Companion Animal Psychology Turns 6

Celebrating six years of writing about the science of our relationship with pets.

Photo: Kira_Yan/Shutterstock

It’s exactly six years since I started Companion Animal Psychology!

The most popular posts of the last year were people mistakenly think anxious dogs are relaxed around baby and the ultimate dog training tip, which won the Captain Haggerty Award from the Dog Writer’s Association of America.

The posts on how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats, in which experts weigh in on what would make a difference, have also been incredibly popular. In the last year I spoke to Dr. Lee Dugatkin about How to Tame a Fox (and Build a Dog), and to Dr. Christy Hoffman about her research in Anthrozoology. And I was thrilled to publish guest posts from Kristi Benson CTC, Gina Bishopp, and Sienna Taylor MSc.

This is post number 355. Regular readers will have noticed posting frequency is down lately. This is because I am busy finishing the manuscript of my book. Look out for more news on that very soon, as well as a return to a regular blogging rhythm.

Meantime, thanks to all of you for the ongoing support. And thank you to those of you who have made use of the advertising on this site, which helps to keep it running.

It's time for coffee and cake now, and a glass of wine later. Cheers!

Zazie

Tips for Puppies and Puppy Love

Two recent Psychology Today posts are all about puppies.

For National Puppy Day, I wrote about the best things you can do for your puppy. The post shares three essential tips for anyone who is getting a puppy.

Photo: Spiritze / Pixabay

And in response, Marc Bekoff wrote it's National Puppy Day so give them all the love you can. In it, Bekoff writes,

"I'm a fan of all people who choose to bring a dog into their homes and hearts taking the time to become amateur ethologists and spending time becoming "fluent in dog." When we make this decision, and it should be a serious and informed choice, we become their caregivers and they assume we have their best interests in mind from "cradle to grave," the cradle beginning when we welcome them into our lives"

Why not check them out. Of course, it's really Puppy Day (and Kitten Day) every day!!

The Guinea Pigs' Perspective and Humane Dog Training

A couple of news items: new post at Psychology Today, new article in press at the Journal of Veterinary Behavior.


I have a new blog post at Psychology Today called Animal-Assisted Therapy: The Guinea Pigs' Perspective.

It's about a new study by Gut et al that looked at the behavioural response of guinea pigs in animal-assisted therapy sessions with and without the option of retreat. There are implications not just for animal-assisted therapy but also for anyone with pet guinea pigs.

Photo: 12071/Pixabay

In case you missed it, in February I had a post on Choosing Dogs that can Breathe.

I also have a paper in press at the Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Barriers to the adoption of humane dog training methods. Temporary free access is available at this link.

Photo: Ksenia Raykova/Shutterstock

Dog Rights and Understanding the Needs of Cats

The latest in the 'better world' series about dogs and cats.

For more information, you can read how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

Puppy Socialization Practices - And How They Are Lacking

Almost a third of puppies are missing out on important socialization during the sensitive period.

A survey of puppy owners by Dr. Janet Cutler et al (University of Guelph) finds that a sizeable number of puppies are not receiving enough socialization.

Puppies have a sensitive period for socialization from 3 weeks until about 12-14 weeks. During this time, they should have lots of positive socialization experiences with other people and dogs and habituate to the kinds of environmental stimuli they will encounter as adult dogs. Without these positive experiences, they are less likely to be friendly, confident dogs.

The scientists recruited people with a puppy less than 20 weeks old. Then, when the puppy turned exactly 20 weeks, they sent an email with a link to the survey.

Almost a third of puppies were not receiving many socialization experiences, which in this study was defined as up to 10 people and 5 dogs or less per 2 week period. Lack of socialization can lead to behaviour problems such as fear and aggression, which in turn can lead to dogs being re-homed or euthanized.
The results show that half of puppy owners (49%) took their puppy to puppy class. There were differences between the people who had been to puppy class and those who hadn’t. If people had been to puppy class:

• They exposed the puppy to more people between the ages of 10 and 20 weeks of age
• They exposed the puppy to more dogs outside the home between the ages of 14 and 20 weeks
• They were more likely to expose the puppy to more stimuli, including large trucks, sirens, children, people coming to the door (but there was no difference for walking on leash or going to the dog park)
• They were more likely to reward good behaviour (93% compared to 86% of those who did not attend), use redirection, and ignore bad behaviour
• They were less likely to use verbal corrections (82% compared to 96%)
• They were less likely to use positive punishment, including holding the puppy on its back (21% compared to 96%) 

Of course these figures do not show causality, as although people will hopefully have learned from attending the class, at the same time certain kinds of people might be more likely to attend puppy class in the first place. The increase in exposure to stimuli could in part be due to the puppy class, as by definition there were other people and puppies there (although not enough to meet socialization needs). People were more likely to attend puppy class if they had done more research on puppies, had a higher household income, lived in a suburban rather than rural area, and did not have children.

