Elsevier

Journal of Veterinary Behavior

Volume 6, Issue 3, May–June 2011, Pages 195-204
Journal of Veterinary Behavior

Review
Puppy power! Using social cognition research tasks to improve socialization practices for domestic dogs (Canis familiaris)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2011.01.004Get rights and content

Abstract

Understanding the psychology of the domestic dog is a key element in both research and clinical applications for veterinary behaviorists. This article summarizes social cognitive skills observed in dogs in recent cognition studies. The tasks are grouped into the following 2 categories: those which facilitate eye contact between dogs and human beings, and social learning tasks. We also describe easy-to-implement experimental paradigms, previously used in cognitive tests for adult dogs, which we recommend adapting for use with puppies as young as 3 weeks of age. We highlight specific ways by which breeders may alter setup of these tasks to further generalize the social cognitive benefits for the puppies. Furthermore, studies of social development in puppies would enable researchers to explore whether encouragement of the skills examined have a positive effect on behavior as adults, and should thus be specifically incorporated into socialization practices by all breeders and new owners. Thus, the practical applications of this knowledge could include informing best practices for early age socialization by breeders, while puppies are still in the litter, and by new owners when they initially acquire a puppy. This could potentially increase the number of dogs that are well adjusted for human society and thus reduce the number surrendered to shelters. Finally, we discuss the ethical implications of working with puppies in particular and with companion animals generally; the positioning of veterinary clinicians and researchers between the scientific and lay worlds can improve understanding within the community of the benefits that minimally invasive companion animal research can provide.

Introduction

The past decade has seen a great increase in research of domestic dog (Canis familiaris) cognition, from less than 10 journal articles published per year in the 1990s to more than 70 in 2008 alone (Wynne, 2009). These studies continually demonstrate that dogs are more adept at comprehending human gestural cues (such as the pointing cue and its many variations) than are many other animals whose cognitive abilities have been studied. In various studies, dogs have outperformed wolves (Canis lupus; Agnetta et al., 2000, Viranyi et al., 2008), dogs’ closest relative (but see Udell et al., 2008a), as well as chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes; Hare et al., 2002), human beings’ closest relative and sometimes considered to possess the highest standard of cognitive abilities in non-human animals (for a review see Miklosi and Soproni, 2006). Dogs have also shown a greater ability to understand human social cues as compared with some domesticated animals, such as horses (Equus caballus; McKinley and Sambrook, 2000), although cats (Felis catus) and goats (Capra hircus) seem to perform similarly to dogs with respect to pointing cue comprehension (Kaminski et al., 2005, Miklosi et al., 2005). Furthermore, dogs are proficient at using information gained from observing human beings to solve problems on their own (e.g., Kubinyi et al., 2003, Pongracz et al., 2003a, Pongracz et al., 2008), and using eye contact to engage in bidirectional information exchange (e.g., Gacsi et al., 2004, Miklosi et al., 2000, Miklosi et al., 2003).

Not all dogs perform identically on tests of social cognition (e.g., Gacsi et al., 2009b, Marshall-Pescini et al., 2009). Although individual differences are often dismissed as “noise” in an experimental setting, understanding the psychology of individual domestic dogs is crucial for evaluating and interpreting behavior in applied settings. For this reason, we contend that the recent increase in dog cognition research could have far-reaching practical applications. For example, research with many dogs could help researchers and clinicians understand puppy development processes between and within breeds. Combined with knowledge about the predictive ability of performance in social cognitive tests on the personality or behavior of adult dogs, either in specific breeds or in dogs generally, this information could be relayed to breeders and new owners, facilitating placement of puppies in appropriate homes and development of early-age socialization practices designed to enhance skill development. Notwithstanding certain exceptions (e.g., Slabbert and Odendaal, 1999), temperament tests in young puppies tend to be not predictive of behavior in adult dogs (e.g., Wilsson and Sundgren, 1998). Although it is not known whether evaluating and then incorporating cognitive skill development into socialization practices will affect adult dog behavior, such an effect may be possible because these social cognitive skills represent strengths that are required in adult dogs to adapt to living closely with human companions.

This article aims to illustrate the utility of dog social cognition paradigms for potentially informing socialization practices of young puppies. The first section briefly describes the evolution of the domestic dog and how this may have led to the skill set highlighted by recent dog social cognition studies. The second section has a strong applied focus, offering several different tasks that could be incorporated into socialization regimes of breeders as a way of enhancing the skills that adult dogs have been shown to possess. The third section focuses on the need for more research, evaluating the effect of using these and other social cognitive tasks with young puppies, to help inform best socialization practices for breeders. It also discusses methodological considerations that apply when working with animals that are not yet fully developed, physically or mentally. Finally, the fourth section discusses some of the ethical constraints of working in the fields of dog cognition and clinical and behavioral veterinary practice.

