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Do you believe in dog? 2016

Showing posts with label Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab. Show all posts

21 January 2014

2014: Canine Science For All

2014: Canine Science For All

Wendy74ca's photostream used with permission via Crazy and Little
Hi Mia!

I couldn’t agree with you more! It has been a long time since we chatted about what we’re up to. 

2014 is off to a great start, apart from the fact that it is your summer and my winter. I will always see that as unfair. Keep in mind you started us on this path of “weather comparisons” by posting  that covetous picture of the dog chillin’ in the sun with lemonade. 

Life on the East Coast couldn’t be any different. I raise you with a video of dogs playing in the snow. ;)


These are the cards I’m playing with in 2014:

Playtime at the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab
Last year we started Project: Play With Your Dog looking at inter-specific play behaviors between dogs and their owners. We received oodles of videos (because that’s a scientific number) from around the globe and are getting a handle on the nuanced behaviors of dogs and their owners. More to come on that this year!

Project do-the-PhD is a GO
You’ll be getting full-on PhD support from me; I want to see those salivary cortisol meta-analysis results! I recently jumped into the PhD boat at the Animal Behavior and Comparative Psychology program at CUNY. My supervisor is Diana Reiss who investigates animal cognition and communication in a number of species, although dolphins have been her focus. Looking forward to all that’s to come in this area!

Writing dogs
I’m keeping the pencil to the paper as much as possible and writing for The Bark, Dog Spies at Scientific American and most recently The Dodo with Think Your Dog Has A "Guilty" Look? Think Again. I’ve written a lot on this topic, and I’m happy it seems to be reaching more hands. And there’s also the audio version 'Anthropomorphism: Are we guilty?' thanks to you all at Human Animal Science! 

My first piece for The Dodo
Talking dogs
Interest in canine research has only grown since we met at the 3rd Canine Science Forum in 2012. Last year, I got to cover The Science and Politics of Anthropomorphism and Contextualizing Canine Behavior and Cognition Research at APDT 2013. 

This March, I’m looking forward to speaking at the 2nd Canine Science Symposium: A Day of Dog Research in San Francisco with other researchers from UF Canine Cognition and Behavior Lab / the Canine Science Collaboratory at ASU. 


Excited to keep trucking along in canine behavior and cognition and see what 2014 brings. As you said, we’ve been meeting a lot of researchers in the field, and highlighting others’ research here at DYBID? has been very well-received. Looking forward to more of that.
 
Here’s to a dog-filled New Year!

 Julie
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The Dodo

15 January 2013

The feeling of play

The feeling of play

(Source)
Hi there Mia,

 2013 is looking pretty good! I loved your recent post on motor, sensory and structural aspects of laterality in dogs. This is the type of research that gets me going. Who would think any information could come from this, and then... Tada!!!
Dogs with clockwise chest whorls were more likely 'right-pawed'

Feels like play
Project: Play with Your Dog is going well! We’re getting loads of submissions from people across the globe, and we'll be collecting submissions through Spring 2013. It’s exciting that people are opening up and sharing little tidbits into how they interact with their dogs. 

Bark magazine blogger, JoAnna Lou recently gave the study a shout out, and that has definitely resulted in the submission of more videos!


(Source)
One of the best parts of watching the videos is seeing all the different ways that dogs and people enjoy one another. Play is such a unique exchange, and from one dyad to the next, it can look so different. One reason that play is so varied is that play pulls from so many different cognitive arenas like memory, attention, synchronized behavior and timing. Play between dogs and people can sometimes look so fluid that it’s almost like watching water ballet (not that I watch much water ballet). Some play incorporates routines like tug, chase or fetch, and other players create their own rituals and activities.

The feeling of anticipation
The other thing I love about play is the overarching feelings of excitement, joy and anticipation -- with anticipation probably being my favorite. Play with my cat Josh is mostly about anticipation (And as you know, Josh is behind the world famous Tumblr page, http://thingsmycatbroke.tumblr.com. The page hasn’t been updated in a month, which is probably a good thing). 

(Source)
At various times in the day, Josh will dash into the bedroom, bound onto the bed, and assume his crouching pose that indicates -- It’s play time! Come and get me! When I jump up, he takes off running down the hall. I get a kick out of it, and based on his behavior, I assume he gets a kick out of it too.