Only 70% of the puppy classes included opportunities for puppies to play together. This is a shame because puppies learn important skills through play. The least common activities were gradual exposure to noises, trading one item for another, and teaching the puppy to go to a mat (as well as a category called 'other'), of which happened in less than half of the classes. Other research shows that up to half of adult dogs are afraid of loud noises, and gradual exposure during the sensitive period can help to prevent these fears.

Sit, down, and coming when called were the most popular commands, being taught in over 80% of classes. Body handling was taught in just over half of the classes. It would be better if more classes taught this, as body handling exercises at this age can help puppies learn to accept veterinary examinations without being afraid.

Owners who used punishment were more likely to say their puppy was fearful. 4% of owners said they would force the puppy to face its fears, something which risks making the fear even worse. Puppies who had attended class were less likely to be afraid of noises such as the vacuum cleaner.

There were 296 participants. It was a convenience sample so they are not representative of the general population (if anything, they are likely to be more educated about dogs, given they were recruited via a mix of email and online sites including some related to professional organizations and humane societies).

The authors say it would be nice to have research on how much socialization is needed, in order to give dog owners clearer advice. A recent study with Guide Dog puppies suggests more socialization is better.

But the most important finding from this study, in my view, is that a sizeable minority of puppies are not getting enough socialization. The authors refer to the American Veterinary Society for Animal Behaviour position statement on puppy socialization, which says that socialization should begin before the final vaccines are given. Only 51-65% of vets discuss behaviour with new puppy and kitten owners, but this would be a good time to educate people about socialization and training.

The scientists write,

“Owners who attended classes with their puppies provided those puppies with more socialization opportunities than owners who did not attend and also indicated more favorable responses to managing signs of fear in their puppies and to disciplining them. This highlights the need for veterinarians and other animal care professionals to educate puppy owners about the importance of early puppy socialization, socialization classes, and positive reinforcement–based training and assist puppy owners in accessing reliable resources for this information.”

These results show that, although many people are getting a lot of things right, there is still room for improvement when it comes to socialization and training of puppies.

If you are looking for a puppy class, make sure that you find a good dog trainer who will only use reward-based training methods. (See here for more information on the risks of using punishment).

Subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology to learn how to have happy dogs and cats.

Did you take your puppy to puppy class?


Stay up to date! Subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology.

Reference
Cutler, J. H., Coe, J. B., & Niel, L. (2017). Puppy socialization practices of a sample of dog owners from across Canada and the United States. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 251(12), 1415-1423. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.251.12.1415

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Taking Misbehaviours Less Personally and Quality of Life

The latest in the 'better world' series about dogs and cats.

For more information, you can read how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club March 2018

"...award-winning journalist David Grimm explores the rich and surprising history of our favourite companion animals."

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for March is Citizen Canine: Our Evolving Relationship with Cats and Dogs by David Grimm.

From the inside cover,

"Dogs are getting lawyers. Cats are getting kidney transplants. Could they one day be fellow citizens? 

Cats and dogs were once wild animals. Today, they are family members and surrogate children. A little over a century ago, pets didn't warrant the meager legal status of property. Now, they have more rights and protections than any other animal in the country. Some say they're even on the verge of becoming legal persons. 

How did we get here—and what happens next? 

In this fascinating exploration of the changing status of dogs and cats in society, pet lover and award-winning journalist David Grimm explores the rich and surprising history of our favorite companion animals."

Are you reading Citizen Canine too? Please leave your thoughts on the book in the comments.

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

To gesture or not to gesture in dog training?

Are visual cues more effective than verbal cues in dog training?

Guest post by Sienna Taylor, MSc (Hartpury University Centre).

Photo: Dorottya Mathe (Shutterstock)

A new study by Anna Scandurra (University of Naples) et al. investigates whether visual cues as opposed to verbal cues are more effective when dogs are trained to fetch an item under four conditions: using only hand cues, using only verbal cues, using both hand and verbal cues and using contradictory hand and verbal cues.

It turns out that dogs responded better to visual hand gestures than verbal cues although speed of response was quicker when both hand and verbal cues were used together.

Many pet owners teach their dogs to respond to both visual and verbal cues, for example, an owner might ask their dog to lie on the floor by simply using the verbal command “Lie Down” or alternatively using a hand gesture such as pointing or perhaps a combination of both!  Whilst dogs do use vocalisations to communicate (such as attracting attention, with vocalisations usually being context specific) (Serpell, 2017), they communicate largely through the use of discrete body postures (Landsberg et al. 2013), both intra-specifically (dog-dog) and inter-specifically (human-dog).

