Abstract
Rescue behavior is a kind of prosocial response that involves the provision of help to a stressed individual. This behavior has been observed in domestic dogs assisting their owners when they pretended to be trapped. Given the role of the hormone oxytocin as a facilitator for prosocial behavior, we aimed to evaluate the effects of its intranasal administration on the rescue behavior of dogs directed to their owners. In addition, we used the Monash Dog Owner Relationship Scale (MDORS) to assess whether the dog–owner bond was associated with this behavior. After receiving either oxytocin or saline, dogs participated in a stressed condition in which their owner pretended to be stressed inside of a box, or a control one, in which the owner was in a calm state. Dogs released their owners more frequently in the stressed condition. Contrary to our expectations, dogs who received oxytocin were less likely to open the box and took longer to do so than those that received saline. Regarding the dog–owner bond, dogs in the stressed condition who received oxytocin exhibited a lower rate and a higher latency of openings the more intense the bond was, while the opposite pattern was observed in dogs in the control condition who received saline. In conclusion, dogs would rescue their owners when they pretended to be trapped and stressed. Both oxytocin administration and the bond with the owner appear to modulate this behavior, but further studies are needed to inquire into the involved mechanisms.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to express our special gratitude to all the owners who kindly participated in this experiment. We also thank Gabriel Granada who helped us finding the facilities to run the tests. Finally, we appreciate the valuable collaboration of Camila Cavalli and Cynthia Roxana Romero.
Funding
This work was supported by AGENCIA (PICT 2014 Nº 0883), CONICET (PIP 2013 Nº 11220130100182) and Universidad Nacional del Sur: PGI 24/B243.
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M.V. Dzik and F. Carballo: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, and writing—review and editing. E. Casanave: conceptualization and writing—review and editing. M. Bentosela: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, formal analysis, writing—review and editing, and supervision.
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Dzik, M.V., Carballo, F., Casanave, E. et al. Effects of oxytocin administration and the dog–owner bond on dogs’ rescue behavior. Anim Cogn 24, 1191–1204 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-021-01512-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-021-01512-5