A comparison of dog–dog and dog–human play behaviour

Dog-Dog vs Human-Dog Playing

Nicola J Rooney, John W.S Bradshaw, Ian H Robinson

A comparison of dog–dog and dog–human play behaviour

Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Volume 66, Issue 3, 29 February 2000, Pages 235–248

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.

The Dog as a Model for Understanding Human Social Behavior

József Topál, Ádám Miklósi, Márta Gácsi, Antal Dóka, Péter Pongrácz, Enikő Kubinyi, Zsófia Virányi, Vilmos Csányi

Chapter 3 The Dog as a Model for Understanding Human Social Behavior

Advances in the Study of Behavior, Volume 39, 2009, Pages 71–116

Abstract

The traditional approach for studying the evolutionary emergence of human social cognition is based on comparisons with apes and monkeys as model species with a homologous relationship to other primates and humans. Recently, however, research interest has focused on other species offering analogous models for the evolution of human social cognitive abilities. Here we suggest that convergent social evolution in dogs can be used to model the early state of human social evolution, suggesting that functionally analogous forms of many traits of the human behavioral complex are present in dogs. We argue that the dog as a model species is unique among domesticated species because (a) many aspects of dog behavior are functionally analogous to the corresponding human traits, (b) socialization to humans is a natural process in dogs, (c) comparison with the ancestor is important for convergent modeling, and (d) the dog represents a natural experimental model for studying human behavior.

Attachment to humans: a comparative study on hand-reared wolves and differently socialized dog puppies

Attachment Theory, Hand-Reared Wolves

József Topál, Márta Gácsi, Ádám Miklósi, Zsófia Virányi, Enikő Kubinyi, Vilmos Csányi

Attachment to humans: a comparative study on hand-reared wolves and differently socialized dog puppies

Animal Behaviour, Volume 70, Issue 6, December 2005, Pages 1367–1375

Using the Strange Situation Test originally developed for testing the mother–infant relationship in humans, we compared the attachment behaviour of extensively socialized (hand-reared) dog, Canis familiaris, and wolf, Canis lupus, puppies towards their human caregiver with that of pet dog puppies of the same age. The experiment was designed to study whether (1) dog puppies as young as 16 weeks show attachment to a human caregiver, (2) extensive socialization by human caregivers affects attachment behaviour of dog puppies and (3) evolutionary changes (in the form of species-specific differences between wolf and dog pups) affect the emergence of dog–human attachment. We found a characteristic selective responsiveness to the owner in young dogs, similar to that observed in adults. This finding supports the view that puppies show patterns of attachment towards their owners. Extensive socialization had only a minor effect on the attachment behaviour in dog puppies, as the behaviour of pet dogs and hand-reared dogs was basically similar. However, we found a significant species-specific difference between wolves and dogs: both extensively socialized and pet dog puppies were more responsive to the owner than to an unfamiliar human participant, whereas extensively socialized wolves were not. Behavioural differences could be best explained by assuming that selective processes took place in the course of domestication (genetic changes) that are related to the attachment system of the dog.

Domestication is generally viewed as an evolutionary process controlled by human influence (Price 1984). The symbiotic relationship between humans and nonhuman animals entails adaptational demands, which create new conditions of selection for the species to be domesticated and thus might result in a wide range of genetic modifications. The dog has a long history of adaptation to the human environment ( [Vilá et al., 1997] and [Savolainen et al., 2002]), and it is widely assumed that the selection process during domestication may have altered not only their morphological traits but also their behaviour and behaviour control systems ( [Belyaev, 1979] and [Coppinger and Coppinger, 2002]).

Recent studies have suggested an unusual competence of dogs in social interactions with humans (cooperation: [Topál et al., 1997], [Naderi et al., 2001] and [Naderi et al., 2002]; social learning: [Kubinyi et al., 2003], [Pongrácz et al., 2003a] and [Pongrácz et al., 2003b]; communication: [Miklósi et al., 1998], [Miklósi et al., 2000], [Agnetta et al., 2001], [Soproni et al., 2001] and [Soproni et al., 2002]). However, to understand the significance of domestication-related changes in the behaviour of dogs, we need to compare dogs with wolves (Miklósi et al. 2004). In line with this, recent comparisons of the social cognitive skills in dogs and socialized wolves within the context of the interspecific relationship with humans have shed light on some genetic divergences at the behavioural level ( [Hare et al., 2002] and [Miklósi et al., 2003]). Compared with wolves, the dogs' preferential looking at the human in problem-solving situations and their superior performance in using human directional gestures support the existence of genetic predispositions related to the domestication process in the emergence of social cognitive abilities in dogs.

