were observed and the winning indexes were calculated for 43 pairs (dyads). The groups of puppies studied were all the same age, therefore we focused on the aspects of sex and body size as primary variables. The weight and chest circumference of all puppies were measured. The distribution of interactions showed a slight inclination to mixed-sex dyads, but we did not obtain any statistically significant results concerning the impact of body size on play interactions. Symmetry in play was observed within litter 1 at the age of 7 weeks and at the age of 9 weeks, and within litter 2 at the age of 7 weeks. Since the number of puppies in this study was too small, these results should be interpreted regarding this limitation, and cannot be generalized to a larger population of domestic dogs nor the GSD breed. In further studies, it would be interesting to compare larger samples of different breeds, under different breeding conditions, and the effect of the environment on the style of social play.
... First, the experimenter placed the target object on the floor while owners usually throw the ball in such play situations. Most dogs love to chase any thrown object because a moving object helps trigger a dog's prey drive and, thus, raises the arousal level and contributes to the rewarding value of the game (Rooney et al., 2000). Second, everyday object-retrieval games usually require attentional engagement on the owner's part as well as some kind of interactivity by the owner. ...
Ample evidence suggests that dogs possess enhanced skills in reading human visual attention, but it remains to be explored whether they are sensitive to the audience effect in their interactions with humans. The present study aimed to investigate how dogs’ behavior is affected by their owners’ visual attention while performing a repetitive task (bringing an object back to an unfamiliar experimenter while the owner waited passively). We assumed that if dogs are susceptible to the audience effect, their task persistence and task performance would vary according to their owners’ attentiveness. A group of adult pet dogs (N = 27) were repeatedly presented with an object retrieval task by the experimenter (N = 20 trials) while owners either ignored their dogs (Inattentive Owner condition) or paid attention to their dogs’ actions (Attentive Owner condition). Behavioral observations were complemented with the owner’s reports of their relationships with their dogs (assessed by means of an owner–pet attachment questionnaire) and dogs’ spectral EEG sleep profile (recorded during 3-h-long daytime sleep). Although dogs, independently of their owners’ attentional state, were generally willing to comply with the fetching task, they were faster to approach the toy object and gazed significantly longer at their owners when he/she was paying attention. This finding is reminiscent of peer influence observed in humans. Further, characteristics of relationship insecurity (relationship anxiety and avoidance) were associated with dogs’ task persistence and performance. Dogs of owners with higher relationship anxiety tended to approach the toy object less frequently, and dogs of owners with higher relationship avoidance and anxiety were more hesitant to approach the toy object. We also found that dogs’ individual susceptibilities to the audience effect is related to EEG spectral power of both REM and non-REM sleep as well as in pre-sleep (drowsiness) in a trait-like manner. These results, in line with previous findings, support the notion that dogs have a somewhat human-like susceptibility to the audience effect, a trait which might be linked to more complex mechanisms, such as self-presentation or reputation management, helping the two species to become effective social partners.
... Human-directed play behavior has been reported in some domesticated species (Melotti et al., 2014;Mertens and Turner, 2015), including dogs (Horvá th et al., 2008;Rooney and Bradshaw, 2002;Rooney et al., 2001;Tó th et al., 2008). Dogs can interpret human play cues and adjust their behavioral repertoire when playing with a human instead of a conspecific (Rooney et al., 2000(Rooney et al., , 2001. Within a domestication context, wherein animals have been selected for greater tolerance of and interactions with humans, interspecific human-directed play behavior represents a highly relevant behavior to address. ...
Domestication dramatically alters phenotypes across animal species. Standing variation among ances-tral populations often drives phenotypic change during domestication, but some changes are causedby novel mutations. In dogs (Canis familiaris) specifically, it has been suggested that the ability tointerpret social-communicative behavior expressed by humans originated post-domestication andthis behavior is thus not expected to occur in wolves (Canis lupus). Here we report the observationof three 8-week-old wolf puppies spontaneously responding to social-communicative behaviorsfrom an unfamiliar person by retrieving a ball. This behavioral expression in wolves has significant im-plications for our understanding and expectations of the genetic foundations of dog behavior. Impor-tantly, our observations indicate that behavioral responses to human social-communicative cues arenot unique to dogs. This suggests that, although probably rare, standing variation in the expressionof human-directed behavior in ancestral populations could have been an important target for earlyselective pressures exerted during dog domestication.
