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Detection dogs are required to detect trace quantities of substances, many times in the parts per billion or parts per trillion concentration range. Frequently, detection of trace quantities is not explicitly trained but rather assumed when dogs show proficiency at higher concentrations to which they are trained. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the odor concentration of the training sample on the minimum concentration dogs will subsequently detect. We expected that dogs may not spontaneously generalize to trace odor concentration when trained with higher concentrations, but when trained to a range of lower concentrations, dogs will show superior detection to lower untrained concentrations. A total of 11 dogs were randomly assigned to 2 groups and were trained to alert to isoamyl acetate at 0.01% odor dilution (v/v with mineral oil) using a 3-alternative forced choice test. Once reaching proficiency, odor detection threshold was assessed using a 2-down 1-up descending staircase procedure. Next, experimental dogs received training with systematically lower concentrations of isoamyl acetate and threshold re-assessed. Control dogs were yoked to experimental dogs in terms of training time, but only received training to the 0.01% dilution between threshold assessments. Experimental dogs showed significantly improved detection thresholds, outperforming control dogs by detecting an average dilution about 100-fold lower. Results suggest that explicitly training for lower concentrations is critical for generalization for trace odor detection.

Canine separation anxiety is a common problem behavior with little known about the factors that lead to its development. This study investigated whether high arousal/excited departures and greetings with a dog may lead to the development of increased frequency of separation-related behavior in newly adopted dogs. In experiment 1, we exposed two groups of dogs to a series of either high or low arousal human experimenter interactions. We hypothesized there would be an increase in activity, vocalizations, and time in proximity to door for the dogs in the high arousal condition compared with the low arousal condition, when left alone, and that these behaviors would increase across 10 sessions. Our results did not show this, indicating high arousal departures and arrivals may not play a role in the development of increased separation-related behavior. In experiment 2, we used a survey to ask owners of dogs with, and without, canine separation anxiety about their arousal levels during arrivals and departures at home with their pet dog. We hypothesized dogs with reported canine separation anxiety would have been exposed to higher arousal levels during departures and arrivals. Our results showed a small difference between the groups, in the opposite direction of our hypothesis, where the dogs with reported canine separation anxiety were exposed to slightly lower arousal levels than dogs without, but the difference was small. From both experiment 1 and 2, our results indicate that high excitement and playful levels of owners during departures and arrivals is not associated with the development of increased separation-related behavior in newly adopted dogs. It is important to make the distinction, however, that low arousal departures and arrivals are a well-documented treatment for separation-related behavior, and our results only reflect that these arousal levels do not appear to play a causal role in the development of an increased frequency of them.

Animal shelters provide an ideal environment for the spread of disease. Dogs are often housed in close quarters with others of unknown vaccine histories, and experience high levels of sustained stress. As a result, Canine Infection Respiratory Disease (CIRD) is often prevalent and difficult to control. The aims of this study were to (1) identify specific pathogens responsible for CIRD in a city shelter in West Texas, USA, and (2) determine whether intake vaccinations decrease proportion of dogs exhibiting signs of CIRD even during an outbreak. A laboratory analysis of conjunctival, pharyngeal, and nasal swabs (n = 15 dogs) and fecal samples (n = 6 kennels) showed prevalence of various CIRD pathogens (e.g., canine adenovirus-2, canine parainfluenza virus, canine distemper virus). All fifteen dogs tested positive for at least one pathogen, with the most prevalent pathogen being Canine Distemper Virus (CDV; n = 12). All of the kennels (n=6) tested positive for Canine Distemper Virus. Health data on dogs (n = 1,258) over the age of 6 weeks were assessed from May to August 2017. Beginning in July, both stray and owner-surrendered dogs were vaccinated with Nobivac® Canine 1-DAPPv 5 Way and Nobivac® Intra-Trac® 3 upon intake, which differed from the previous policy. For each day in the study, we calculated the proportion of dogs in each nasal discharge category, the proportion of dogs observed coughing, and the mean fecal score across all dogs. We conducted a linear regression between the proportion of the shelter vaccinated and the proportion of dogs coughing. At the beginning of the vaccination phase, ~25% of the dogs were coughing. However, as the proportion of the dogs vaccinated increased, the proportion of dogs coughing decreased. There was a significant decrease of 7% of the proportion of dogs coughing when vaccination was at least at 90% compared to when it was