In general, it is widely accepted that the evolutionary emergence of social cognition is closely related to the ‘social field’ (Kummer 1982), which often presents more complex adaptational demands for the animal than do physical characteristics of the environment (Tomasello & Call 1997). One of the basic behavioural phenomena of social relationships is attachment. The evolutionary approach to function and mechanism suggests that attachment is one of the main behaviour organizing systems in parent–offspring relationships, and it is also claimed to be the basic organizational factor for any species' social structure leading to group formation (Bowlby 1958). Attachment is an asymmetrical social relationship between two individuals, which can be tested experimentally in choice situations such as the Strange Situation Test (SST) originally developed to study the mother–infant relationship in humans (Ainsworth & Wittig 1969). The paradigmatic element of this procedure is that separation from the caregiver in an unfamiliar environment evokes anxiety (which is manifested behaviourally in proximity seeking), while the activated attachment system upon reunion with the caregiver manifests in different forms of contact-seeking behaviours. Importantly, attachment behaviour is oriented mainly towards the caregiver, in the sense that there is a significant difference in the level of proximity and contact seeking, and in the effort made to maintain contact, between the caregiver and an unfamiliar person in the same novel situation. Adult dogs show specific patterns of attachment behaviour towards their owner in the SST ( [Topál et al., 1998] and [Prato-Previde et al., 2003]), suggesting a case of functional analogy (evolutionary convergence) to the human infant–parent attachment. Gácsi et al. (2001) reported that attachment develops rapidly: a short period of interaction with humans evoked attachment behaviour towards the handler in adult dogs that had been deprived of human contact (shelter dogs) and the dogs differentiated between their handler and a stranger in the same way as adult pet dogs did.

We designed a comparative experiment to investigate the attachment behaviour of hand-reared and extensively socialized wolf and dog puppies and pet dog puppies that had received a normal socialization regimen from their owners. We investigated whether (1) pet dogs' attachment to humans is observable in the SST as early as 16 weeks of age, (2) extensive socialization by human caregivers causes any change in attachment behaviour of dog puppies and (3) there are species-specific differences between wolves and dogs in their attachment behaviour to humans.

Although one might assume that the ability to show attachment behaviour to individuals of another species (humans) in adulthood is a unique feature of the domestic dog, despite much interest ( [Scott, 1963], [Scott, 1992] and [Ginsburg and Hiestand, 1992]), there has been no clear theory explaining the emergence of the phenomenon. By comparing the emergence of attachment behaviour to humans in dogs and socialized wolves tested by the same experimental method we can examine whether inheritance (genetic background) or environmental effects (rearing history) are more important.

Two hypotheses can be formulated. The socialization hypothesis suggests that attachment could develop mainly as a result of extensive hand rearing and individual socialization to the human social environment (i.e. enculturation) during the ‘critical period’ of socialization (Freedman et al. 1961). The domestication hypothesis, however, claims that there could have been specific genetic changes (in the attachment behaviour organizing system) that have emerged as the result of selective breeding for dependency and attachment to humans (see also [Hare et al., 2002] and [Miklósi et al., 2003] for similar explanations regarding communicative abilities in dogs). The socialization hypothesis predicts that hand-reared wolf and dog puppies will show similar forms of attachment behaviour to their human caregivers, whereas pet dog puppies, being less extensively socialized, will show less attachment to their owners. In contrast, the domestication hypothesis predicts species-specific differences in attachment behaviour to humans between wolves and dogs reared in the same way (i.e. dogs should show more specific attachment behaviour than wolves towards humans). These explanations are not mutually exclusive, however, and both of the hypothesized mechanisms could affect the behaviour phenotype.

Relationship between attachment to owners and separation anxiety in pet dogs (Canis lupus familiaris)

Attachement and Separation Anxiety Causes

Valli Parthasarathy, MS, PhD, DVM, Sharon L. Crowell-Davis, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVB

Relationship between attachment to owners and separation anxiety in pet dogs (Canis lupus familiaris)

Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, Volume 1, Issue 3, November–December 2006, Pages 109–120

