Canine Science Collaboratory

Don't forget to register for the Canine Science Society Conference @ www.caninesciencesociety.org. Gotta have your tickets. Don't miss out!

Canine Science Society | Canid Research Conference Home page for the Canine Science Society, which hosts North America's premier conference for canid scientists, trainers, and professionals. Researchers – ethologists, psychologists, geneticists – dog trainers and breeders, and more – all are welcome!

The wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus - now in the Palatine Museum in Rome. The expression on her face! She is likely 5th century BC and Etruscan. The boys were added around 1,000 years later

A dog in the ceiling of the Basilica di San Clemente in Rome reminded me of Xephos so we lit a candle for her. That dog will make a Christian of me yet! (Anyone have any idea why there's a dog in the ceiling of the basilica?)

Two days ago Xephos left this mortal life. The pain is too raw to find words of my own, and so, because I was in Greece when this happened, I'm putting here the words an ancient Greek penned on the passing of his dog, Hormé, 1900 years ago:

“For I myself reared a hound with the greyest of grey eyes, and she was fast and a hard worker and spirited and agile, so that when she was young she once dealt with four hares in a day. And apart from that she is most gentle and most fond of humans, and never previously did any other dog long to be with me … as she does… she escorts me to the gymnasium, and sits by while I am exercising, and goes in front as I return, frequently turning round as if to check that I have not left the road somewhere; when she sees I am there she smiles and goes on again in front… If she sees us even after a short period of time, she jumps up in the air gently, as if welcoming him, and she gives a bark with the welcome, showing her affection. ... And because when she was being trained as a puppy she was punished with a whip, if anyone even to this day should mention a whip, she goes up to the one who has said it and crouches down like one beseeching, and fits her mouth to his mouth as if she is kissing, and jumps up and hangs from his neck, and does not let him go until the angry one gives up the threat. And so I think that I should not hesitate to write down the name of this dog, for it to survive her even in the future, viz. that Xenophon the Athenian had a dog called Hormé, very fast and very clever and quite out of this world.”

Arrian (Xenophon) “On Hunting” 6 (p. 97). Circa AD 145

On the trail of wolves in the Masuria district, Poland

Am I a political expert now?

'Even President Trump, who infamously boasted that he could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue without losing voters, seems to know better than to brag about killing a dog, Dr. Wynne said: “Trump never said, ‘I could shoot a puppy dead on Fifth Avenue.’”'

How to Know When a Good Dog Has Gone Bad Gov. Kristi Noem suggested that President Biden should have euthanized the family dog, as she did. Animal experts said that such an option should be a last resort.

Teaching alongside Jim Gorman this semester I have learned so much. For e.g., “ums and likes are just the bacon bits a person strews on the salad of speech.” He could have been a poet. Thanks Jim

There are not many greats in psychology. A sad loss: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/27/business/daniel-kahneman-dead.html?ugrp=u&unlocked_article_code=1.f00.azDM.L1LfJ5Bnfy5N&smid=url-share
"He had started to preach the traditional view that to promote learning, praise is more effective than punishment. But a seasoned colleague insisted otherwise, telling him, as Professor Kahneman recalled:
“On many occasions I have praised flight cadets for clean ex*****on of some aerobatic maneuver, and in general when they try it again, they do worse. On the other hand, I have often screamed at cadets for bad ex*****on, and in general they do better the next time. So please don’t tell us that reinforcement works and punishment does not, because the opposite is the case.”"

Daniel Kahneman, Who Plumbed the Psychology of Economics, Dies at 90 (Gift Article) He helped pioneer a branch of the field that exposed hard-wired mental biases in people’s economic behavior. The work led to a Nobel.

My thoughts on this paper: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(24)00171-4 No, dogs don't grasp the meanings of words

Come work with me! I have a postdoc position open. Interested? Let's talk

There is still a chance to submit a paper for the first in person dog science conference in 3 years. The deadline for the Canine Science 2022 conference has been extended to July 15. Full details at: https://anagabrielajimenez.wixsite.com/caninescience2022/
See you there!

Canine science conference | Canine Science Conference 2022 This site gives specific details, registration and abstract links for the Canine Science Conference 2022.

Taking a 'test drive' with shelter dogs A study in Frontiers in Veterinary Science shows that people who participated in foster-to-adopt programs early in the pandemic adopted shelter dogs at a high rate.

This paper was a labor of love by many folks! Our publication on Emergency Fostering of Dogs From Animal Shelters During the COVID-19 Pandemic is out now in Frontiers:
frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2022.862590

Some key takeaways: 1) The largest proportion of foster caregivers were community members with no prior relationship with the shelter, and they were over 4x more likely to adopt than those with a pre-existing relationship to the shelter. Shelters would likely save resources and speed foster placement by regarding new caregivers as individuals fostering with the potential to adopt and reserving training until subsequent foster experiences. 2) Nearly 3/4s of individuals fostering with the intention to adopt adopted their dogs, demonstrating that foster-to-adopt and temporary foster programs are beneficial for shelter dog welfare and should be utilized by animal shelters as evidence-based best practices. 3) Behaviorally managed dogs were returned 3x more often from foster care for behavioral reasons than dogs without behavioral management, highlighting a need for additional caregiver support for these dogs.

Guy stops neighbor's dog howling when left home alone by barking back. I think I buy it

Help! I Found a Weird Way to Calm the Dog Next Door. My Neighbor Is Furious About It. Now I feel like maybe I made the situation worse from the start.

Awesome! (Snow storm... what's that? )

Many of us interested in dog behavior & training are worried about life for dogs post-pandemic (especially puppies and new additions), particularly when it comes to adjusting to life without humans in the home 24/7. Emma Greguska with ASU News reached out to the Canine Science Collaboratory about how owners can prepare their dogs as life goes back to normal. Thanks Emma for including Clive, Lisa, and Rachel in conversation and sharing helpful resources!

Easing your pup into post-pandemic life This summer, as more and more people are returning to work, the thought at the forefront of a lot of dog owners’ minds is the same: How can I help prepare Fido for my absence? Here, researchers from the Canine Science Collaboratory share some insights and pointers for easing your pup into post-pan...

Many thanks to Kimberlee D’Ardenne for the great article over at ASU News and Rob Ewing in the ASU Department of Psychology for interviewing Canine Science Collaboratory members, Lisa Gunter & Rachel Gilchrist, about their research on clicker training and short-term outings for shelter dogs.

Four-legged perspective improves the lives of dogs and their people The ASU Canine Science Collaboratory recently published two studies that take the perspective of dogs. The first study assessed whether clickers can train dogs faster or better than other positive reinforcement methods. The second study examined how a common shelter program affects stress levels in....

New publication from the Canine Science Collaboratory: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/2/548 "Investigating the Impact of Brief Outings on the Welfare of Dogs Living in US Shelters" takes a look at short-term outings by examining the cortisol values and activity of over 160 dogs at 4 shelters before, during, and after a field trip. We found that dogs' cortisol and activity increased during the afternoon of the field trip. Although both measures returned to baseline levels afterward, it's likely that short-term outings do not confer the same stress reduction benefits as sleepovers. Nevertheless, it is possible that these types of outing programs are beneficial to adoptions by increasing the visibility of dogs - and we'll have more data about this aspect of field trip and sleepover programs later on this year!