Dogs are adept at responding to our gaze or if we nod (Kaminski and Nitzschner, 2013) or point towards a particular object (Lakatos et al. 2012).  Sometimes we find that when we ask a dog to verbally “Lie Down” the response is a blank look or an altogether different response!  Yet if we use a hand gesture such as point to the floor or use a combination of both verbal and visual cues the dog instantly lies down.  This more immediate response to a visual cue, even when in combination with a verbal cue, has often puzzled owners and begs the question are visual cues more effective in dog training than verbal cues or should we be using both?

The study by Scandurra et al. (2018) set out to test whether 13 pet dogs responded better to their owners using either visual or verbal cues alone (unimodal) or both visual and verbal cues (bimodal) which took into account both the dogs acute visual and auditory capabilities.

Dogs were trained to ensure they responded equally well to both verbal cues and visual hand gestures and were asked to perform a pre-test fetch task. Objects included a piece of wood, a plastic bottle and a pencil case.

Twenty four trials took place in the pre-test phase, eight trials used verbal cues only (spoken in Italian, with the voice command directing the dog to retrieve one of two items), followed by eight trials using hand gestures only (where the owner directed the dog by pointing to one of two items). A further eight trials used both verbal and visual cues (the owner directed the dog to one of the two items through the use of both verbal and visual cues at the same time).

Nine dogs met the requirements of the pre-test phase and were selected to take part in the final eight trials where a combination of both cues were used. However, this time the cues contradicted one another, for example when asking the dog to retrieve, the owner pointed at one object but named another.

Dogs were found to respond equally well to both verbal and visual cues when used on their own although, when both verbal and visual cues were given together, dogs were found to respond significantly more quickly to the task.  When dogs were given contradictory information, 78% of dogs (7 out of 9 dogs) chose the hand gesture. The remaining two dogs performed at a chance level and randomly chose to retrieve the verbally indicated or the object visually pointed at equally often.  What’s interesting is that none of the dogs preferred the verbal cue over the hand gesture.  This leads us to further question the importance of verbal cues to dogs.

How we use verbal communication (e.g. quality of spoken word) and also level of eye contact has been found to impact level of responsiveness in the dog. Fukuzawa et al. (2005) found that when a dog was asked to sit with the command played through a tape recorder, there was a significant decline in performance. It also took the dog longer to learn the command in the absence of lip or facial movements.  Similarly, when the person obscured their eyes by wearing sunglasses and the command was played through the tape, the dog’s responsiveness to the command also reduced.  However, when sunglasses were worn and a spoken verbal command was given no reduction in responsiveness was evident.  The authors concluded that eye contact is important to dogs but not in all contexts.  Fukuzawa et al. (2005) also found that effectiveness of command was reduced when a person’s back was turned.  This implies that body postures appear to be important to the dog in understanding signals as part of human-dog communication but may be context dependent.

Next time you use a cue, if the dog does not respond it is worth following up with a hand gesture to see if you get a better response!

About Sienna Taylor:

Sienna Taylor FdSc, BSc (Hons), MSc, FHEA, is a Lecturer in Animal Behaviour and Welfare at Hartpury University Centre, Gloucestershire.  Her research interests include human-animal interactions and the use of olfactory enrichment in companion animals.  Sienna enjoys training her two year old Labrador Bailey and they are currently working towards their Grade 3 Gundog Test.

You can follow Sienna Taylor on Twitter: @Taylor5Sienna.





References
Fukuzawa, M., Mills, D.S. and Cooper, J.J. (2005) More than just a word: non-semantic command variables affect obedience in the domestic dog (Canis familiaris). Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 91(1), pp.129-141.
Kaminski, J. and Nitzschner, M. (2013) Do dogs get the point? A review of dog-human communication ability. Learning and Motivation. 44, pp. 294-302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lmot.2013.05.001
Lakatos, G., Gácsi, M., Topál, J. and Miklósi, Á. (2012) Comprehension and utilization of pointing gestures and gazing in dog-human communication in relatively complex situations. Animal Cognition. 15, pp. 201-213.
Landsberg, G.M., Hunthausen, W.L. and Ackerman, L.J. (2012) Behavior Problems of the Dog and Cat, 3e.Oxford: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Scandurra, A., Alterisio, A., Aria, M., Vernese, R. and D’Aniello, B. (2018) Should I fetch one or the other? A study on dogs on the object choice in the bimodal contrasting paradigm. Animal Cognition. pp. 1-8.
Serpell, J. (2016) The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behavior and Interactions with People. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Question Assumptions and Change Misconceptions

The latest in the 'better world' series about dogs and cats.

For more information, you can read how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

Do Some Cats Respond Quietly to Catnip?

Young kittens don't have an active response to catnip. But if you think your cat does not respond to catnip, maybe it's just a quiet response, according to a recent study.

