Dog Social Behaviour

Question 1

According to research based on the ancestral species, how do dogs live?

Answer 1

• Can be pack or solitary or pairs
• family based social system
• not necessarily ‘cooperative’ hunters but may hunt in groups
• young choose to remain with pack to help parents and do not breed themselves - co-op breeding
  > counterintuitive genetically
  > kin selection means genetics of new siblings still v similar to own so still feasible genetically
  > allows life skills to be learnt ^ survival rate

Question 2

What was most research on “wolf behaviour” done on?

Answer 2

Zoos - artifical packs
- incompatible and unknown individuals
> separate dominance hierarchies for male and females
> aggression/submission based hierarchy
NOT a true representation of social interactions!

Question 3

Which animals make a better model for ethological behaviour of dogs? What have studies shown in these?

Answer 3

Feral dog packs eg. In India

• dogs have freedom to choose pack members
• are genetically more similar to each other
• packs are free ranging, unsupervised and BREED
• packs form around male/female pairs
• communal territory usually based around food sources
• little discernible hierarchy except adults>young

Question 4

Why is research on feral dog packs limited?

Answer 4

Culling eg. India

Question 5

What has been found about breeding in feral dog packs?

Answer 5

All adult females breed
- competition between males from several packs for oestrus females
- similar to primitive canids
> NB: would not happen in wolves, would fight off other males
- females leave the pack to rear litter so pups not attacked
- rarely cooperative breeding occours
- LITTLE relationship between dominance aggression and reproductive success

Question 6

How do the social relationships of pet dogs work?

Answer 6

Little function of dominance in reproduction/hunting
- hierachy (or apparent hierachy) probably based on activity levels ie. youngest male adult is alpha
- NO evidence that dominance is a “goal”
> contrary to many training regimes

Question 7

How does behaviour differ between artificial wolf packs and natural wolf packs?

Answer 7

• artificial - aggression greatest between breeding and subordinate females
• natural - most behaviour submissive/affiliative
  > licking muzzle - cue to regurgitate food
  > becomes ritualised to reinforce family bonds
• in zoo pack means “don’t hurt me!”

Question 8

Why is negative reinforcement in training bad? Eg. of trainer?

Answer 8

Ceasar milan

- weakens human/animal bond

Question 9

Would electric shock collars ever be advocated?

Answer 9

Only extreme situation where dogs life is at risk eg. sheep chasing

Question 10

What does the RHP model explain?

Answer 10

Interactinos between dogs - RHP is based on strength (although dogs do not respect this, especially wrt size)
experience and agonistic behaviour (themselves v the other dog, who wants it more? intentions)
- very subjective value of resource, but fits observations
- compare RHP (would they win the encounter) to V (how much do they want it)
> Applies to first encounters as well as established relationships
> also applicable to dog/human interactions

Question 11

Why is dominance not relevant to many dog encounters?

Answer 11

Relies on previous interactions - is not applicable to first time encounters

Question 12

Do dogs differentiate between humans and conspecifics?

Answer 12

YES! - are more cooperative with people

Question 13

What is dominance aggression usually actually caused by?

Answer 13

Fear/anxiety
- usually become very affiliative after aggressive outburst
- not attempting to manipulate people!
“Dominance” over people is usually just a learned response that reduces cause of negative emotion, usually situation specific

Question 14

How do dogs interact differently with humans and other dogs?

Answer 14

If 2 dogs given two toys will take one each and leave

If human and dog given two toys will pick one up and make you play