Abstract

Dogs’ dysfunctional attachment relationships with their owners are assumed to be the underlying cause of separation anxiety. Thirty-two dogs with and 43 dogs without owner-reported separation anxiety (SA) participated in a formal attachment test (AT). After the AT, the dogs were videotaped for 30 minutes while alone at home. Dogs left free in the house were scored on how long they were in proximity to the owners’ exit doors. Dogs who were crated or closely confined were scored on several anxiety-related behaviors, which were then compared to those dogs’ behaviors during the attachment test. Dogs with SA spent no more time in contact with or proximity to their owners during the attachment test than dogs without SA (P>0.05). Instead, they tended to jump up on the door after the strangers left the room and remain stationary when alone with their owners (P<0.05). There was no significant difference (P>0.05) between SA and non-SA dogs in the amount of time spent in proximity to the owners’ exit doors when left alone at home. Dogs crated at home showed no relationship between the amount of anxiety-related behaviors during the AT or at home (P>0.05). There was no significant difference in the type of proximity-seeking behaviors exhibited by dogs with and without SA in the home (P>0.02). These finding suggest that separation anxiety is not based on “hyperattachment” of the dog to the owner, but that a different attachment style may be present between dogs with and without SA.

Results of a follow-up investigation to a clinical trial testing the efficacy of clomipramine in the treatment of separation anxiety in dogs

Clomipramine and Separation Anxiety

J.N. King, K.L. Overall, D. Appleby, B.S. Simpson, C. Beata, C.J.P. Chaurand, S.E. Heath, C. Ross, A.B. Weiss, G. Muller, B.G. Bataille, T. Paris, P. Pageat, F. Brovedani, C. Garden, S. Petit

Results of a follow-up investigation to a clinical trial testing the efficacy of clomipramine in the treatment of separation anxiety in dogs

Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Volume 89, Issues 3–4, December 2004, Pages 233–242

Abstract

The objective of the study was to investigate the incidence of adverse events and changes in behaviour after use of clomipramine to treat separation anxiety in dogs. This study was a follow-up investigation to a previously published clinical trial. In the main trial, dogs were randomised in a double-blinded manner to receive placebo, standard (1–2 mg/kg, q12h) or low (0.5–1 mg/kg, q12h) dosages of clomipramine for 2–3 months. All dogs received behavioural therapy. Follow-up questionnaires were completed in 76 out of 89 dogs between 5.5 and 16 months after completion of the main trial.

Post study, 12 dogs at one site received clomipramine long term (>13–16 months). The clomipramine was tolerated well, no dogs had worsening of their behaviour and behaviour improved further in 10 (83%) dogs.

An additional 16 dogs received clomipramine and/or other drugs for up to 30 weeks and 48 cases received no drugs post trial. Acute worsening of behaviour was noted in the first two weeks after stopping treatment in three cases receiving low dose clomipramine, but in no cases in the other groups. The worsening rate of separation anxiety >2 weeks after stopping therapy was 13% of dogs that had received standard-dose clomipramine, 15% of dogs that had received low dose clomipramine and 23% of dogs that had received placebo. The mean time to worsening was longer in dogs that had received standard-dose clomipramine (37 weeks), as compared to low dose clomipramine (11 weeks, P = 0.005) or placebo (11 weeks, P = 0.003).

In conclusion, no undesirable long term effects were detected in the use of standard-dose (1–2 mg/kg, q12h) clomipramine for the treatment of separation anxiety in dogs. Abrupt withdrawal of a sub-optimal dose of clomipramine (0

Canine Aggression Toward Familiar People: A New Look at an Old Problem

Andrew U. Luescher, DVM, PhD, Ilana R. Reisner, DVM, PhD

Canine Aggression Toward Familiar People: A New Look at an Old Problem

Veterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, Volume 38, Issue 5, September 2008, Pages 1107–1130

Dogs that are aggressive toward their owners have long been regarded as being dominant. This article presents scientific evidence that does not support this claim. Based on this evidence, the authors present an alternative explanation for canine aggression toward owners and outline a treatment plan.

* This article is great, despite its vague abstract

Dog's gaze at its owner increases owner's urinary oxytocin during social interaction

Miho Nagasawa, Takefumi Kikusui, Tatsushi Onaka, Mitsuaki Ohta

Dog's gaze at its owner increases owner's urinary oxytocin during social interaction