Photo: Prasom Boonpong / Shutterstock

It is widely believed some cats respond to catnip and some cats don’t. A recent study throws that into question by suggesting almost all cats respond to catnip – it’s just that some of them do so in a quiet manner. While more research is needed, the study also finds young kittens (less than 3 months) do not have the active response to catnip.

The classic catnip response is an active one that typically involves rolling around, rubbing the chin or cheek on the catnip, sniffing or licking the catnip, shaking the head from side to side, drooling, bunny-kicking and/or rippling skin on the back. This response to catnip is seen in about two thirds of cats. It is inherited – and it is also seen in some other feline species such as Bobcats.

A 2017 study by Luz Teresa Espín-Iturbe (Universidad Veracruzana) et al suggests that all cats respond to catnip. But instead of the active response, some cats have a passive response that involves a decrease in activity and assuming the Sphinx position.

60 cats at a shelter in Veracruz, Mexico, took part in the study. They were divided into 3 age groups: young (less than 3 months old), juvenile (3 to 6 months) and adult (6 months or older).

Within each age group, there were equal numbers of male and female cats, and equal numbers of those were either sexually intact or had an early spay/neuter at 6 weeks. The spay/neuter surgery was conducted at the shelter, and afterwards cats had 2 weeks to recover before taking part in the study.

For the study itself, cats were put into a cylindrical chamber from which they could not see out. Over 3 days, they had 10 minutes in the chamber each day to let them get used to it. Then on the fourth day, they had 5 minutes in the chamber, then catnip was put inside and they spent a further 5 minutes in the chamber with the catnip.

The scientists studied video of the cat’s behaviour before and after the catnip was added. A sample of the catnip was tested in a laboratory to confirm that it was indeed catnip (Nepeta cataria).

The active catnip response (rolling around etc.) was seen in 45% of the adult cats and in 25% of the juvenile cats. But it was not seen at all in the young kittens (less than 3 months old).

The Sphinx position was also most often seen in adult cats. Amongst juveniles, it was seen more often in males than in female cats. Male cats were less likely to groom, miaow, and to show reduced activity, and spent more time in the Sphinx position, than female cats.

Cats that had early spay/neuter had less activity after the presentation of catnip than cats that were still entire/intact. However, the frequency of rolling over was not affected by spay/neuter status.

The scientists suggest the active response to catnip is therefore not affected by sex hormones (in line with earlier research), but by maturation of the brain, which means young kittens have not matured enough to have an active response. They also propose the idea that different chemicals within the catnip are responsible for these differing responses – nepetalactone for the active response, and actinidine for the passive response. Further research is needed to test this hypothesis.

One drawback to the study is that no control was used. Although the scientists write that this is not a limitation because of the behaviours they observed (e.g. the active catnip response and adopting the Sphinx position), it would have been helpful to show the reduced activity responses were due to catnip and not to other factors (such as anxiety at or interest in a change in the environment).

In Neil Todd's classic research on the catnip response, tea leaves were used as a control. More recently, researchers have used a catnip-impregnated cloth or put it in a sock. This has the advantage that the control looks exactly the same as the catnip-infused item, which means observers coding the cat's behaviour can be blind to the condition. Cats can respond to a control because it is a novel item.

For example, in Ellis and Wells (2010) study of five different types of olfactory stimulation including a control (an unscented cloth), cats still spent a little time investigating the unscented cloth. In this study, even though cats were not pre-tested for the catnip response, in general cats spent more time interacting with the catnip-scented-cloth than the other scents, were more likely to have a playful response to it (consistent with an active catnip response) and also spent less time grooming and more time sleeping compared to the presentation of the control (unscented) cloth. So it’s interesting the new study also found reduced activity as a response.

Catnip is not the only plant that cats can respond to. According to research by Sebastiaan Bol et al, many cats also respond to silver vine, valerian and Tatarian honeysuckle.

Scent is very important to cats, and providing scents can be a good enrichment activity. So whether or not you think your cat enjoys catnip, it is worth trying some of these other plants too. Some cat toys contain both catnip and silver vine. Silver vine (also known as matatabi) is available separately as both a powder and a stick. Valerian can be found in some cat toys, and Tatarian honeysuckle is available from the Cat House in Calgary. Remember to always give your cat a choice of whether or not to interact with new scents/items.

Although more research is needed, this study suggests cats may enjoy catnip even if they don't actively respond by rolling around.

Want to know even more about catnip? See what I said to Science Borealis about cats and catnip. How does your cat respond to catnip?