In fact, play is often used as an indicator of “positive welfare.” How do we know whether an animal -- or a group of animals -- is doing well, feeling good, and generally happy? How do we explore their welfare? If animals have the time, energy and overall fitness to play, it's often assumed their basic biological functions and physiological needs are met. So a playing animal could indicate that an animal is doing well physiologically and emotionally.

Mia, you’re preparing to speak on the topic of emotional states and working dogs at a really interesting conference organized by RSPCA Australia: When coping is not enough - Promoting positive welfare states in animals. Do working dogs get time to play? What else will you be talking about? Tell tell!

Happy 2013! Let play (and happiness) reign!

 Julie

Reference
Boissy A., Manteuffel G., Jensen M.B., Moe R.O., Spruijt B., Keeling L.J., Winckler C., Forkman B., Dimitrov I. & Langbein J. & (2007). Assessment of positive emotions in animals to improve their welfare, Physiology & Behavior, 92 (3) 375-397. DOI:

© Julie Hecht 2013
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thingsmycatbroke

14 December 2012

Play with your dog, for science

Play with your dog, for science

Project: Play With Your Dog (our latest study)

 Hi Mia,

Wow. Very heavy stuff. I’m really happy you put this all out there. It's a great resource, especially when people tend to think, "That won't happen to me." An uncomfortable and upsetting situation hopefully becomes more real and understandable. Hopefully, an eye of caution will be extended to those circumstances more often associated with bites. 

 Show us how you play
You’re right, my mind has been 100% on things not related to dog bites. At the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab, we just launched our next project. It’s called, Project: Play with Your Dog. 

 We are cataloguing all the ways—traditional, original, or creative—people play with their dogs. To do this, we are using the Citizen Science platform and asking dog owners to submit short videos of themselves playing with their dog. It's really just a happy study.
Our Project on Scientific American Citizen Science

This week, we launched with a guest blog post on Scientific American, How do you play with your dog? and the project is now on their Citizen Science page.

 Now we need hundreds of videos of people playing with their dogs!  


How people can participate: 
Find or make a 30-60 second video of you and your dog playing in whatever way you like to play together, and then upload the video to our website and complete a short survey. 

 REALLY IMPORTANT: Both dog and person should be visible for all or most of the video. As cute as it is to see your dog running back and forth, we need to see you in the video playing with your dog. SUGGESTIONS: Attach the video camera to a tripod to capture the play area, or have another person hold the video camera.

 Then, everyone is invited to add a picture to our Wall of Contributors (which is growing and the pictures are really awesome!)

 Project: Play with Your Dog is open to anyone, in any country. If you live with a dog, we want to see you play.

Source: Business Insider Science
Additional details:
Subjects: Participants must be at least 8 years old 
Time Commitment: 20 to 30 minutes
Project Duration: Ongoing through Spring 2013
Project Website: www.DogHumanPlay.com 
Contact: DogCognitionStudy@gmail.com

 That's what's going on in my world. Look forward to seeing a video of Elke in the river and you with stick in hand ;)

 Happy holidays on the horizon!!!

 Julie  

© Julie Hecht 2012  
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Scientific American

26 October 2012

Video Special: Cutest thing ever? Paws on the face!

Video Special: Cutest thing ever? Paws on the face!

I'll start with some eye candy
Hi Mia, 

"What do you think is the most common role of dogs these days?"
             
As I read that in your last post, I blurted out, "companionship" (the guy sitting next to me in the coffee shop didn't even flinch. New Yorkers are expected to talk to ourselves. I succeed). For many people in many societies and cultures, dogs are brought into our lives to be companions.  

But what are the behaviors that make up "companionship"? That's where you come in! Tell me more about Tammie's work into dog behavior and her finding that people want "amicable" dogs, and I'll stick with looks.

Looking at looks
That's what my research talk at the Association of Pet Dog Trainers Conference was all about. I presented our lab's research on what humans find aesthetically pleasing about dogs’ physical appearance. In our study, people viewed images of mixed-breed, adult dogs. We found that they preferred:
This dog has a number of the "preferred" attributes
  • bigger eyes
  • colored irises  
  • approximating a “human” smile 
 
Interestingly, these attributes were not preferred by everyone, just people who self-labelled as “dog people” or “animal people.” Apparently, what humans find aesthetically appealing in dogs might differ based on how they view dogs and animals in the first place.