... We investigated human-directed play behaviour as a focal phenotype, because it is heritable (Arvelius, Eken Asp, Fikse, Strandberg, & Nilsson, 2014;Arvelius, Strandberg, & Fikse, 2014) and can be well discriminated among breeds (Asp, Fikse, Nilsson, & Strandberg, 2015;Lobell & Powell, 2010;Sommerville, O'Connor, & Asher, 2017;Svartberg, 2005;Wheat, Fitzpatrick, Tapper, & Temrin, 2018), suggesting that the trait can be subject to selection. Play behaviour is a very important trait that strengthens the social relationship between humans and dogs (Rooney, Bradshaw, & Robinson, 2000); thus, one can hypothesize that this trait is considered in breeding programmes and the design of crosses among breeds, which should then affect genetic relations and gene flow among breeds. We relied on a unique long-term database from the Swedish Dog Mentality Assessment (DMA) project, which collected standardized behavioural data over decades (Svartberg & Forkman, 2002), from which we derived breed-specific mean estimates of the focal trait from several thousands of individuals belonging to more than one hundred breeds. ...
Among‐population variance of phenotypic traits is of high relevance for understanding evolutionary mechanisms that operate in relatively short timescales, but various sources of non‐independence, such as common ancestry and gene flow can hamper the interpretations. In this comparative analysis of 138 dog breeds, we demonstrate how such confounders can independently shape the evolution of a behavioral trait (human‐directed play behavior from the Dog Mentality Assessment project). We combined information on genetic relatedness and haplotype sharing to reflect common ancestry and gene flow, respectively, and entered these into a phylogenetic mixed model to partition the among‐breed variance of human‐directed play behavior while also accounting for within‐breed variance. We found that 75% of the among‐breed variance was explained by overall genetic relatedness among breeds, while 15% could be attributed to haplotype sharing that arises from gene flow. Therefore, most of the differences in human‐directed play behavior among breeds have likely been caused by constraints of common ancestry as a likely consequence of past selection regimes. On the other hand, gene flow caused by crosses among breeds has played a minor, but not negligible role. Our study serves as an example of an analytical approach that can be applied to comparative situations where the effects of shared origin and gene flow require quantification and appropriate statistical control in a within‐species/among‐population framework. Altogether, our results suggest that the evolutionary history of dog breeds have left remarkable signatures on the among‐breed variation of a behavioral phenotype.
... that did not correspond to the expected (correct) responses (i.e. errors) were removed from the videos by one of the judges (FG, see S2 Text), as in [31,32]. We computed five variables (percentages of dogs that successfully completed the tasks, number of errors, types of errors, types of initiatives, and durations of the memorized and evaluated paths) for each task and for all the dogs taken together. ...
Guide dogs are working dogs that follow the verbal instructions of owners with severe visual impairments, leading them through the environment and toward goals such as a subway entrance (“Find the subway” instruction). During this process, guide dogs incidentally familiarize themselves with their environment. As such, they provide a unique animal model for studying wayfinding abilities in the canine species. In the present descriptive study, 23 skilled guide dogs travelled along a path once and were subsequently tested in a navigation task, with a blindfolded guide dog instructor as the handler. Dogs had difficulty reproducing the path (only 30.43% of the dogs succeeded) and returning (homing) along the previously travelled path (43.47% of the dogs succeeded). However, 80% of them successfully took a shortcut, and 86.95% a detour. This is the first description of the wayfinding abilities of dogs after a single discrete exploration of the path (incidental learning) in systematic experimental conditions. Errors, initiatives and success rates showed that dogs were able to keep track of the goal if the path was short, but errors increased with longer paths, suggesting segmented integration of path characteristics process, as demonstrated in humans. Additionally, errors on homing and detouring, both vital wayfinding tasks, were correlated, suggesting an effect of experience. Initiatives taken by the dogs further suggest flexibility of the spatial representation elaborated. Interestingly, we also found that homing was the only task to benefit from severe visual disability and regular exposure to new journeys, suggesting that these two factors influence the most important wayfinding task. This study therefore highlights qualitative and quantitative wayfinding abilities in the dog species, as well as the factors that account for them, after a single path exploration accompanied by natural ongoing motivation. In the wake of the discovery that dogs are sensitive to the magnetic field, our results provide the basis for developing systematic wayfinding tests for guide dogs.
