Abstract
Dogs are highly skilled in understanding a large variety of human social cues and use them appropriately to solve a number of different cognitive tasks. They rely on human signals even when these are contradictory or misleading and ultimately prevent them from correctly solving a task. In the following two experiments, we investigated whether the owner and a stranger differently influenced dogs’ choices in food discrimination tasks. In Experiment 1, 48 dogs were tested in 3 different conditions: (1) choice between a large and a small amount of dog pellets with no demonstration; (2) choice between a large and a small amount of dog pellets after having witnessed the owner/stranger favouring the small quantity; (3) choice between two single food pellets after observing the owner/stranger choosing one of them. In Experiment 2, 48 dogs could choose between two foods of different palatability: in Condition 1, dogs chose between a slice of sausage and a dry pellet with no demonstration. In Condition 2, the same choice was available but with a person (owner/stranger) showing a preference for the dry pellet. In Condition 3, dogs chose between a single dry pellet and 8 slices of sausage, with the person (owner/stranger) showing a preference for the pellet. In both experiments, dogs conformed to the human’s indications even though these led to the selection of the less advantageous option (i.e. the smaller amount of food in Experiment 1 or the low quality food in Experiment 2). However, the owner and the stranger did not differently influence the dogs’ behaviour. Results show that dogs are willing to follow a person’s indication even when this is visibly (if perhaps only mildly) counterproductive to them and that they are socially prepared to rely equally on cues given by the owner and an unfamiliar friendly person.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by funds from the Università di Milano to Emanuela Prato-Previde and by funds from Università di Parma to Paola Valsecchi and MIUR (PRIN 2006). A special thank to Chiara Zanibelli for her invaluable help in data collection. Finally, we would like to thank all the owners and dogs that participated as volunteers. This research complies with the current Italian laws on animal welfare.
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Appendix
Appendix
Breeds of participating dogs
Experiment 1: 2 Golden Retriever, 7 Labrador Retriever, 1 Flatcoated Retriever, 1 Chesapeake Bay Retriever, 1 Nova Scotia Duck-tolling Retriever, 1 Dobermann, 4 Terranova, 1 Border Collie, 1 Bernese Mountain Dog, 1 Shetland Sheepdog, 2 German Shepherd, 1 Scottish Collie, 1 Jack Russell, 1 Toy Poodle, 1 St. Bernard Dog, 1 Cocker Spaniel, 1 Spinone Italiano; 1 Australian Shepherd, 1 Afghan Hound, 1 Rottweiler and 19 mixed breed.
Experiment 2: 3 Beagle, 1 Scottish Collie, 1 English Setter, 1 Argentinean Dogo, 1 Bernese Mountain Dog, 3 Dachshund, 4 Labrador Retriever, 2 Golden Retriever, 1 Dalmatian, 3 English Bulldog, 1 American Cocker Spaniel, 1 English Cocker Spaniel, 1 Miniature Schnauzer, 1 Miniature Poodle, 1 Czechoslovakian Wolfdog and 23 mixed breed.
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Marshall-Pescini, S., Prato-Previde, E. & Valsecchi, P. Are dogs (Canis familiaris) misled more by their owners than by strangers in a food choice task?. Anim Cogn 14, 137–142 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-010-0340-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-010-0340-y