Abstract
Shared
activities are known to create a good relationship between dog and man.
Therefore, it can be expected that animals working in harness with
their handlers, such as search and rescue dogs, show a higher attachment
to man.
The aim of the current research was to
assess whether there are differences between pet and working dogs in the
attachment to owners/handlers.
Forty dogs were
involved, 26 pets and 14 search and rescue dogs (taken home when not
working). Their attachment to owners/handlers was analyzed by using a
modified version of the Ainsworth Strange Situation Test and a recall
test, while owners and handlers filled in a questionnaire and were
scored on the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale.
Statistical
analysis revealed no statistically significant differences between pet
and working dogs for behaviors indicating an attachment bond: behavior
oriented to door/chair/shoe during the absence of owner/handler (which
represents “search of absent person”; U = 132.000, P = 0.156), contact with/proximity to owner/handler (i.e., “contact maintenance effect”; U = 157.000, P = 0.478), whining during owner's/handler's absence (“protest at the separation”; U = 147.000, P = 0.288), and individual play (U = 146.000, P = 0.288) and exploration (U = 138.500, P = 0.215) in presence of owner/handler, representing the “secure base effect.”
Despite
the lack of statistical differences, the formulated hypothesis may be
not completely rejected, as a trend of a higher attachment in search and
rescue dogs existed. It can be concluded that in carefully owned dogs,
the level of attachment is increased by working as a search and rescue
dog, but the difference does not lead to statistically relevant results.
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