What is cute?
I've spent a lot of time reading about what's perceived as cute and physically appealing, and apparently, this is considered the cutest thing ever...

(Source)
Why is this cute? Part of the reason for the "cuteness" might come from an idea suggested by Horowitz and Bekoff (2007): Cute is the ability to use one's limbs to cover one's face. I think they're onto something... 

(Source)
(Source)
(Source)

Bye for now!
Julie  
 
References
King, T., Marston, L.C. & Bennett, P.C. (2009). Describing the ideal Australian companion dog, Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 120 (1-2) 93. DOI:10.1016/j.applanim.2009.04.011

Horowitz, A.C. & Bekoff, M. (2007). Naturalizing Anthropomorphism: Behavioral Prompts to Our Humanizing of Animals, Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 20 (1) 35. DOI: 10.2752/089279307780216650

Bekoff, M. Dogs: Looking At the Way We Look At Our Best Friends. Psychology Today. August 21, 2012
© Julie Hecht 2012
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Mia Cobb

5 October 2012

Superficial: What do we find attractive? (Part 1)

Superficial: What do we find attractive? (Part 1)

Hi Mia,

Such good eye candy in your last post. I don't know who is cuter, the less fat version of Sampson or the young child he's running with. But I did have a little giggle when watching that live news segment. It's supposed to be all about Sampson's physical appearance yet he's hidden beneath a dog coat, and it's nighttime so he's barely visible. Even when they zoom in, you still can't see anything. Am I making fun of the news program? Hmm maybe it got late, and I got tired.
JLo and her bling

 But something I will not make fun of are those comments on your post!! Matt Flavel suggesting it's not necessarily that we are stuffing our dogs silly -- obesity in dogs could have something to do with dogs' gut microbiome. Apparently, data will reveal more and this story is to be continued...

So yes, topics about dogs can be layered and complex, but sometimes we can be superficial about dogs -- even talk bling in dogs.

 Bling in dogs
I'm sure you can relate. When I'm walking down the street, I'm constantly checking dogs out. Of course, I'm interested in what they are doing, but other times I'm just looking at the way they look. Sometimes my response is, "YES! YOU LOOK GREAT!! I LIKE YOU!" and other times, the sentiment is more like, "pass." 

Apparently Boo embodies "cute"
At the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab, we wanted to know what it is about the way dogs look -- their physical appearances -- that we find attractive. This is what I presented at our first meeting at the Canine Science Forum in Barcelona (awww). 

We wanted to exclude from our study any breed preferences as well as the human desire to mush every puppy we see. To do this, and simply focus on the way dogs look, we used images of adult, mixed-breed dogs in our study. 

We explored: are there certain physical attributes that people always prefer when they look at dogs? And is it possible for these preferences to be subconscious and reported through an implicit preference test? Do all people have the same preferences? Or maybe animal people and non-animal people have different preferences. Are big eyes and a large forehead (the infamous "cute factors") always preferred?

So what did we find? Marc Bekoff summarized our findings for Psychology Today in the blog post, Dogs: Looking At the Way We Look At Our Best Friends. 

I will say that our findings are somewhat related to what you were talking about the other day regarding fat -- not phat -- dogs. We found that humans don't always prefer what's in dogs’ best interests. To quote from the Bekoff piece, “While 'animal people' seem drawn to dogs with larger eyes, big eyes can be associated with health issues like brachycephalic ocular syndrome and exposure keratitis. And although participants didn’t implicitly prefer larger nostrils, what if that physical attribute would enhance many dogs' ability to breathe?”

What humans deem aesthetically pleasing in dogs might not always be in dogs' best interests. Frown face...

Night night,

Julie


Referenced

 Bekoff, M. Dogs: Looking At the Way We Look At Our Best Friends. Psychology Today. August 21, 2012

 Hecht, J. Where should dogs put their tongues? Dog Spies. September 27, 2011

 Hecht, J. & Horowitz, A. 2012. Physical prompts to anthropomorphism of the domestic dog (Canis familiaris) Oral presentation at the Third Canine Science Forum, Barcelona, Spain.