Animal shelter employees are in a unique position where they care for, and later kill, the same animals. The aim of our exploratory study was to assess whether &ldquo, caring&rdquo, and/or &ldquo, killing&rdquo, evokes physiological and psychometric indicators of stress in employees. Experiment 1 compared three careers that kill regularly, but involve varying degrees of husbandry (n = 28). Blood pressure (BP), salivary cortisol, heart rate (HR), and heart rate variability (HRV) were collected, data showed higher HR and lower HRV during the process of killing. Psychometric scales showed that burnout and Impact Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) scores were higher in careers with higher contact with animals. Experiment 2 compared three careers that involve husbandry, but varying exposure to killing (n = 41). BP, cortisol awakening response, HR, and HRV were measured as well as Professional Quality of Life Scale, IES-R, and Moral Injury Event Scale were administered. There were no significant differences across careers in any measures. The data suggest that the process of killing may be physiologically stressful to the person, and higher levels of animal contact in a euthanasia context may be associated with burnout and traumatic stress, but that the act of euthanasia is not a unique predictor of overall occupational distress.

The effects of steam-flaked corn bulk density during grain adaptation phase on ruminal microbiome were evaluated. Crossbred-Angus ruminally cannulated steers (n = 6; BW = 405 ± 42 kg) were assigned to a randomized complete block design (block = body weight) to 1 of 2 grain adaptation strategies: 1) steam-flaked corn (SFC) bulk density of 335 g/L; and 2) 412 g/L. Steers were ad libitum fed, individually, during 6-7d phases, consisting of: HAY, followed by the STEP-UP1 through STEP-UP4, diets, respectively, in which roughage was gradually replaced with grain until FINISHER diet was fed. Respective SFC bulk densities were fed throughout STEP-UP diets, while the FINISHER diet consisted of 335 g/L strategy only for both groups. Ruminal fluid samples (100 mL) were collected on d-5 of each step, at 6h post-feeding for DNA extraction. Microbiome data were sequenced by Illumnia® NovaSeq™ 6000 (16S rRNA). The SFC bulk density did not affect (P > 0.50) the relative abundance (RA) for any taxonomy classification. Regardless of SFC bulk density, inclusion of grain throughout adaptation phases affected domain (P ≤ 0.03) when initial phases were compared to FINISHER. Phylum RA were affected (P ≤ 0.05) for Actinobacteria (27%), Bacteroidetes (11%), and Euryarchaeota (2%). Within Class RA were affected (P ≤ 0.04) for Clostridia (46%), Actinobacteria (27%), and Bacilli (5%). Order effects on RA were observed (P ≤ 0.04) for Clostridiales (45%), Coriobacteriales (25%), and Lactobacillales (4%). Within Family RA was affected (P ≤ 0.03) for Coriobacteriaceae (25%), Lachnospiraceae (27%), Ruminococcaceae (6%), and Lactobacillaceae (4%), while a tendency (P = 0.09) was observed for Veillonellaceae (1%). In Genus, RA was affected (P ≤ 0.01) for Olsenela (22%), Pediococcus (3%), and Butyrivibrio (3%). As steers advance through subsequent grain adaptation phases until the FINISHER, more meaningful ruminal microbiome changes are observed than SFC density change.