... A brincadeira de gatos comumente é dirigida a objetos semelhantes a presas, sendo desenvolvidos comportamentos similares aos de caça (Hall, 1998). Para o cão doméstico, no entanto, é mais provável que a brincadeira envolva um parceiro, seja canino ou humano, e esta parece ter uma motivação predominantemente social (Rooney et al., 2000;Ward e Smuts, 2007;Pullen, 2011). Desta forma, a diminuição das horas de lazer do cão pode impactar negativamente seu bem-estar, principalmente por envolver um caráter social (Trisko, 2011). ...
Objetivou-se investigar a possível presença de fatores estressores no ambiente de convívio de cães por meio de aplicação de questionário aos tutores. Foi utilizada amostra de conveniência constituída por 50 cães atendidos de forma recorrente no Hospital Veterinário da Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU). Os dados foram coletados por dois veterinários submetidos a treinamento prévio e as respostas transferidas para banco de dados (software EpiInfo-6.04) e apresentadas de forma descritiva. A maioria dos tutores mantinha seus animais dentro de casa (16%, n = 8) e no quintal (22%, n = 11), porém, em 70% (n = 35) dos casos o ambiente de convivência dos cães passou por transformação nos últimos seis meses. Quanto aos fatores sociais, 16% (n = 8) tiveram a adição de um novo animal ao convívio e 30% (n = 15) tiveram o lazer reduzido. Tutores (64%, n = 32) relataram repreender seus cães quando estes demonstram comportamentos indesejados, sendo a tentativa de cópula com objetos e pessoas o mais citado, e 46% (n = 23) afirmaram puni-los com agressões diretas. Os cães avaliados têm constante comportamento de medo (74%, n = 37) e têm preferido ficar isolados nos últimos dias (60%, n = 30). Conclui-se que os tutores de animais podem fornecer informações válidas acerca de possíveis fatores estressantes em cães, auxiliando os médicos veterinários no diagnóstico.
... For the dog, play with their owners is different to other sorts of play, either solo or with other dogs. This is substantiated in the literature, for example (Rooney, Bradshaw, & Robinson, 2000) highlighted the structure of dog-human object-oriented play differs to its dog counterpart. This includes a decrease in competitive play (e.g. less motivation to possess the object with a human player than with another dog) and an increase in interactive behaviours (e.g. ...
... A diferencia del juego humanohumano, en el que la competencia es un factor central, el juego humano-perro no tiene ganadores y perdedores en tanto el objetivo compartido es continuar la interacción del juego (Sanders, 1999(Sanders, , 2003. Complementariamente, se encontró que los perros se muestran menos posesivos con sus juguetes y más interactivos al jugar con humanos que al jugar con otros perros (Rooney, Bradshaw, & Robinson, 2000). ...
La socialización de los roles de género de los hombres promueve ciertos valores masculinos, el miedo a la feminidad, y la inhibición para expresar sentimientos y buscar apoyo social. Así, el conflicto de rol masculino se explica como un estado psicológico en el que las definiciones restrictivas de masculinidad afectan el bienestar de los hombres y su entorno, limitando el potencial humano. Los vínculos con animales abordados desde la Teoría del Conflicto de Rol de Género resultan un campo fértil para ayudar a los hombres a lograr un mayor entendimiento sobre cómo el sexismo afecta negativamente sus vidas. El apego hacia los perros puede ser incorporado dentro del proceso terapéutico. Además, en tanto las relaciones humano-animal no están guiadas por las dinámicas de género, los hombres no implementarán en ellas los mecanismos defensivos habituales, pudiendo así canalizar emociones y sentirse auténticos de maneras no habilitadas en las relaciones humanas, generando una experiencia cualitativamente diferente que aportará información nueva para cuestionar y redefinir su idiosincrasia de género.
... In the domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris), social play is very common, although unlike other canids the repertoire has expanded from conspecific play to dog-owner play, which is the more commonly seen form of social play. Dog-dog play and dog-owner play are possibly not homologous because they appear to be motivationally distinct (Rooney et al., 2000). Nevertheless, dogs direct many of the play-soliciting behaviors to humans just as easily as to other dogs. ...
