Breed differences in dogs' (Canis familiaris) gaze to the human face.
Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) have been submitted to a vast process of artificial selection and to date, there are hundreds of breeds that differ in their physical and behavioral features. In addition, dogs possess important skills to communicate with humans. Previous evidence indicates that those abilities are related to the domestication process and are modulated by instrumental learning processes. Very few studies, however, have evaluated breed differences in the use and learning of interspecific communicative responses. In Study 1 Retrievers, German Shepherds and Poodles were compared in the acquisition and extinction of their gaze toward the human face, in a conflict situation involving food within sight but out of reach. The groups did not differ in the acquisition of the response, but throughout the extinction phase Retrievers gazed to the human significantly more than the other groups. In Study 2, similar results were obtained in a test without any previous explicit training. These results suggest that these three major popular breeds differ in gazing to humans in a communicative situation.
Jakovcevic
Adriana
A
Laboratorio de Psicología Experimental y Aplicada (PSEA), Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Combatientes de Malvinas 3150 (1426), Buenos Aires, Argentina. adrianajak@gmail.com
Elgier
Angel M
AM
Mustaca
Alba E
AE
Bentosela
Mariana
M
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D004285:Dogs; D005108:Extinction, Psychological; D005133:Eye Movements; D005145:Face; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012919:Social Behavior; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors