It has been just over five years since the first ‘Canine Special Issue’ was published in Behavioral Processes. As predicted in that issue, we have seen exponential growth in the number of researchers studying canine behavior, and consequently in the number of new publications arising from laboratories around the world....
The aim of the study is to understand how a child’s responsibility of care for a family pet affects the attachment and relationship between the child and dog. Attachment has been defined as a bond between two individuals that promotes both proximity-seeking and independent activity (Udell and Brubaker, 2016). Responsibility...
This thesis seeks to explore how an ecofeminist lens is currently the most useful approach for improving farmed animal welfare. Through examining Western conceptions of non-human animals, I seek to shed light upon the inconsistent treatment of domestic species. Species that are dependent upon us deserve, at a minimum, not...
Domesticated dogs can form attachment bonds with their owners and use them as a secure base to receive comfort during distress and confidence to explore novel environments. Owners often adopt multiple dog in hopes they will have ameliorative effects during periods of absence from their owner. The purpose of this...
Human-animal relationships, emerging as an aftermath of human-animal interactions, have been increasingly investigated in recent years. It is possible to see the results of the effects of these relationships on both human and animal welfare. This study predicted that caretakers with hands-on contact with their zoo animals would have significantly...
Gazing behavior is a vital part of nonverbal communication, as it can provide information about attentional state, subtext, environment, and point of view. Both dogs and cats have previously been shown to display gazing behavior when presented with an unsolvable task, as well as follow nonverbal directional ques given by...
This study aimed to explore the relationship between urinary cortisol levels and proximity-seeking behavior in shelter cats and the impact of socialization programs on these two factors. A Spearman’s correlation test found no correlation between cortisol levels and proximity-seeking behavior in shelter cats. Fisher’s 2x2 tests confirmed that the changes...
Domestic cats have been shown to form secure attachment bonds with humans, allowing them to use their owners as a secure base and giving them comfort and confidence when exploring an unfamiliar environment. Many cat owners believe that cohabitation with other cats is beneficial for their pets, and that cohabitant...
The domestic cat is one of the world’s most popular companion animals. However, to date much remains to be learned about cat behavior and the cat-human relationship. To examine the influence of proximate factors on cat behavior and the human-cat bond, three studies were undertaken. Study 1 directly measured the...
Domesticated cats frequently use their sense of smell to navigate their environment, convey social cues, and communicate with other individuals. In applied contexts, cat owners are often encouraged to leave items holding their scent with their cat in periods of absence with the aim of reducing stress. The purpose of...
It has been demonstrated that dogs form attachment bonds to their owners and that these attachments can be classified and described in ways that are analogous to attachments found between human infants and their mothers. While a secure attachment to a parent has been shown to improve problem-solving abilities in...
Although it is widely accepted that dogs and humans form attachment relationships, characterizing attachment styles in dogs has only recently received attention in the literature. Previous research has shown that pet dogs display patterns of behavior in an attachment test that can be classified into secure and insecure attachment styles,...
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of intranasally administered oxytocin on the sociability of adult, neutered, male and female shelter cats, as measured by proximity-seeking behavior and meow vocalizations. Two local Humane Societies were sampled in this study. The shelter cats were randomly assigned to one...
The domestic dog is one of the most popular pets in the world, and many pet owners consider their pets to be members of their family. Studies have suggested that dogs behave like pseudo-children in many contexts. Despite this, there is very little research on how dog owners may behave...
Heightened cortisol levels are a typical physiological response to stress. The many responsibilities of animal shelter workers can lead to increased stress levels and negative effects on their job satisfaction and overall wellness. As a result, workers are subject to burnout and compassion fatigue. While working in shelter environments may...
Approximately one in six children in the United States has a developmental disability (CDC, 2018). Among a wide variety of interventions that have been developed to support the health, wellbeing, and development of youth with disabilities, Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) have become increasingly prevalent. Some AAI involve youth participating with their...
Adaptations of the Ainsworth’s Strange Situation test, a social-development test based on Bowlby’s attachment theory, can be applied to dog-owner relationships and used to categorize attachment styles in dogs. Dogs with secure attachment use their owner as a secure base from which to explore their environment and should theoretically be...
The present study explored the effects of intranasal oxytocin (OT), a naturally occurring hormone, on the behavior of pet dogs in an attachment test. Each dog participated in two testing sessions. On one visit saline was administered nasally and on another OT was administered nasally. Condition order was counterbalanced. Following...
The aim of this study was to evaluate the different attachment profiles that characterize shelter dog-shelter volunteer and foster dog-foster volunteer relationships and to assess the proportion of insecure and secure attachment styles within foster, shelter, and pet dog populations. Foster dog-foster volunteer, shelter dog-shelter volunteer, and pet dog-owner pairs...
The development of problem-solving behaviors in canines, including persistence, has implications for canine training, welfare, and the human-dog bond. Past research has shown that a variety of factors, including genetics (domestication) and training experience, play a role in a how a canine might behave during a problem-solving task. Less well...