Exploration and play are considered to be crucial behaviors during mammalian development. Even though the relationship between glucocorticoids and exploratory behavior, stress, and anxiety is well described in the literature, very little is known about their role in play behavior in non-rodents. Likewise, the functional role of the “social hormone” oxytocin in exploration, play, stress, and anxiety is still unknown. The present work addresses this literature gap by studying plasma hormone profiles for cortisol (CORT) and oxytocin (OT) of domestic dogs exposed to a novel arena containing two unfamiliar trainers who did not interact with the dogs. We provide evidence suggesting a functional relationship between hormonal measures of cortisol and oxytocin and adaptive behavior (play-soliciting and exploration) in freely behaving domestic dogs. We have taken into account several possible factors in our analyses and interpretations, from the nature and quality of the measurements to demographic factors to statistical robustness. Our results indicate that reduced CORT levels are associated with increments of both play-soliciting behavior frequency and exploratory behavior duration. Furthermore, taken together, our data and our simulations suggest a relationship between OT and the enactment of play-soliciting behaviors by freely behaving domestic dogs that must be further investigated. Future studies should consider naturalistic structured and semi-structured experimental approaches linking behavior with (neuro) physiological measures, taking into account demographic factors such as age and relevant interphase factors such as the sex of the dog; and socio-historic factors such as the playfulness of the dog, history of interaction with young humans, among others, to take full account of interaction between humans and animals in comparative studies (Parada and Rossi, 2018).
Dog play bows are recognized as indicating play motivation in dog-dog play, but have never been examined in dog-human play. Twenty-seven dogs and 26 humans engaged in interspecific interactions with familiar and unfamiliar cross-species partners to play; videotapes of the resulting 50 play interactions were examined for play bows. Fifty play bows were detected, enacted by 10 dogs playing with their owner, 6 of whom also enacted play bows with an unfamiliar player. Play bows occurred only infrequently before or after pauses (or non-play activities) by the dog or the human, or before escape during play. Play bows appeared to be integral to dogs’ play activities, usually when the dog was playing object-keepaway and tug o’ war , or the dog was reacting to the human engaging in frustration games like object-keepaway or fakeout . Play bows appear to be multi-purpose actions indicating play motivation within dog-human play.
Behavioral and physiological synchrony facilitate emotional closeness in attachment relationships. The aim of this pseudorandomized cross-over study was to investigate the emotional and physiological link, designated as co-modulation, between dogs and their owners. We measured the heart rate variability (HRV) and physical activity of dogs belonging to co-operative breeds (n = 29) and their owners during resting baselines and positive interaction tasks (Stroking, Training, Sniffing, Playing) and collected survey data on owner temperament and dog–owner relationship. Although overall HRV and activity correlated between dogs and their owners across tasks, task-specific analyses showed that HRV of dogs and owners correlated during free behaving (Pre- and Post-Baseline), whereas the activity of dogs and owners correlated during predefined interaction tasks (Stroking and Playing). Dog overall HRV was the only predictive factor for owner overall HRV, while dog height, ownership duration, owner negative affectivity, and dog–owner interaction scale predicted dog overall HRV. Thus, the characteristics of dog, owner, and the relationship modified the HRV responses in dog–owner dyads. The physiology and behavior of dogs belonging to co-operative breeds and their owners were therefore co-modulated, demonstrating physiological and emotional connection comparable to those found in attachment relationships between humans.
The popularity of dogs has been increasing owing to factors such as the physical and mental health benefits associated with raising them. While owners care about their dogs’ health and welfare, it is difficult for them to assess these, and frequent veterinary checkups represent a growing financial burden. In this study, we propose a behavior-based video summarization and visualization system for monitoring a dog’s behavioral patterns to help assess its health and welfare. The system proceeds in four modules: (1) a video data collection and preprocessing module; (2) an object detection-based module for retrieving image sequences where the dog is alone and cropping them to reduce background noise; (3) a dog behavior recognition module using two-stream EfficientNetV2 to extract appearance and motion features from the cropped images and their respective optical flow, followed by a long short-term memory (LSTM) model to recognize the dog’s behaviors; and (4) a summarization and visualization module to provide effective visual summaries of the dog’s location and behavior information to help assess and understand its health and welfare. The experimental results show that the system achieved an average F1 score of 0.955 for behavior recognition, with an execution time allowing real-time processing, while the summarization and visualization results demonstrate how the system can help owners assess and understand their dog’s health and welfare.
