Canine Ethology

• what are the wild ancestors of dogs?

  wolves and jackals
• jackal social structure:

  • live singly or in pairs, occasional loose packs of relatives
  • mate for life
• jackal behavior:

  • in mated pairs both female and male mark and defend territory
  • opportunistic omnivores
• wolves have 1 breeding period per year and dogs have 2
• male wolves are more involved in parental care
• wolves are more territorial and protective of young, male dogs may be territorial but not protective of puppies
• adult dogs have more puppy-like behavior, why don't wolves?

  • adult wolves don't spend energy on play
  • adult wolves won't vocalize for no reason
• wolves have sequence of predatory behavior: innate process continues until killed or lost prey
• wolf social structure:

  • more closed social groups, groups of dogs will play after just meeting
  • social hierarchies are more rigid and important in the group
• wolf behavior:

  • more reactive/on alert, more difficult to control
  • more fearful of new things
  • more difficult to train and tame but may be better problem solvers than dogs
• traditional theory of domestication:

  • hunting ranges of wolves and humans overlapped
  • mutual benefit in cooperative hunting
• traditional theory of domestication occurs through artificial selection: humans selected for wolves willing to interact with them, small group of tamed wolves interbreed and become genetically different
• alternative theory of domestication: humans created villages, new niche
• alternative theory of domestication occurs through natural selection: some wolves entered new niche and discovered food source
• how do jackals fit in the alternative theory of domestication?

  opportunistic omnivores, individuals/less complex pack structure could be more likely to exploit dumps
• how do wolves fit in the alternative theory of domestication?

  could have been genetically predisposed to less flight distance, had to be more tolerant of humans
• canine communication occurs through visual, olfactory, tactile, and acoustic sensory inputs
• visual canine communication: modify body positioning/posture
• how can artificial selection impact visual communication?

  • brachycephalic dogs have limited facial expressions
  • can limit cues: erect ears, short tails, dense fur
• olfactory communication:

  • odors persist in environment, can communicate gender and emotion
  • recognize humans and other dogs by scent
  • smell when greeting to collect information
  • strong sense for female's reproductive status
• tactile communication:

  • putting paws over back, grabbing muzzle displays dominance
  • may grab to maintain social bon
  • social grooming
• what common human actions can be perceived as aggression to dogs?

  petting legs, paws, and top of head
• whines: stress, greeting, attention seeking
• howls: maintain group cohesion
• groans and yelps: pain and distress
• grunts: pleasure
• behaviorism: problem-oriented, fix problems using punishment or reward
• behaviorists believe dog expends energy on problem behaviors to show dominance
• ethology: behavior-oriented, behaviors are indicative of circumstance
• ethologists reward spending less energy on response
• subordinate dogs: don't desire to fight but want to protect owner, show aggressive behavior but won't act on it
• ethology approach to subordinate dogs: cue that behaviors are unnecessary, teach confidence