Research note: Installation of videorecording equipment had minimal effect on behavioral measurements in 14 kenneled military dogs
Abstract
We quantified the behavioral perturbation induced in kenneled dogs using a classical procedure of video equipment installation. Using 14-minute sessions of videorecording, 136hours of recordings were collected from 14 healthy, individually housed Malinois shepherds. Our results show that dogs trotted, jumped, and ran more during the first 2minutes of recording. These behaviors suggest an intense but brief agitation following installation of the video equipment. These results lead us to advise researchers, when studying the behavior of kenneled dogs by videotaping, to evaluate the duration of perturbations stemming from their particular experimental procedure and to carefully examine it.
aLaboratory of Anatomy and Ethology of Domestic Animals, University of Namur (FUNDP), Namur, Belgium
bLaboratory of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, URBM, University of Namur (FUNDP), Namur, Belgium
Address for correspondence and reprint requests: Claire Diederich, Laboratory of Anatomy and Ethology of Domestic Animals, University of Namur (FUNDP), 6 rue Muzet, 5000 Namur, Belgium.
Dr. Lefebvre's present affiliation: INRA, Direction de la Valorisation, Versailles, France.
ABSTRACT