This paper argues that the core phi-features behind grammatical person, number, and gender are widely used in animal cognition and are in no way limited to humans or to communication. Based on this, it is hypothesized (i) that the semantics behind phi-features were fixed long before primates evolved, (ii) that most go back as far as far as vertebrates, and (iii) that some are shared with insects and plants.
Personality has been researched in many companion animals and is described as differences in behavioural traits of individuals that often remain consistent over time. In domestic cats many factors have been discovered to influence personality, including breed, coat colour, gender, rearing experience, number of cats within a household, owner age, owner gender and owner personality. However, research is limited for certain factors, including owner demographics, so the aim was to demonstrate that a simple survey could be used to infer personality traits and identify domestic cat and owner demographical factors that influence certain traits. An online personality survey with 34 traits was sent out to cat owners in the UK, Europe and North America, containing cat and owner demographical questions. Housing type, total number of cats in household and owner animal preference all had significant effects on many of the personality trait scores. Unexpectedly, cat breed, owner age, neutering status and country of residence showed distinct clusters in the multifactor analysis individual model but did not have any significant effects on any of the personality traits, along with coat colour, owner gender and cat gender which were initially considered of importance to the study, contradicting some of the previous research. This study highlights the importance of considering demographical factors that influence personality traits, to predict cat personality based on these factors to cater for specific husbandry practices and to improve the chances of successful adoption for those within shelters.
Retirement represents one of the greatest life milestones one can experience. It was conjured by humans to allow those who worked an opportunity to receive a well-deserved break and to enjoy life without employment obligations. There are certainly similarities and differences when comparing the process of retirement between people and therapy animals. Working therapy animals deserve the opportunity to retire with dignity. The primary goal of this chapter is to provide guidelines to consider for the safe retirement of therapy animals as well as highlight the implications of this retirement on the handlers as well as the clients. Attention in the chapter is also given to the leadership of the various organizations registering therapy animals to assure that a mechanism is in place to monitor the lifespan of therapy animals so they can be given the opportunity to transition into retirement years.
Ethically speaking, humans should benefit from the human–animal interaction only if the animals themselves benefit as well. As the field of animal-assisted interventions (AAI) places more consideration on the welfare and well-being of the animals involved, questions as to how to best assess welfare and how to improve welfare for the animals are critical to answer. There are challenges to answering these questions, though. The study of welfare can be ambiguous, especially when AAIs are seemingly innocuous to observers. However, there is concern that AAIs may be physically and mentally taxing on animals if precautions are not taken. As research seeks to clarify the effect that AAI has on animal welfare, practitioners need to be aware of what they can do on a daily basis to safeguard the health and well-being of their animal partners. This requires the practitioner to be knowledgeable in how to judge animal welfare, what conditions put animals at risk, and what can be done to minimize risk. This chapter will discuss the considerations for assessment of animal welfare in therapy settings and provide guidance for modifying interventions in hopes of assuring the well-being of the animals involved, thus enhancing the benefits for all parties involved. While the discussion will primarily focus on canine species, these welfare considerations may be applied to all species used in AAIs.
Play, whether it be social or with toys on their own, is purposeful and benefits the animal. There is a disproportionate amount of studies on play in younger dogs compared to senior dogs. It is unclear why research on play behaviour in senior dogs is limited and why play behaviour apparently declines with age. Further studies are certainly warranted, since play could offer many benefits for senior dogs and improve their quality of life. This article offers hypotheses into the apparent decline in play with ageing. In addition, the article proposes that continuation of play throughout the life stages and into senior years could be beneficial for the dog in multiple ways.
While there has been increasing interest in the human-animal leisure intersection in recent times, leisure still largely remains human-centric or focussed. Much remains to be explored in seeking to understand animal leisure, and the intersection of animal leisure with human leisure. Spring boarding from Franklin’s argument that understanding cross species involvement calls for intense, reflective analyses that can begin in our own human lives and experiences we use an ethnographic approach to explore the intersection of human and animal leisure’s. Use is made of Stebbins’ Serious Leisure Perspective (SLP) categorisation to present observations, analyses and learnings as to the leisure lives of the 5 dogs that share our (the authors) very different multi-species leisure lives. Our explorations demonstrate that multi-species leisure cannot be presumed; and that experiences of leisure per se intersect with individual animal preferences and personalities. We also identify the potential to see some animal leisure as Serious-Amateur and even Devotee Work when incorporating ‘instinct’ (the outcome of generational human control of some species fertility) into considerations, and briefly explore the extension of human parenting and leisure moralising to the rising profile of fur-parenting.
