Behavioral problems are a major source of poor welfare and premature mortality in companion dogs. Previous studies have demonstrated associations between owners' personality and psychological status and the prevalence and/or severity of their dogs' behavior problems. However, the mechanisms responsible for these associations are currently unknown. Other studies have detected links between the t...

Objective- To study a method of chemical sterilization and its efficacy in adult male dogs. Design- Experimental study. Animals- Ten healthy adult mixed breed dogs Procedures- Eugenia caryophyllata (EC) essential oil was injected into the dorsal cranial portion of each testicle of five dogs (treatment group). The same volume of normal saline was injected in the same site of testicles in the ...

Despite the intimate relationship dogs share with humans in Western society, we know relatively little about the variables that produce and maintain dog social behavior towards humans. One possibility is that human social interaction is itself a reinforcer for dog behavior. As an initial assessment of the variables that might maintain dog social behavior, we compared the relative efficacy of br...

To investigate the role of experience in humans' perception of emotion using canine visual signals, we asked adults with various levels of dog experience to interpret the emotions of dogs displayed in videos. The video stimuli had been pre-categorized by an expert panel of dog behavior professionals as showing examples of happy or fearful dog behavior. In a sample of 2,163 participants, the lev...

The dog has emerged as a premier species for the study of morphology, behavior, and disease. The recent availability of a high-quality draft sequence lifts the dog system to a new threshold. We provide a primer to use the dog genome by first focusing on its evolutionary history. We overview the relationship of dogs to wild canids and discuss their origin and domestication. Dogs clearly originat...

In children up to 6 years, interactions such as interfering with the dog's resources and also benign behaviors (e.g., petting) commonly precede a bite incident with the family dog. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to explore the development of everyday interactions between children up to 6 years and their family dogs and whether parents' attitudes to supervision are related to those ...

Research on owner-dog relationships suggests that they have remarkable features, paralleling those of infant to parents. In this study, we investigated whether, after being separated, access to the owner would function as a reinforcer for domestic dog behavior. We then conducted a functional analysis to determine the specific functional reinforcer (e.g., owner access, attention). Our results de...

PURPOSE Gather data on incidence of canine alerting/responding behavior with a defined patient population. Research development and use of purported alerting dogs. METHODS Review of the literature was performed. A qualitative questionnaire was completed by epilepsy patients. Service dog trainers were identified. RESULTS Of 63 patients, 29 owned pet dogs. Nine reported their dog responded to...

BACKGROUND Regular walking improves overall health and functional ability of older adults, yet most are sedentary. Dog ownership/pet responsibility may increase walking in older adults. Goals of this study were to identify factors that influence older adult walking and compare physical activity, functional ability and psychosocial characteristics by dog ownership status. METHODS In this cross...

BACKGROUND This study examines changes in socio-demographic, environmental and intrapersonal factors associated with dog acquisition in non-dog owners at baseline to 12-months follow-up and the effect of dog acquisition on minutes per week of recreational walking. METHODS RESIDE study participants completed self-administered questionnaires (baseline and 12-months follow-up) measuring physical...