The effect of pre-treatment with fibrolytic enzymes [cellulase/xylanase (Trichoderma ressie)] of growing diets (high quality and low-quality) on ruminal microbiome relative abundance (RA) were evaluated. Ruminally cannulated beef steers (n = 5; BW = 520 ± 30 kg) were used in a 5×4 unbalanced Latin square design using a 2×2 factorial arrangement of treatments: (a) growing diet quality [high (HQ) and low (LQ)] and (b) enzyme inclusion (0 or 0.75 mL/kg of diet DM). Steers were individually fed ad libitum throughout four 21-d periods consisting of 14-d of adaptation and 7-d of collections. Ruminal fluid samples (100 mL) were collected on d-5 of each collection-period, at 6 h post feeding for DNA extraction and determination of microbial RA. Microbiome data were sequenced by Illumnia® NovaSeq™ 6000 (16S rRNA). Regardless of enzyme×diet quality interaction (P ≥ 0.11) or pre-treatment with enzyme (P ≥ 0.12), Domain RA was affected (P ≤ 0.04), in which LQ diets increased RA of Bacteria (93.25 vs. 86.80%) and decreased Archaea (6.75 vs. 13.20%). In Phylum, LQ diets decreased RA (P ≤ 0.04) of Euryarchaeota (6.75 vs. 13.21%), and increased Bacteroidetes (11.22 vs. 2.26%). Within Class, LQ diets decreased RA (P ≤ 0.04) of Clostridia (38.66 vs. 51.40%), Methanobacteria (6.75 vs. 13.21%), and increased Bacteroidia (10.62 and 1.47%). Within Order LQ diets, decreased RA (P ≤ 0.04) of Clostridiales (38.47 vs. 51.29%), Methanobacteriales (6.75 vs. 13.21%), and increased Bacteroidales (10.62 vs. 1.47%). In Family, LQ diets showed decreased RA (P ≤ 0.04) of Methanobacteriaceae (6.75 vs. 13.21%), Ruminococcaceae (6.71 vs. 2.18%), and increased Prevotellaceae (9.83 vs. 1.17%). In Genus, LQ diets showed increased RA (P ≤ 0.03) of Prevotella (9.61 vs. 1.10%). The dietary pre-treatment with fibrolytic enzymes seems to not dramatically affect RA of ruminal microbiome, while growing diet quality greatly influenced ruminal microbiome RA.

Detection dogs are required to detect trace quantities of substances, many times in the parts per billion or parts per trillion concentration range. Frequently, detection of trace quantities is not explicitly trained but rather assumed when dogs show proficiency at higher concentrations to which they are trained. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the odor concentration of the training sample on the minimum concentration dogs will subsequently detect. We expected that dogs may not spontaneously generalize to trace odor concentration when trained with higher concentrations, but when trained to a range of lower concentrations, dogs will show superior detection to lower untrained concentrations. A total of 11 dogs were randomly assigned to 2 groups and were trained to alert to isoamyl acetate at 0.01% odor dilution (v/v with mineral oil) using a 3-alternative forced choice test. Once reaching proficiency, odor detection threshold was assessed using a 2-down 1-up descending staircase procedure. Next, experimental dogs received training with systematically lower concentrations of isoamyl acetate and threshold re-assessed. Control dogs were yoked to experimental dogs in terms of training time, but only received training to the 0.01% dilution between threshold assessments. Experimental dogs showed significantly improved detection thresholds, outperforming control dogs by detecting an average dilution about 100-fold lower. Results suggest that explicitly training for lower concentrations is critical for generalization for trace odor detection.

The domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is characterized by greatly reduced parenting investment compared with the wild type wolf (C. l. lupus) from which it is descended. Unlike wolf pups, which are reared by both parents into their second year of life, dog pups are abandoned by their mother at weaning around eight weeks of age. This relatively small parental involvement may contribute to the high pup mortality observed in dogs not living as pets. We hypothesized that people would find dog pups most attractive around weaning age when conspecific parental care is significantly reduced and pup mortality rate is high. Younger and older pups would benefit less from human intervention because in the former case the mother is providing care, and in the latter their survival is already compromised. To test this hypothesis, 51 participants rated the attractiveness of 39 black and white headshot photographs presented on a computer screen of dog pups from three breeds (Jack Russell Terrier, Cane Corso, a...

Social-transmission of food preference is a robust behavioral phenomenon in rodents and other species, but less work has evaluated this phenomenon in broader taxa and to what degree social-transmission can occur between species. Here we show that over the span of three experiments that consisted of a human-dog, a dog-dog, and a replication study of a dog-dog demonstrator-observer test, we did not observe successful social transmission of food preferences across all three experiments. For our first experiment, we investigated whether pet dogs acquire food preference from their owners using a two-bowl preference test. The results suggested that our dogs did not acquire a preference for the flavor consumed by their owners. This then led us to investigate whether this failure was the result of an inter-species failure, so we replicated the experiment using two familiar dogs as the demonstrator and observer. The results for Experiment Two also suggested that our participant dogs do not acquire food preference from a canine demonstrator. A third experiment attempted a direct replication of the Lupfer-Johnson and Ross (2007) that found dog-dog transmission of food preferences. Our results again indicated that our participant dogs did not acquire food preference from demonstrators. Over the span of three experiments, our results did not show clear canine food preferences for the food consumed by a demonstrator (human or dog).