Domestic dogs are members of the class Mammalia, order Carnivora, and family Canidae. Although within the order Carnivora, dogs have evolved to eat an omnivorous diet. Their nutritional requirements include specific amino acids, glucose precursors, fatty acids, and dietary fibre are important dietary elements. Dogs are generally social animals. Most well‐socialised dogs are strongly motivated to establish contact and interact with other dogs, for example on a walk. Human contact has beneficial effects for many dogs. Importantly, a dog's need for, and reaction to, human company is affected by its temperament and early experiences. Rabies is an important disease internationally, affecting millions of dogs yearly, and extrapolating from human experiences, may cause respiratory distress and pain prior to death. The behavioural responses of an individual dog are influenced by its breed, type, rearing, and current environment. Dogs' responses to rewards and training may also indicate their mood or overall welfare.
Cambridge Core - Educational Psychology - The Cambridge Handbook of Play - edited by Peter K. Smith
Why do dogs behave in the ways that they do? Why did our ancestors tame wolves? How have we ended up with so many breeds of dog, and how can we understand their role in contemporary human society? Explore the answers to these questions and many more in this study of the domestic dog. Building on the strengths of the first edition, this much-anticipated update incorporates two decades of new evidence and discoveries on dog evolution, behavior, training, and human interaction. It includes seven entirely new chapters covering topics such as behavioral modification and training, dog population management, the molecular evidence for dog domestication, canine behavioral genetics, cognition, and the impact of free-roaming dogs on wildlife conservation. It is an ideal volume for anyone interested in dogs and their evolution, behavior and ever-changing roles in society. The ultimate book about the domestic dog, ideal for anyone interested in their evolution, behavior and ever-changing roles in society A new edition of a classic text, presenting the latest research on dog behavior, training, domestication, genetics and cognition Includes seven entirely new chapters by leading experts in the field, incorporating two decades of new evidence and discoveries.
Unmanipulated human-cat interactions in established relationships and in the common but very complex home setting are described and analyzed quantitatively. Fifty-one cat-owning Swiss families were visited in their homes. In a total of 504 hours of observation, the interspecific interactions of 162 persons and 72 cats were recorded. Quantitatively, the interactive behavior of both partners in a human-cat dyad increases with increasing duration of human presence at home: this independent variable is largest in adult women and smallest in adult men, while children and juveniles show intermediate values. Therefore, adult women are generally predestined to be the main human partner in human-cat relationships. Even so, when based on mean duration of human presence, effects of human sex and age can still be found for some human and cat behavior. Judged by the amount and reciprocity of interactions, woman-cat dyads have the best and juvenile-cat dyads the worst relationships. Cat behavior toward individual family members not only depends upon characteristics of the human (availability, sex, and age) but also upon characteristics of the whole family, such as family size and number of cats living in the household (negative correlation for both factors). Cat housing condition (indoor versus outdoor) appears to be unimportant in the human-cat relationship, although it affects the duration of a cat's presence at home. The results show the complexity of human-cat relationships in the privacy of the home. The list of factors shown to influence such relationships was increased by several variables. Thus, observation of unmanipulated interspecific interactions was useful despite problems inherent to most field studies.
In social play, the actions of players are organized into projects—sequences of actions that are repeated in order to calibrate an organism's control over these actions or over the actions of the play partner. These social projects are coordinated into routines, or repeated interaction patterns. When projects are not compatible, players are expected to entice each other through self-handicaps, refusals to play, manipulative self-handicaps or refusals, and manipulations. This theoretical framework is evaluated in relation to interspecific play between familiar and unfamiliar dogs and people. Familiar players were expected to engage more in routines based on compatible projects, to show idiosyncratic projects, and to entice less than were unfamiliars. Forty-eight play interactions, 24 between familiars and 24 between unfamiliars, were videotaped and coded for actions, projects, routines, and enticements. Dogs engaged in 12 and people in 14 distinct projects. Familiars were more likely to play and to enact compatible projects than were unfamiliars. However, the proportion of compatible projects was identical for familiars and unfamiliars. A few dogs and people exhibited specialized projects toward familiars. And, when they played, familiars generally enacted proportionally fewer enticements than did unfamiliars (although familiar dogs enacted nonmanipulative enticements with proportionally the same frequency as did unfamiliar dogs). Familiarity, then, influences players to perceive each other as potential play partners, decreases the need for enticements during play, and allows players to develop idiosyncratic play patterns that they would be unlikely to create without extended exposure to each other's patterns.