Love dogs, cats and science? Subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology

References
Bol, S., Caspers, J., Buckingham, L., Anderson-Shelton, G. D., Ridgway, C., Buffington, C. T., Schulz, S. & Bunnik, E. M. (2017). Responsiveness of cats (Felidae) to silver vine (Actinidia polygama), Tatarian honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica), valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and catnip (Nepeta cataria). BMC Veterinary Research, 13(1), 70.  Open access.
Ellis, S. L., & Wells, D. L. (2010). The influence of olfactory stimulation on the behaviour of cats housed in a rescue shelter. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 123(1), 56-62.
Espín-Iturbe, L. T., Yañez, B. A. L., García, A. C., Canseco-Sedano, R., Vázquez-Hernández, M., & Coria-Avila, G. A. (2017). Active and passive responses to catnip (Nepeta cataria) are affected by age, sex and early gonadectomy in male and female cats. Behavioural processes, 142, 110-115.
Todd, N. B. (1962). Inheritance of the catnip response in domestic cats. Journal of Heredity, 53(2), 54-56.

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Think Dog and the Role of Food

The latest in the 'better world' series about dogs and cats.

These are the latest images in the series about how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

You can read the full quotes on those posts. I'm working through each expert answer in random order, so stay tuned for more!

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club February 2018

"...Bradshaw explains how an affinity for animals drove human evolution and how now, without animals around us, we risk losing an essential part of ourselves."

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for February 2018 is The Animals Among Us: How Pets Make Us Human by John Bradshaw. In the UK, the title is The Animals Among Us: The New Science of Anthrozoology.

From the inside cover,

"In The Animals Among Us, anthrozoologist John Bradshaw argues that pet-keeping is nothing less than an intrinsic part of human nature. Throughout history, empathy for animals has increased our ability to survive. As our relationship with animals evolved, from the earliest domestication of wild animals thousands of years ago to the ubiquity of modern household pets, this connection grew ever stronger. Today, we can no more set aside the attachment that many of us feel for animals than we can ignore our sweet tooth. 

Drawing on the latest research in biology and psychology, Bradshaw explains how an affinity for animals drove human evolution and how now, without animals around us, we risk losing an essential part of ourselves."

Will you be reading the book too? Leave your thoughts on it in the comments below.

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Dogs' Attention Declines with Age - But Training Helps

Older dogs with a history of lifelong training perform better on measures of attention.

Photo: Mary Lynn Strand / Shutterstock

We know that as people get older, they may experience cognitive decline including in attention. We are used to hearing that doing lots of different activities that engage the brain may help to ward off some of these changes. It turns out that may also be the case for dogs.

As dogs get older, they experience a decline in attention just as older people do. But lifelong training can help to prevent this decline, according to research published last year by scientists at the Messerli Research Institute at the Vetmeduni Vienna. This is good news, because attention is important for human-canine communication and for other processes.

The study took pet dogs aged between 6 and just over 14 years. They were divided into 3 age groups: late adulthood (between 6 and 8 years), seniors (8 up until 10 years), and geriatric (10 years or over). There were 75 Border collies (59 of which were tested in an earlier study) and 110 dogs of other breeds and mixed-breeds.

They all took part in two experiments that were designed to be naturalistic such that the dogs did not need any prior training. The owners completed a questionnaire that included the dog’s participation in 13 different types of training, including puppy class, obedience, agility, service dog training, hunting/nose work, trick training/dog dancing, and sheep dog training.

The first experiment tested the extent to which a social or non-social stimulus could get and keep the dog’s attention. The non-social stimulus was a toy attached to some wire so that it could be moved up and down in front of the dog for 1 minute. The social stimulus was a person who came in, kept her back to the dog, and painted an imaginary wall for 1 minute.

A dog taking part in the first experiment. Photo: The Clever Dog Lab, Messerli Institute

The results showed that senior and geriatric dogs took longer to look at both stimuli than those in late adulthood, and there was no effect of lifelong training on this. All of the dogs looked for longer at the person than at the toy.

Sustained attention declined with age and was worst in the geriatric dogs. But dogs with a high level of lifelong training kept their attention on the stimulus for longer than those with a low level of training.

Durga Chapagain, first author of the paper, said,

“The decrement of sustained attention in the older dogs is due to the repetitive, monotonous and non-arousing nature of the task, leading to a decrease in endogenous attentional control as the task advances.” 

The second experiment looked at selective attention. Each dog took part in a 5-minute clicker training session. At the very beginning, the experimenter called the dog to her and threw a piece of sausage on the floor. Then, every time the dog made eye contact with her, she clicked and then threw a piece of sausage on the floor. If the dog lost interest, she crinkled the plastic bag. We all know that's a good way to get a dog's attention!

This task requires the dog to switch attention from making eye contact with the person to finding the food on the floor.

A dog learning to make eye contact during the clicker training session. Photo: The Clever Dog Lab, Messerli Institute

Unlike in humans, age did not affect selective attention in this task.

Dogs with higher scores for lifelong training and also dogs with prior experience of clicker training made eye contact faster than those with low levels of lifelong training and those with no specific experience of clicker training.