Hormones and Behavior, Volume 55, Issue 3, March 2009, Pages 434–441

Abstract

Oxytocin (OT) has been shown to play an important role in social bonding in animals. However, it is unclear whether OT is related to inter-species social bonding. In this study, to examine the possibility that urinary OT concentrations of owners were increased by their “dog's gaze”, perhaps representing social attachment to their owners, we measured urinary OT concentrations of owners before and after interaction with their dogs. Dog owners interacted with their dogs as usual for 30 min (interaction experiment) or were instructed not to look at their dogs directly (control experiment). We observed the behaviors of owners and their dogs during the experiments, and measured OT concentrations by radioimmunoassay in urine samples from the owners collected just before and 20 min after interaction with their dogs. Using a cluster analysis, owners could be divided into two groups: one received a longer duration of gaze from their dogs and reported a higher degree of relationship with their dogs (LG); the other received a shorter duration of gaze and reported a lower degree of relationship (SG). Urinary OT was higher in LG than SG after usual interaction with their dogs, but not in the control experiment. In the interaction experiment, a high correlation was found in LG between the frequency of behavioral exchanges initiated by the dog's gaze and the increase in urinary OT. We conclude that interactions with dogs, especially those initiated by the dog's gaze, can increase the urinary OT concentrations of their owners as a manifestation of attachment behavior.

A counterbalanced version of Ainsworth's Strange Situation Procedure reveals secure-base effects in dog–human relationships

Robyn Palmer, Deborah Custance

A counterbalanced version of Ainsworth's Strange Situation Procedure reveals secure-base effects in dog–human relationships

Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Volume 109, Issues 2–4, February 2008, Pages 306–319

Abstract

It has been proposed that the dog–human relationship constitutes an infantile-like attachment. However, previous empirical support based on Ainsworth's Strange Situation test has proved inconclusive due to order effects inherent in the original procedure. In particular, these order effects compromise the ability to establish an essential facet of attachment: whether or not owners function as a secure base for their pet dogs. Order effects were counteracted in the present study by including a second condition in which the order of owner and stranger presence was counterbalanced. Hence, 38 adult dog-owner pairs were randomly placed in two conditions, both comprised of six 3-min episodes. In condition A, dogs entered an unfamiliar room with their owner; a stranger entered; the owner left the dog with the stranger; the dog was left alone in the room; the owner returned; and finally the dog was left with the stranger again. In condition B, the order in which owner and stranger were present was reversed. Secure-base effects were indicated in that the dogs explored, remained passive, played with the stranger and engaged in individual play more when in the presence of their owner than when left with the stranger or alone. Therefore, the dogs’ behaviour provides evidence consistent with the hypothesis that the dog–human bond constitutes an attachment. The possible role of attachment in canine separation anxiety is briefly discussed.

Birds of a feather flock together? Perceived personality matching in owner–dog dyads

Borbála Turcsán, Friederike Range, Zsófia Virányi, Ádám Miklósi, Enikő Kubinyi

Birds of a feather flock together? Perceived personality matching in owner–dog dyads

Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Volume 140, Issues 3–4, September 2012, Pages 154–160

Abstract

Partner choice is strongly affected by similarity in physical and psychological characteristics. Although there is a popular belief that dogs share similar personality characteristics with their owners, no studies have yet addressed the topic. Here, we tested for associations between the dog and owner personality in two countries (Austria and Hungary) and found significant positive correlations between owners and their dogs in all the five investigated personality dimensions (neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and openness). This similarity could not be attributed solely to the owners’ self-projection, since the similarity in the first four dimensions was also significant when an independent peer person assessed the dog instead of the owner. The similarity was not affected by the length of ownership, however, we found cultural differences in the correlation pattern; more and stronger correlations were found in the Hungarian sample. Moreover, in multi-dog households the dogs’ similarity patterns complement each other, suggesting possible differences in the dogs’ role. Our results provide the first evidence that dogs do resemble their owners suggesting potential applied utility as well as indicating that dog–owner relationship could be a useful model of human social relationships.

Can your dog read your mind?: Understanding the causes of canine perspective taking.

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

Can your dog read your mind?: Understanding the causes of canine perspective taking.

Learn Behav. 2011 December; 39(4): 289–302. doi: 10.3758/s13420-011-0034-6

Abstract

Prior studies have documented the domestic dog's (Canis lupus familiaris) sensitivity to human attentional state, including a tendency to preferentially beg for food from attentive individuals and an ability to selectively perform forbidden behaviors when humans are not looking. Due to the success of dogs on perspective-taking tasks, some have hypothesized that domestic dogs may have theory of mind, or the ability to infer what other individuals know. Here we provide the first evidence that nondomesticated canids, grey wolves (Canis lupus), are also sensitive to human attentional state under some conditions. We also demonstrate that dogs do not display an undifferentiated sensitivity to all visual cues of attentional state. Rather, dogs are more sensitive to stimuli encountered in their home environment. Some dogs perform poorly on perspective-taking tasks. These findings have important implications for the interpretation of research designed to understand complex social cognition across species.