United States’ animal shelters take in 3.2 million cats per year. Caged cats likely experience stressful situations during their stay at an animal shelter. However, a feasible and efficient way to determine which cats will be at the highest risk for severe stress, and subsequent health and behavior deterioration, is needed. We aimed to determine whether urinary output was suppressed immediately following a presumably stressful move from one location to another in the shelter and whether this suppression correlated with behavior in cats admitted to an animal shelter. Prior to addressing this aim, we first evaluated the use of litter clump weight to determine urine output. Then we aimed to determine whether behavior, using an established in-cage assessment, predicted urinary suppression in cats. Litter clump weight was significantly predicted by quantities of water added to the litter (50 mL, 100 mL, and 150 mL), suggesting that litter clump weight can be used as a marker of crude urine output. Next, newly-admitted shelter cats (n = 29) were subjected to an in-cage behavioral assessment. For the following week, urine clumps were weighed daily. Clump weight increased significantly (F = 17.926, p

The domestic dog is an ideal model species in which to study the genetic and environmental factors that influence play behavior. Dogs exist in a wide variety of breeds and frequently engage in multiple forms of play. In the present study, we investigated whether the levels of solitary and social play differed between dogs of three breed types with distinct predatory motor pattern sequences (herding dogs, retrievers, and livestock guarding dogs [LGDs]). Furthermore, we investigated how environmental factors (social and nonsocial contexts) influenced play in dogs of these breed types. Groups of breed-matched dyads with working experience and of equivalent age, sex, and neuter status ratios were exposed to four experimental test conditions and two control conditions in randomized orders. With respect to solitary play, environmental context did have a significant effect, with toys reliably producing the highest levels of solitary play across all breed types. Retrievers engaged in significantly higher levels of solitary play overall than LGDs, and there was a trend in comparison to herding dogs. In contrast, neither environmental context nor breed had a significant effect on social play levels; however, neuter status of the dyads did have a significant effect on social play, with mixed-status dyads engaging in significantly higher levels of social play than same-status dyads. Our findings provide experimental evidence for identifying proximate, environmental stimuli that reliably facilitate social and solitary play and discuss possible genetic (i.e., breed type) and lifetime influences on the form of play in domestic dogs.

Evaluation of food palatability and preference is of great importance to the pet food industry. One common technique for evaluating palatability is a 2-bowl test in which 2 products are offered simultaneously and food consumption is measured. This yields clear results with dogs trained to routinely conduct such comparisons, but it is less clear how this extends to untrained pet dogs. In addition, prior research indicates that olfaction is important in food preference, but methods for evaluating odor preference in canines are currently lacking. In this study, we developed a modified 2-bowl test for evaluation of food preferences in pet dogs with minimal training, and an olfactometer technique for the evaluation of odor preferences. In our 2-bowl procedure, we observed clear preferences among 4 commercial food products in 6 pet dogs. Across repeated testing, preferences strengthened, but the first evaluation accurately estimated the direction and significance of preference. In addition, dogs typically (89% of the time) consumed more of the food they chose first, suggesting they did not need to taste each food to choose. Our odor preference olfactometer assessment, however, did not reveal odor preferences other than that dogs preferred to sniff a food odor over clean air. Further work will be needed to identify methods of measuring odor preferences amongst food odors for dogs, but the modified 2-bowl test shows promise for further testing in pet dogs.

A growing number of studies make claims about canine sociability in both applied and basic contexts. Yet, there is currently no standard for measuring sociability in dogs. The purpose of this two-part study was to determine whether procedural differences among canine sociability tests would affect dogs' behavior. In Experiment 1, we used a mixed-subjects design to assess whether experimenter position (standing, sitting, or kneeling) and presence of affection (petting and praise or none) affected leashed dogs' social behavior. Mixed-effect logistic regression modeling showed statistically significant main effects and interactions between posture and social contact. On average, dogs were more social when the experimenter knelt and provided social contact. However, there were individual differences in how dogs were affected by changes in procedure. In Experiment 2, we examined correspondence between leashed and unleashed dogs' social behaviors including time in proximity, following patterns, eye gaze, body orientation, jumping, and touching. Individual differences were examined by calculating a binomial mixed-effect logistic regression with condition (leashed, off-leash, following) and subject ID as fixed effects. Interactions were statistically significant for all behaviors, indicating that individual differences were present. The results have implications for the validity of sociability tests. Animal Behavior Society (David Tuber Applied Animal Behavior award) This work was supported by the Animal Behavior Society (David Tuber Applied Animal Behavior award).