© Julie Hecht 2012
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Phat

19 September 2012

Looking at looks

Looking at looks

Hi Mia!

 I mean, AHHHH You made a video! Tre exciting!!

So many working dogs in one place -- that’s what I am constantly amazed by about your project. I know that's the point, but it's still quite groovy. Working dogs are so often this abstract concept, and your project is pulling them together and exploring them in one place.

Carrying a box, not a laptop. Next time, bring me some pizza...
(source)
And of course, the real working dogs
I realize that a lot of what we're talking about on this Blog is exploring the dog for who the dog is. Part of this entails investigating how we, the humans, have physically molded and shaped dogs. After all, left to their own devices, dogs would not naturally mold themselves into the Pug, Great Dane and Schipperke.

All members of the same species. Weird!
As part of a recent research project at the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab, I’ve spent oodles of time thinking about why dogs look the way they do. I often peruse breed websites, like the AKC, to read different breed physical standards. 





“The ideal Boston Terrier expression is "alert and kind, indicating a high degree of intelligence.” 



A Bichon Frise is said to have an “inquisitive expression.” 



Leaving behavior out of the equation, what is it about the way a Boston Terrier looks that indicates intelligence? What is it about a Bichon’s expression that deems it inquisitive? 

How do we come to attribute different meanings to different appearances? Next time, I'll tell you how our research group took a stab at "looking at looks," but first...

Hello out there in TV Land! What do you think? 

 What is it about your dog's physical appearance (if anything) that prompts you to ascribe particular character traits to your dog?

Bye for now!

 Julie

 © Julie Hecht 2012
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working dogs

11 September 2012

What's going on at the conference??

What's going on at the conference??

Hello hello!

Tell the Julie! I'm on the other side of the pond, NOT at an AAWSome conference (and therefore quite jealous). Things that are going on here...
It's getting cooler...


I have a story about this...
And I've been spending a lot of time here because we're interviewing for new lab members.





And we're finishing up an olfactory perception study using these things...

Tell me what I'm missing!!

Julie

© Julie Hecht 2012
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Mia Cobb

18 August 2012

So much dog to talk about. All the time in the world!

So much dog to talk about. All the time in the world!

(source)
Hi Mia,

Yowzer!! We have so much to talk about! Dogs eating poop, welfare assessment, behavioural needs, enrichment and the “guilty look” are only the beginning! 
 
Speaking of which, I’m sure you have at least 7,000 more words on assessing welfare. Can you tell me more about assessing welfare?

You hyperlinked to a scientific journal article by Dr. Georgia Mason, and that made me smile a lot lot lot (or, Alot).

I am a bit of a Georgia Mason worshiper (for any of you who don’t know, she is a researcher in Animal Behaviour and Welfare at the University of Guelph. She explores how the housing of “Applied Animals,” those animals managed or controlled by humans, affects behaviour, brain functioning and welfare. She focuses on lab, farm and zoo animals... I feel like The Oz coming down and speaking to people other than you, Mia. Weird). Anyway, a while back, I gave Dr. Mason directions at a conference in France, and it's still a big deal in my book.

So, yes! Tell me more about welfare assessment!!!

Life for me presently revolves around writing projects. Instead of writing about my writing projects, I'll give you a visual interpretation of what I’m working on and how I feel about it.

How I feel after reading a scientific paper and having a worthwhile thought:
Yay words! (source)

How I feel after sitting and writing for a long time:
(source)

Writing projects are about:
Chaser. (source)
Rico. (source)
Sofia. (source)

Another writing project on this beloved topic:
What's the "guilty look" all about? (source)

And writing up research I presented at the 3rd Canine Science Forum in Barcelona, where we met, awww...
What is aesthetically pleasing? (source)
What is aesthetically pleasing? (source)

Come September we'll gear up to finish a study at the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab about this:
What the nose knows.(source)

I’ll tell you more about these pictures later.

Happy weekend!!!

JULIE 

Referenced
Mason, G. 1993. Why is there no simple way of Measuring Animal Welfare? Animal Welfare 2, 301-319. Click here for abstract.

 © Julie Hecht 2012
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welfare
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