Older dogs took longer to find the food on the floor, with geriatric dogs taking the longest, and this ties in with previous work on aging in dogs. There were no differences due to lifelong training in the time to find food, but dogs with prior clicker training experience were quicker to find the food than those without. The clicker-trained dogs had more experience at looking for food after the click, by definition, and the researchers say they may also have increased anticipation of food.

They point out that all kinds of training involve the dog looking at the human. From these results, it’s not possible to separate the effects of clicker training specifically from other kinds of training, as clicker training contributed to the lifelong training scores.

It is probably no surprise that dogs with prior experience at clicker training did better at the clicker training, but it is worth noting that all of the dogs improved at the task of making eye contact during the 5 minute session. So it shows that you can train an old dog new tricks.

And of course the fact that dogs with more lifelong training did better on this selective attention task is very promising.

Friederike Range, senior author of the paper, said,

“Dogs with a high lifelong training score reacted faster in both measures of attention. This result is indeed a convincing proof for dog-owners to engage their dogs in different forms of physical and mental training, if they want their furry friends to retain their attentional abilities during aging.” 

For the Border collie owners out there who want to know how this breed compared to the other dogs, there were actually few differences, but the Border collies were faster at finding the food dropped on the floor. Because there was a wide variety of breeds and mixed-breeds in the other group, it’s possible that a larger sample size might have found other differences.

This is a fascinating study that suggests reward-based training has cognitive benefits that persist into the dog’s later life.

The paper is open access and you can read it via the link below, and you can follow the Clever Dog Lab on Facebook.


Love dogs, cats and science? Subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology
Reference
Chapagain, D., Virányi, Z., Wallis, L. J., Huber, L., Serra, J., & Range, F. (2017). Aging of attentiveness in border collies and other pet dog breeds: the protective benefits of lifelong training. Frontiers in aging neuroscience, 9, 100.

Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Proper Socialization and Listen Harder

The latest in the 'better world' series about dogs and cats.

These are the latest images in the series about how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

If you would like to share them, simply mouse over the image, or you can share direct from my Facebook or Twitter feeds if you prefer.

I have not had much time for blogging lately because of other commitments, but I am working on some future posts. Be sure to check back next week!

Meanwhile, if there are any topics you would like to see covered on Companion Animal Psychology, please let me know either in the comments below, or subscribers can simply hit the reply button to send me an email. 

The Pet People to Follow in 2018

The canine and feline scientists, pet professionals, bloggers and organizations to follow on social media in 2018.

Photo: Ramon Espelt Photography (Shutterstock)

Are you looking for some new accounts to follow in 2018? I’ve updated my list of some of the best people and organizations to follow on Twitter and Facebook if you’re interested in companion animals, science, and the human-animal bond.

Not only do they produce great content of their own, they also have a varied feed that includes news, research and interesting snippets from around the web.

I’ve given links to Twitter and Facebook accounts so you can follow however you choose (some are more active on one than the other). The first link is always to Twitter so this is like a giant #FF. The second link is to Facebook if they are on there too.

The list is in no particular order, so read through and see who you would like to follow.

And please consider following me too (Twitter, Facebook) if you don’t already!

Of course, there are many talented people in the world, so please add your own suggestions for people or organizations to follow in the comments below.

Dr. John Bradshaw – anthrozoologist and best-selling author of The Animals Among Us, Dog Sense (In Defence of Dogs), Cat Sense, and co-author of The Trainable Cat

Dr. Sarah Ellis (Facebook) – co-author of the The Trainable Cat and feline behaviour specialist at International Cat Care

Dr. Hal Herzog – Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Western Carolina University and author of Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard to Think Straight About Animals .

Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (Facebook) – canine cognition scientist and best-selling author of Inside of a Dog and Being a Dog.

Family Dog Project (Facebook) – the canine behaviour research group shares frequent updates on the latest scientific research from their team and others around the globe

Julie Hecht (Dog Spies) – don't miss the fantastic posts on canine science at Julie's Scientific American blog Dog Spies

Mia Cobb (Do You Believe in dog?) – now a canine science community with guest posts from young scientists on the blog and a feed full of news about canine science, including opportunities to participate

International Cat Care (Facebook) – a great resource for cat lovers, with information and advice for owners and professionals, as well as cute cat pictures too

Dr. Ilana Reisner (Facebook) – this veterinary behaviourist regularly deconstructs dog bite incidents to teach you how to prevent dog bites, and shares interesting and evidence-based items on animal behaviour and training

Dr. Pete Wedderburn (Facebook) – veterinary advice and news, regular Telegraph columnist, author of Pet Subjects, and you’ll find a large library of articles on his website too.