Complex odor mixtures have traditionally been thought to be perceived configurally, implying that there is little identification of the individual components in the mixture. Prior research has suggested that the chemical and or perceptual similarity of components in a mixture may influence whether they can be detected individually; however, how experience and training influence the ability to identify individual components in complex mixtures (a figure-background segregation) is less clear. Figure-background segregation is a critical task for dogs tasked with discriminating between Home Made Explosives and very similar, but innocuous, complex odor mixtures. In a cross-over experimental design, we evaluated the effect of two training procedures on dogs' ability to identify the presence of a critical oxidizer in complex odor mixtures. In the Mixture training procedure, dogs received odor mixtures that varied from trial to trial with and without an oxidizer. In the more typical procedure for canine detection training, dogs were presented with the pure oxidizer only, and had to discriminate this from decoy mixtures (target-only training). Mixture training led to above chance discrimination of the oxidizer from variable backgrounds and dogs were able to readily generalize performance, with no decrement, to mixtures containing novel odorants. Target-only training, however, led to a precipitous drop in hit rate when the oxidizer was presented in a mixture background containing either familiar and/or novel odorants. Furthermore, by giving Target-only trained dogs Mixture training, they learned to identify the oxidizer in mixtures. Together, these results demonstrate that training method has significant impacts on the perception of components in odor mixtures and highlights the importance of olfactory learning for the effective detection of Home Made Explosives by dogs.

The present study tested whether pet dogs have stress-buffering effects for children during a validated laboratory-based protocol, the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Participants were 101 children aged 7-12 years with their primary caregivers and pet dogs. Children were randomly assigned in the TSST-C to a pet present condition or one of two comparison conditions: parent present or no support figure present. Baseline, response, and recovery indices of perceived stress and cortisol levels were computed based on children's self-reported feelings of stress and salivary cortisol. Results indicated that in the alone (no social support) condition, children showed the expected rise for both perceived stress and cortisol response to stress. Pet dog presence significantly buffered the perceived stress response in comparison to children in the alone and parent present conditions. No main condition effect was observed for cortisol; however, for children experiencing the stressor with their pet present, lower cortisol response to stress was associated with more child-initiated petting and less dog proximity-seeking behavior. The results support the notion that pet dogs can provide socio-emotional benefits for children via stress buffering.

Although dogs are widely trained and deployed for odor detection work, relatively little research has investigated procedures that may more efficiently train or increase detection performance. Prior research in rodents and humans suggests that odorant exposure may enhance sensitivity to that odorant; however, other research has suggested that exposure may have the opposite effect. Our aim was to assess whether exposure to odorants influences dogs' sensitivity to those odorants on a subsequent operant task. We specifically tested whether simply being non-contingently exposed to an odorant or being exposed to an odorant in an appetitive Pavlovian conditioning paradigm influenced dogs' sensitivity to that odorant. In a pre- post-test design we assessed changes in dogs' sensitivity to two odorants. In the first phase, dogs' sensitivity to both odorants was assessed using a descending series of half (binary) dilutions presented using a liquid-dilution olfactometer. Then half the dogs were non-contingently exposed or Pavlovian conditioned to one odorant while the second odorant remained an unexposed control. Sensitivity to both odorants was then re-assessed using the same procedures as during baseline. Dogs showed a significant increase in sensitivity to the Pavlovian conditioned odorant compared to both the control odorant ( p p

Dogs are deployed for the detection of a wide variety of chemical stimuli. Despite their wide use, little basic research has explored canine olfactory generalization and discrimination. In the present study, we assessed canine odor discrimination amongst a series of chemically-related aliphatic alcohols. Domestic dogs were trained to discriminate 1-pentanol from air in a two-choice operant discrimination procedure until reaching an 85% accuracy criterion. In a series of transfer tasks, we assessed dogs’ generalization and discrimination between related odorants by replacing the S− stimulus with an alcohol related to pentanol, differing only in the length of the carbon chain. Dogs showed an increase in discrimination performance with an increase in the difference in the number of carbon atoms between pentanol and the comparison alcohol (p