Learning and owner–stranger effects on interspecific communication in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris)

Angel M. Elgier, Adriana Jakovcevic, Alba E. Mustaca, Mariana Bentosela

Learning and owner–stranger effects on interspecific communication in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris)

Behavioural Processes, Volume 81, Issue 1, May 2009, Pages 44–49

Abstract

Domestic dogs are very successful at following human cues like gazing or pointing to find hidden food in an object choice task. They solve this kind of situation at their first attempts and from early stages of their development and perform better than wolves. Most of the authors proposed that these abilities are a domestication product, and independent from learning processes. There are few systematic studies on the effects of learning on dogs’ communicative skills. We aim to evaluate the effect of extinction and reversal learning procedures on the use of the pointing gesture in an object choice task. The results showed that dogs stopped following the pointing cue in the extinction and that they learned to choose the not pointed container in the reversal learning. Results suggest that instrumental learning plays an important role in interspecific communication mechanisms between humans and dogs. In both experiments for half of the subjects the pointer was the owner and for the rest was a stranger. A differential effect was found: extinction was slower but reversal learning was faster when the owner gave the cue. This data indicates that the relationship of the dog with the person who emits the cue influences performance.

Refutation of the stereotype of a “killer dog” in light of the behavioral interpretation of human corpses biting by domestic dogs

Krzysztof Maksymowicz, Krzysztof Marycz, Joanna Czogała, Tomasz Jurek

Refutation of the stereotype of a “killer dog” in light of the behavioral interpretation of human corpses biting by domestic dogs

Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, Volume 6, Issue 1, January–February 2011, Pages 50–56

Abstract

Postmortem bite injuries caused by domestic dogs are not very common, but because of their special character and concomitant occurrence, explaining them requires extensive forensic expertise and knowledge of the basics of animal behavior. The authors have analyzed reasons for the damage of human body caused by the dogs, with suspicion of fatal biting. Characteristics of the wounds, the description of the crime scene, the available psychophysical data of the animals, and the likely motives for the behavior exhibited by the dogs were examined. In the course of the study, it was concluded that the wounds were postmortem in nature and the crime scene character was atypical for the satisfaction of the scavenging instinct. Moreover, detailed analysis of the cases described in the text later revealed that uncharacteristic anxiety reactions with the sequent satisfaction of the exaggerated form of care-giving and the loyalty to the guardians were the most likely motivations for the actions of the dogs in the face of human death.

Domestic Dogs

B. Smuts

Domestic Dogs

Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior, Editors-in-Chief:  Michael D. Breed and Janice Moore, Oxford, 2010, Pages 562–567

ABSTRACT

Dogs, the first domestic animals, evolved from East Asian wolves approximately 40 000–20 000 years ago. Dogs understand human body language, many spoken words, and even abstract symbols. Dogs pay attention to human face and eyes, and they often turn to humans to help solve problems. Dogs and humans form a mutual emotional bond that reduces stress in both species. Being around dogs improve human physical and mental well-being. Most dogs are very social and play with other dogs if they can. Stray and feral dogs are common on the edges of human society. They form social groups, and sometimes cooperate in territorial defense, much as wolves do.

An experimental study of the effects of play upon the dog–human relationship

Nicola J Rooney, John W.S Bradshaw

An experimental study of the effects of play upon the dog–human relationship

Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Volume 75, Issue 2, 3 January 2002, Pages 161–176

Abstract

It has often been suggested that intraspecific dominance relationships are established through play. By analogy, it is also claimed that the outcome of competitive games can affect dog–human relationships. This paper experimentally tests the latter idea. Fourteen Golden Retrievers were each subjected to two treatments; 20 sessions of a tug-of-war game with the experimenter which they were allowed to win, and 20 sessions which they lost. Their relationship with the experimenter was assessed, via a composite behavioural test, once at the outset and once after each treatment. Principal components analysis allowed the 52 behavioural measures to be combined into nine underlying factors. Confidence (the factor most closely corresponding to conventional dominance) was unaffected by the treatments. Dogs scored higher for obedient attentiveness after play treatments, irrespective of whether they won or lost, and demandingness scores increased with familiarity of the test person. The 10 most playful dogs scored significantly higher for playful attention seeking after winning than after losing. We conclude that, in this population, dominance dimensions of the dog–human relationship are unaffected by the outcome of repetitive tug-of-war games. However, we suggest that the effects of games may be modified by the presence of play signals, and when these signals are absent or misinterpreted the outcome of games may have more serious consequences. Games may also assume greater significance for a minority of “potentially dominant” dogs.