Dr. Mikel Delgado (Feline Minds) – Certified Cat Behaviour Consultant and PhD candidate shares information about cats and squirrels, with especially useful information on food puzzles for cats

Ingrid Johnson (Fundamentally Feline) –  education about cats and gorgeous photos from this Certified Cat Behaviour Consultant

BC SPCA (Facebook) – in amongst the photos of adoptable animals there is plenty of advice on how to care for pets, including #TipTuesday videos

Maddie’s Fund (Facebook) – lots of tips to help shelter dogs and cats, along with social media and website advice for the people running the shelters #ThankstoMaddie

The Academy for Dog Trainers (Facebook) – for links to top-notch dog training advice from Jean Donaldson’s Academy for Dog Trainers (“the Harvard of dog training”)

Kristi Benson (Facebook) – dog trainer, sled dog rescuer, and Academy tutor, with a funny and entertaining dog training blog

Pet Professional Guild (Facebook) – advice on dog training and news from the organization for force free pet professionals

IAABC – information on behaviour problems in pets and links to journal articles and mentorships from the International Association of Animal Behaviour Consultants

Dr. Jessica Hekman DVM (Facebook) – the author of The Dog Zombie blog is a vet with a PhD in genomics, a postdoctoral associate at the Karlsson Lab, and a great explainer of canine genetics

Darwin's Dogs – using citizen science to study dog evolution and find new insights into dog and human psychiatric diseases

Dr. Brian Hare (Facebook) – information on animal minds and evolution, especially dogs and bonobos, from the associate professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at Duke, co-author of The Genius of Dogs and founder of Dognition

Dr. Gregory Berns – scientist who uses fMRI to study dogs’ brains, author of How Dogs Love Us and What It’s Like to Be a Dog

Pam Johnson-Bennett (Facebook) – cat news and tips from the best-selling author of Think Like a Cat and host of Animal Planet’s Psycho Kitty

Susan Little DVM – this veterinarian specializes in feline medicine and has a twitter feed packed with intriguing facts about cats

Dr. Melanie Rock – information about non-human animals and health, including dog parks and dog bite prevention, from this Associate Professor at the University of Calgary

Martha Smith-Blackmore DVM – this compassionate expert in veterinary forensics is a Faculty Fellow at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine and shares information on animal cruelty and animal welfare

Dr. Malcolm Campbell – biologist and Vice President (Research) at the University of Guelph, follow Malcolm for science tweets and #SixIncredibleThingsBeforeBreakfast that will blow your mind about animals and the universe

Katzenworld Blog (Facebook) – for chatty posts, product reviews and cute cat photos, with some articles on cat health and behaviour too

The Centre for Shelter Dogs (Facebook) – part of the Cummings Veterinary School at Tufts University and brings you lots of resources to help shelter dogs

Anthrozoology Research Group (Facebook)  – shares links to interesting anthrozoological research by themselves and from around the globe

Dr. Sam Gaines – head of the Companion Animal dept at the RSPCA, with lots of tips to improve animal welfare and #EndBSL

Dr. Rachel Casey – veterinary behaviourist and animal welfare scientist at Dogs Trust, so look out for lots of great info on canine behaviour

UCD Vet Behaviour Services – recent research and behaviour information from the Behaviour Service at UCDavis

Dr. Chris Blazina – psychologist with a special interest in understanding men and their canine best friends, shares interesting links about human animal interaction

Dr. Alan McElligott – tweets about his research and about animal behaviour, welfare and cognition generally; look out especially for the entertaining goat stories

Dr. Marc Bekoff – animal emotions, moral behaviour, and conservation topics from the author of The Emotional Lives of Animals and Canine Confidential: Why Dogs Do What They Do, plus a very active Psychology Today blog

ASA Animals Society (Facebook) – the American Sociological Association looks at the complex relationships between humans and animals

Dr. Marc Abraham (Facebook) – animal welfare campaigner and veterinarian of the year, founder of Pupaid (Facebook), a UK group campaigning against puppy farms, with regular games of #GuessTheBreed

Dr. Sophia Yin (Facebook) – the account of the company set up by the late Dr. Sophia Yin, CattleDog Publishing, shares her writings and educational links on animal behaviour.

Dr Marty Becker DVM (Facebook) veterinary information and stories about the human-animal bond from America’s veterinarian, found of Fear Free (Facebook) to help dogs and cats have a better experience at the veterinarian

Montreal SPCA (Facebook) – SPCA and campaigners against Breed Specific Legislation and for better animal welfare, with news in English and French

Dr. Emily Blackwell  – clinical animal behaviourist, scientist at the University of Bristol, and TV expert, shares animal welfare and animal behaviour science and tips.