THREE canid finds from the Natufian in the northern Israeli sites of Bin Mallaha (Eynan) and Hayonim terrace indicate a special man–animal relationship. These consist of a diminutive carnassial and mandible, and a wolf or dog puppy skeleton buried with a human. The finding of a puppy skeleton in such close association with man is of particular significance as an indication of a close relationship between man and dog.
Using a computer-generated data base of rankings of 56 breeds of dogs on 13 behavioral traits, a factor analysis was performed to determine the extent to which a few general underlying behavioral tendencies are manifested in specific characteristics. Three factors, referred to as reactivity, aggression, and trainability, accounted for 81% of the variance in the 13 behavioral traits. Subsequently, a cluster analysis was performed to generate 7 clusters of dog breeds on the basis of similarity in scores for each of the 3 main factors. The clusters reflected to some degree the conventional groupings of dogs into working, sporting, hound, and terrier breeds. A quantitative analysis of the ranking of male dogs vs female dogs for the 13 characteristics revealed that males differed from females on 10 traits. It was concluded that these gender and cluster profiles will allow people to select a breed or gender of dog that is most likely to match the emotional and physical needs of the person who will provide a home for the pet.
Why do animals play? Play has been described in animals as diverse as reptiles, birds and mammals, so what benefits does it provide and how did it evolve? Careful, quantitative studies of social, locomotor and object play behaviour are now beginning to answer these questions and to shed light on many other aspects of both animal and human behaviour. This interdisciplinary volume, first published in 1998, brings together the major findings about play in a wide range of species including humans. Topics about play include the evolutionary history of play, play structure, function and development, and sex and individual differences. Animal Play is destined to become the benchmark volume in this subject, and will provide a source of inspiration and understanding for students and researchers in behavioural biology, neurobiology, psychology and anthropology.
Why do animals play? Play has been described in animals as diverse as reptiles, birds and mammals, so what benefits does it provide and how did it evolve? Careful, quantitative studies of social, locomotor and object play behaviour are now beginning to answer these questions and to shed light on many other aspects of both animal and human behaviour. This interdisciplinary volume, first published in 1998, brings together the major findings about play in a wide range of species including humans. Topics about play include the evolutionary history of play, play structure, function and development, and sex and individual differences. Animal Play is destined to become the benchmark volume in this subject, and will provide a source of inspiration and understanding for students and researchers in behavioural biology, neurobiology, psychology and anthropology.
Why do animals play? Play has been described in animals as diverse as reptiles, birds and mammals, so what benefits does it provide and how did it evolve? Careful, quantitative studies of social, locomotor and object play behaviour are now beginning to answer these questions and to shed light on many other aspects of both animal and human behaviour. This interdisciplinary volume, first published in 1998, brings together the major findings about play in a wide range of species including humans. Topics about play include the evolutionary history of play, play structure, function and development, and sex and individual differences. Animal Play is destined to become the benchmark volume in this subject, and will provide a source of inspiration and understanding for students and researchers in behavioural biology, neurobiology, psychology and anthropology.
Object play behaviour in litters of bush dogs Speothos venaticus and crab-eating foxes Cerdocyon thous is investigated. Cerdocyon, an individual hunter, shows a rich repertoire of object play patterns, defends and competes for objects, rarely plays with objects in groups, and spends less time in object play than in non-object-oriented social interactions. Speothos, a group hunter of relatively large prey, shows comparatively few object play patterns, shares rather than competes for objects, and spends as much time in object-oriented social interactions as in non-object-oriented social interactions. Results suggest a relationship between treatment of objects during play and later social treatment of prey. -from Author
This paper describes the philosophy and design behind the construction and operation of three dog buildings in a facility that houses both dogs and cats in the most animal friendly conditions, providing maximum environmental interest to the pet, consistent with the requirements of nutritional and behavioural studies. The husbandry systems use the best health care practices, with emphasis on canine or feline companionship and the human pet relationship.