During the course of domestication, dogs may have been naturally selected for acceptance of human proximity, which eventually resulted in an increased tendency to communicate and cooperate with human beings (Hare and Tomasello, 2005). It has been argued that dogs were domesticated approximately 14,000 years ago, and were the first animal to be domesticated by human beings. By Roman times, breed groups were likely formed (Clutton-Brock, 1995). During their domestication, dogs may have become distinct from wolves initially based on their willingness to accept the proximity of human beings (Coppinger and Coppinger, 2002). This natural selection for shortened flight distance from human beings, including acceptance of human beings in their vicinity even as they ate, was coupled with later selection (both natural and artificial) for dogs that were proficient in skills involving cooperation with human beings, such as hunting.

Reid (2009) suggests that, throughout this process of natural and artificial selection toward close human proximity and cooperation, there may have been selection for dogs that could correctly interpret information (e.g., the location of a food source) provided by human beings. This would have led to dogs becoming increasingly attentive toward human beings over the course of their domestication. This hypothesis is supported by studies demonstrating the dog’s ability to follow human communicative gestures, such as pointing cues (e.g., Dorey et al., 2009, Gacsi et al., 2009b, Hare and Tomasello, 1999, Miklosi et al., 1998, Udell et al., 2008a, Udell et al., 2008b). This ability is evident even in puppies (Hare and Tomasello, 2005, Riedel et al., 2008), although with a high level of individual variation (Gacsi et al., 2009b). Dogs can also understand the focus of human attention, and can use it to their advantage. For instance, one study showed that dogs prefer to beg for food from a person facing them instead of a person facing away from them (Gacsi et al., 2004), and others showed that they are less likely to obey a command if the human being is not looking at them (Call et al., 2003, Viranyi et al., 2004). It may also be because of this selection process that, even from a young age, dogs are able to learn the importance of making eye contact with human beings as a means of facilitating cross-species communication (Gacsi et al., 2009a, Miklosi et al., 2003).

Even though the propensity for these skills is probably inherent in all dogs, their expression may be affected by individual differences and by a puppy’s experiences during development. In terms of individual differences, it is well established that different breeds have different behavioral predispositions because of different selective pressures being applied by breeders over many generations. It is not known whether these translate into differences in social cognitive skills, but further research to investigate this possibility could have far-reaching consequences for placement of dogs in appropriate homes. In terms of experience, if dogs’ social skills are shaped (Pryor, 1999) and continuously reinforced as puppies, the use of these skills and behaviors may increase when the dogs are fully grown. Ultimately, the dogs’ domestication may have given it an innate ability to communicate with human beings, which may differ across individuals and breed groups, and which is then reinforced through learning processes. A natural tendency for making eye contact with human beings, also a product of domestication, may further increase the ability for learning in this way.

Section snippets

Social cognition tasks for use in socialization practices

The knowledge gained as a result of social cognitive studies could be useful in the development of a socialization toolbox, for use by breeders, which encourages and reinforces continued social interaction between dogs and human beings. Thus, this section will outline different tasks, previously used in dog cognition studies, which could be incorporated into socialization routines by breeders. In doing so, breeders will have a chance to teach their puppies communication skills that will be

Design and methodological considerations for puppy developmental research

To better understand the potential importance of facilitating the development of cognitive skills by incorporating them into puppy socialization practices, more research is needed. One approach would be to raise puppies completely devoid of contact with human beings, thereby never giving them an opportunity to learn to communicate through exposure to human beings (Elgier et al., 2009). In theory, the social cognitive capacities of the puppies could then be tested and compared with those of

Ethical issues in dog research

Since the time of Scott and Fuller (1965) and Fox (1978), research into dog cognition has changed dramatically, and many of the tests that they performed may not be permitted by the ethics oversight committees of universities or research institutions today. This change in the way researchers view the animals they test is not only an ethical imperative but also enhances interpretation of experimental results because testing a deeply distressed animal could invalidate the study or skew the

Conclusion

This article aimed to explain the potential importance of incorporating dog social cognition research methodologies into socialization practices for young puppies. We highlighted several different tasks that have been used as experimental paradigms in dog cognition research, which could be adapted by breeders for use with puppies as a way to encourage development of social skills observed in adult dogs. The experimental paradigms suggested for training in puppies were tasks facilitating eye

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