Olfactory stimuli have been used to reduce stress in weaning pigs and induce sexual behavior in sows. Despite the importance of olfaction in pig production and behavior, there is no simple method to assess pig olfaction. Thus, the objectives of this study were: (1) to evaluate the use of an olfactory habituation-dishabituation paradigm (H-D) in pigs, (2) assess gilt olfactory sensitivity and discrimination to the boar pheromone and isoamyl acetate (control odor), and (3) develop sample size and statistical power guidelines for this method. Each gilt (N = 10) received six test sessions. Each session consisted of five consecutive presentations of mineral oil (habituating stimulus) and the presentation of the boar pheromone or isoamyl acetate as the dishabituating stimulus diluted in mineral oil. The boar pheromone was presented at different concentrations in ascending order across sessions (0.008–80 ppm). A significant increase in odor investigation in the odorant trial, compared to the last habituation trial, indicated gilts dishabituated from mineral oil and perceived the odorant at the given concentration. Overall, a significant increase in investigation occurred at the pheromone concentration of 0.8 ppm (P = 0.005) and 8 ppm (P = 0.002) and for isoamyl acetate (100 ppm; P = 0.02). The initial behavioral response of most gilts was to the boar pheromone at 0.8 ppm, but two gilts had an initial behavioral response to the boar pheromone at 0.008 ppm and another two at 0.08 ppm. Thus, using this H-D paradigm we were able to identify sensitivity differences to the boar pheromone among gilts. Post-hoc power analyses showed that a statistical power greater than 0.80 at a significance level of 0.05 can be found with a sample size of 9 animals. In conclusion, we found that the H-D paradigm developed in this study may be a useful rapid test to assess pig olfaction without extensive training.

Domestic dogs are trained for a wide variety of jobs; however, half of dogs that enter working dog training organizations never become certified. The aim of this study was to identify whether a basic measure of behavioral persistence was associated with sixteen dogs’ performance on an odor discrimination learning task. Further, we evaluated whether dogs that adopted more of a win-stay or win-shift strategy during discrimination learning was associated with greater persistence. Lastly, we tested if measures of a standardized canine behavior questionnaire (the CBARQ) predicted discrimination learning. We found greater persistence during extinction was associated with poorer discrimination learning. Further, dogs that employed more of a win-stay strategy (compared to win-shift) during the discrimination learning phase showed greater persistence in the persistence task and poorer performance on the odor discrimination task. Lastly, the CBARQ measure of trainability showed a trend association with odor discrimination performance, but no other behavioral characteristics were related. Overall, high levels of behavioral persistence is detrimental to olfactory discrimination learning.

Public opinion and the scientific literature alike reflect a widespread assumption that there are differences in behavior between dog breeds. Direct empirical behavioral assessments of such differences, however, are rare and have produced mixed results. One area where breed differences are often assumed is olfaction, where German Shepherds, hounds, and Labradors are commonly used for odor-detection work, whereas toy breeds and brachycephalic dogs, such as Pugs, are not. Choice of breed for scent detection work, however, may be driven more by historical choices than data. In this article we directly assessed the ability of German Shepherds, Pugs, and Greyhounds to acquire a simple olfactory discrimination, and their ability to maintain performance when the target odorant was diluted. Our results show that contrary to expectations, Pugs significantly outperformed the German Shepherds in acquiring the odor discrimination and maintaining performance when the odorant concentration was decreased. Nine of 10 Greyhounds did not complete acquisition training because they failed a motivation criterion. These results indicate that Pugs outperformed German Shepherds in the dimensions of olfaction assessed. Greyhounds showed a general failure to participate. Overall, our results highlight the importance of direct behavioral measurement of assumed behavioral breed differences.