Dr. Jenny Stavisky – shelter vet and epidemiologist as well as uplifting tweets about how Vets in the Community help the most vulnerable pets

Dr. Sebastiaan Bol – researcher and found of Cowboy Cat Ranch, look out for all the cute kitty photos

Dr. Lauren Finka – postdoctoral researcher studying pain in cats

Dr. Naomi Harvey – zoologist, ethologist and research fellow at the Itchy Dog Project

Dr. Kat Littlewood (Facebook) – small animal veterinarian and PhD student especially interested in cats and animal welfare, with an interesting blog too 

Dr. Sandra McCune – scientific leader in Human Animal Interaction at WALTHAM

Kim Monteith - manager of animal welfare at the BC SPCA and volunteer at Charlie’s Food Bank helping the pets of the homeless in Vancouver

Dr Kate Mornement (Facebook) – PhD-qualified behaviourist at Pets Behaving Badly – Solutions with Dr Kate with an  interesting blog on dogs, cats and parrots

Dr. Carri Westgarth – research fellow in human animal interaction and dog trainer, specializing in research on dog walking and dog bites

Dr. Zoe Belshaw – evidence-based approaches to veterinary science from this veterinary specialist at the University of Nottingham

Dr. Emma Milne (Facebook) – the vet behind vets against brachycephalism, author and animal welfare enthusiast 

Dr. Patrizia Piotti – postdoctoral research on dog behaviour and cognition 

Taryn M Graham (Facebook) – PhD candidate interested in how dogs can help promote health in cities, and founder of PAWSitive Leadership which takes certified dogs into classrooms to teach children.

Dr. Christy Hoffman (Facebook) – regular updates on anthrozoology from the Canisius Canine research team

Dr. Caroline Spence – academic interested in animal welfare and sentience and we understand animal minds

Dr. Debra Horwitz – veterinary behaviourist and author of Blackwell’s Five-Minute Veterinary Consult Clinical Companion: Canine and Feline Behaviour

Cats Protection (Facebook) – cat videos and advice on how to care for your cat as well as lots of cute pics from this large UK charity 

HartpuryABW – a busy feed full of news, info and jobs via Dr. Tamara Montrose and the Hartpury Animal Behaviour and Welfare group

Dr. Anne Fawcett (Facebook) – small animal veterinarian with a special interest in ethics and a blog that looks at owners, veterinarians and the human-animal bond

Dr. Vanessa Rohlf (Facebook) – compassion fatigue consultant shares information on coping with animal bereavement and resiliency for people who work with animals

Dr. Nik Taylor – research and news on the sociology of human-animal interaction

Maureen Backman (Mutt About Town) – a philosophical approach to reward-based dog training, plus lots of useful info on muzzles via the Muzzle Up project

Dr. Christian Nawroth – postdoctoral researcher in animal cognition including goats and pigs

Kathy Sdao - certified applied animal behaviourist and dog trainer and author of Plenty in Life is Free

Your Pit Bull and You (Facebook) –  Run by Lori Nanan and Lisa Skavienski, YPBandY is a charity that advocates for pit bulls and spreads the word on positive reinforcement dog training for all dogs. 

Malena de Martini (Facebook) – training and resources on separation anxiety from the author of Treating Separation Anxiety in Dogs.

Tracy Krulik (Facebook) – dog trainer and founder of iSpeakDog which aims to help you understand canine body language 

Laura Monaco Torelli – dog trainer and Karen Pryor Academy faculty member, with a feed full of interesting dog training and animal behaviour info

James Oxley – independent researcher on dog bites and rabbits who shares HAI information and conferences

Clare Ellis - PhD candidate interested in animal welfare and the reasons for relinquishment of rabbits

Janetta Harvey (Facebook) – tireless campaigner against puppy farms and sharer of information on dogs in general and Schnauzers in particular.

Joanna Berger – animal behaviourist and trainer who shares lots of information on behaviour and welfare for dogs, cats and birds

Jemima Harrison – campaigner for better health and welfare for purebred dogs and the director of Pedigree Dogs Exposed


Now it's your turn. Who would you add to the list? Add a comment below to share your favourite people to follow. And don't forget to subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology.



Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Companion Animal Psychology is also a participant in the Etsy Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Etsy.com.

Let Them Sniff and Early Socialization

Two recent posts considered how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats. An incredible set of experts gave their answers to the questions, with wonderful ideas for a better world for our animals.

I am making images for each answer to share on social media.

These are the first two. I am working my way through in somewhat random order (not truly random because if I happen to see a photo that will just go with a particular text, I'll run with it). I am sharing them here for those who do not follow me on Facebook or Twitter.

Of course, you can read the posts in full and see the texts from which these quotes are taken: how to make the world better for dogs and how to make the world better for cats.

How to make the world better for cats has also been translated into Japanese for the website the-mal.com. If you have Japanese friends who you think will like it, please share it with them. Thank you to Saramu Momma MSc and Risa Yoshida for the translation.

Stay up to date and subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology.

Happy New Year!

Wishing you and your families good health, happiness and peace in 2018!