We have tested the hypothesis that object play by adult domestic cats Felis silvestris catus may be indistinguishable from predatory behaviour at the motivational level, by examining the influence of hunger on play. Cats were presented with either a large toy or a small toy, either 0 h and 16 h after their last meal. The small toy elicited more play overall. After the longer interval, play increased in intensity and avoidance of both toy sizes declined. The character of the play also changed as a function of the interaction between toy size and increased hunger. Cats performed more close contact play with the small toy after the 16 h interval than when they had just eaten. However, with the large toy they showed an increase in limited contact, exploratory behaviour patterns after the 16 h interval, compared with largely avoiding it immediately after a meal. These results are similar to those from a published study on the influence of hunger on the actual predatory behaviour of cats with hunting experience, in which the probability of a kill (possibly equivalent to contact play in our study) could be predicted according to the prey size and the hunger level of the cat. This suggests that object play and predation are similarly affected by hunger and the size of the toy/prey, and may therefore share a common motivational basis.
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Southampton, 1999.
One-hundred-and-twelve small animal veterinarians and 56 dog care professionals were asked to rate the behavioural characteristics of 49 breeds of dog, and to compare males and females by means of a 13-point questionnaire. From their replies, factor analysis was used to extract three underlying traits, labelled aggressivity, reactivity and immaturity. On the basis of these traits, eight groups of breeds were derived. Membership of these groups did not correspond exactly with any of the four existing breed classification systems (Mégnin, the Fédération Cynologique International, ancient breeds and Kennel Club of Great Britain), but significant differences between Kennel Club groups were found on all three traits. Male dogs were rated higher than females on both aggressivity and immaturity; the components of reactivity were also rated higher in males, apart from the demand for affection which was rated higher in females. Females were also considered easier to train than males.
Human and animal inter-relationships, Review Series: 3. Normal behaviour patterns of Ž . dogs: Part 1. Australian Veterinary Practitioner 15 3
- J K Blackshaw
Blackshaw, J.K., 1985. Human and animal inter-relationships, Review Series: 3. Normal behaviour patterns of Ž. dogs: Part 1. Australian Veterinary Practitioner 15 3, 110–112.
Dogs as companions: a review of the relationship The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behaviour and Interactions with People
- Ž Hart
Ž. Hart, L.A., 1995. Dogs as companions: a review of the relationship. In: Serpell, J. Ed., The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behaviour and Interactions with People. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, pp. 161–179.
Ain't Misbehavin: A Good Behaviour Guide for Family Dogs
- D Appleby
Appleby, D., 1997. Ain't Misbehavin: A Good Behaviour Guide for Family Dogs. Broadcast Books, Bristol. Askew, H.R., 1996. Treatment of Behavioural Problems in Dogs and Cats: A Guide for the Small Animal Veterinarian. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, p. 171. Biben, M., 1982. Object play and social treatment of prey in bush dogs and crab-eating foxes. Behaviour 79, 201–211.
Behavioural differences between kittens homed singly and in pairs
- Bradshaw
Bradshaw, J.W.S., Smart, F.R.E., 1993. Behavioural differences between kittens homed singly and in pairs. Ž. Journal of the Feline Advisory Bureau 30 4, 141–143.
Dog Language: An Encyclopaedia of Canine Behaviour
- R Abrantes
Abrantes, R., 1997. Dog Language: An Encyclopaedia of Canine Behaviour. Walkan Janka Publisher, Illinois. Aldis, O., 1975. Play Fighting. Academic Press, New York.
The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behaviour and Interactions with People
- L A Hart
Dog Psychology: The Basis of Dog Training
- L F Whitney
Treatment of Behavioural Problems in Dogs and Cats: A Guide for the Small Animal Veterinarian
- H R Askew
Human and animal inter-relationships, Review Series: 3. Normal behaviour patterns of dogs: Part 1
- Blackshaw
The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behaviour and Interactions with People
- D W Macdonald
- G M Carr
Ecology of a feral dog pack on a wildlife refuge
- W H Nesbitt
The Waltham Book of Dog and Cat Behaviour
- N M R Nott