The present study evaluated whether environmental variables can reinforce and maintain canine stereotypic behavior and whether the removal of these variables can reduce the rate of the behavior. We first present an online survey in which the owners were asked to report the environmental antecedent and consequent events related to stereotypic behavior in their dogs. The survey results indicated that stereotypic behavior, as reported by the owners, was not restricted to specific antecedents. Principal component analysis identified 4 ways that the owners usually responded to stereotypic behavior. In a case study of 5 dogs, functional analysis methodology was used to evaluate whether environmental or owner-provided consequences maintained stereotypic behavior. We demonstrate that owner-provided consequences maintained circling and licking in 2 of the dogs, light movement alone maintained light chasing in 2 of the dogs, and 1 dog showed little-to-no response during sessions preventing further analysis. We subsequently manipulated the consequences of the stereotypic behavior thought to maintain the behavior for 3 of the case study dogs, which led to a reduction in the behavior for all 3 dogs. This study provides evidence that the consequences of stereotypic behavior, such as attention from the owner, can reinforce and maintain high rates of the behavior. Our results suggest that the specific owner-dog dynamic might be an important influence on canine stereotypic behaviors, and that manipulating the relevant reinforcer found to maintain these behaviors leads to a reduction in the behavior.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether dogs that exhibit stereotypy also show higher behavioral persistence in an extinction-learning task. Thirteen pet dogs with stereotypy and 13 breed-matched control dogs were assessed on a resistance to extinction test. Each dog was trained for 40 trials using a food reinforcer to nose-touch the experimenter's hand on a continuous reinforcement schedule. After acquisition, the dogs entered an extinction phase, during which food was no longer delivered. The numbers of nose-touches as well as inter-response times during this phase were recorded. A linear regression found that stereotypy status ( t = −2.46, P = .027) and breed type ( t = 2.44, P = .023) were significant predictors of the number of responses in extinction. Dogs with stereotypy responded more in extinction than control dogs. The mean number of responses was 13.4 (SD = 14.7) in the control group and 26.0 (SD = 15.3) in the stereotypy group. These results suggest a link between previous laboratory and zoo animal findings on the neurophysiology of stereotypy and the pet dog population. They also have implications for the use of extinction procedures to reduce stereotypic behaviors in pet dogs, as these dogs show enhanced resistance to extinction.

Individual variability is evident in behavior and physiology of animals. Determining whether behavior at intake may predict subsequent illness in the animal shelter may influence the management of dogs housed at animal shelters and reduce overall disease. While normally associated with mild disease and low mortality rates, respiratory disease nevertheless poses significant challenges to the management of dogs in the stressful environment of animal shelters due to its highly infectious nature. Therefore, the aim of the study was to explore whether behavior at intake can predict subsequent occurrence and progression of upper respiratory disease in dogs at animal shelters. In a correlational study, 84 dogs were assessed throughout their stay at a city animal shelter. The dogs were subjected to a behavioral assessment, 1 min in-kennel behavioral observations across two observation periods, and the collection of urinary cortisol:creatinine (C:C) ratio. The occurrence and progression of upper respiratory disease was monitored through repeated clinical exams (rectal temperature and the occurrence of nasal and ocular discharge, and presence of coughing and sneezing). A basic PLS Path regression model revealed that time in the shelter (estimate = .53, p < .001), and sociability (estimate = .24, p < .001) and curiosity scores (estimate = .09, p = .026) were associated with increased illness. Activity and anxiety scores, however, were not associated with illness. Urinary C:C, taken on the first full day, did not predict subsequent illness when accounting for time. Limitations included attrition of dogs, a small percentage receiving vaccinations, and continuous and non-systematic rotation of dogs in the kennels. Understanding if behavior can predict subsequent illness may improve shelter management practices, and in turn, result in improved live-release outcomes.

Dogs can be trained to reliably detect a wide variety of odors. Little scientific research, however, has been published on the rate at which dogs can learn to detect an odor, the variables influencing this rate, and how this rate may vary across dogs. In two experiments, we developed a procedure that allows the study of individual differences in the acquisition of an odor detection task in dogs. We demonstrate that differential reinforcement can be used to train a rooting response in a bin under the control of a novel odorant in discrete trials. In initial testing, we showed that as a group, twenty dogs performed significantly above chance within 24 trials, with two dogs meeting an individual criterion for above chance performance. In a follow-up experiment, we compared burying accessible food inside the target bin (with inaccessible food in the non-target bin) to the experimenter delivering food by hand following correct responses. We assessed the effect of this procedural variation on both an odor discrimination and a visual discrimination. Dogs learned faster on the odor task when the experimenter delivered food, compared to when food was placed directly in the bins. Performance on the visual task was lower than on the odor task and was unaffected by how food was delivered. Our discrete-trials procedure with experimenter-delivered food may be a useful method to study rapid acquisition of an odor-detection in dogs.