Does Subjective Rating Reflect Behavioural Coding? Personality in 2 Month-Old Dog Puppies: An Open-Field Test and Adjective-Based Questionnaire

Barnard, Shanis; Marshall-Pescini, Sarah; Passalacqua, Chiara; Beghelli, Valentina; Capra, Alexa; Normando, Simona; Pelosi, Annalisa; Valsecchi, Paola

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0149831

Cited by 24 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 55 publications

(77 reference statements)

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“…Confirming previous results 15 and thereby adding robustness to our assessment tool, the cluster analysis extracted six main personality traits “Exuberant attitude”, “Cautious attitude”, “Relaxed attitude”, “Social interaction”, “Playful interaction” and “Non-stimuli related behaviour”.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Breed, sex, and litter effects in 2-month old puppies’ behaviour in a standardised open-field test

Barnard

Marshall-Pescini

Pelosi

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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A considerable number of studies have reported differences among dog breeds with respect to their genetic profile, cognitive abilities or personality traits. Each dog breed is normally treated as a homogeneous group, however, researchers have recently questioned whether the behavioural profile of modern breeds still reflects their historical function or if the intense divergent selective pressures and geographical barriers have created a more fragmented picture. The majority of studies attempting to assess and compare modern breeds' personality focused on the evaluation of adult dogs where the potential effects of environmental/human factors on the dogs' behaviour are hard to discern from their genetic heritage. In the following study, we aimed at investigating between-and within-breed differences in the personality of two-months-old puppies by direct behavioural observation of 377 puppies from 12 breeds. Results showed that there was no effect of sex, however both breed and litter, significantly affected all personality traits. Breed on average explained 10% of the variance, whereas the effect of litter was noticeably higher, explaining on average 23% of the variance. Taken together, our results suggest that breed does have some influence on personality traits, but they also highlight the importance of taking litter effects into account.The assessment of dogs' personality has gained increasing attention in the last decades for its potential applicability 1-4 , as well as for more theoretical aspects, such as the genetic basis of complex behaviour 5,6 . One of the topics, strictly linked to dog personality that is still being debated, is whether dogs from different breeds significantly diverge on specific behavioural traits, potentially reflecting their historical function (original selection to optimise their performance in specific tasks as stated by the kennel clubs standards) 7-9 . Breed profiling has largely been based on historical and anecdotal notions rather than scientific evidence 8 . However, more recently scientific attempts to provide reliable profiling of modern breeds, taking into account the large within-breed variability due to different selective pressures and geographical barriers, have been carried out 7,8,[10][11][12] . Svartberg 7 , for example, found that within the same breeds, irrespective of their historical function, individuals in lines selected for companionship showed high levels of playfulness, whereas selection for use in dog shows correlated positively with fearfulness and negatively with playfulness, aggressiveness, and curiosity. However, thus far, the majority of studies attempting to assess breed personality have been carried out using questionnaire-based methods 8,13,14 and have largely focused on the evaluation of adult dogs 7, 9 . Yet, behavioural variability towards different stimuli and situations can be detected also in puppies [15][16][17][18] and arguably, if there are breed differences in temperament, observing these in puppies would provide stronger evidence, since ...

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Breed, sex, and litter effects in 2-month old puppies’ behaviour in a standardised open-field test

Barnard

Marshall-Pescini

Pelosi

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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“…In harmony with this, studies correlating video rating with questionnaire rating generally reported higher correlations (e.g. [ 60 , 87 ]) than those correlating video rating with video coding (e.g. [ 84 , 85 ]).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Personality traits in companion dogs—Results from the VIDOPET

et al. 2018

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Individual behavioural differences in pet dogs are of great interest from a basic and applied research perspective. Most existing dog personality tests have specific (practical) goals in mind and so focused only on a limited aspect of dogs’ personality, such as identifying problematic (aggressive or fearful) behaviours, assessing suitability as working dogs, or improving the results of adoption. Here we aimed to create a comprehensive test of personality in pet dogs that goes beyond traditional practical evaluations by exposing pet dogs to a range of situations they might encounter in everyday life. The Vienna Dog Personality Test (VIDOPET) consists of 15 subtests and was performed on 217 pet dogs. A two-step data reduction procedure (principal component analysis on each subtest followed by an exploratory factor analysis on the subtest components) yielded five factors: Sociability-obedience, Activity-independence, Novelty seeking, Problem orientation, and Frustration tolerance. A comprehensive evaluation of reliability and validity measures demonstrated excellent inter- and intra-observer reliability and adequate internal consistency of all factors. Moreover the test showed good temporal consistency when re-testing a subsample of dogs after an average of 3.8 years—a considerably longer test-retest interval than assessed for any other dog personality test, to our knowledge. The construct validity of the test was investigated by analysing the correlations between the results of video coding and video rating methods and the owners’ assessment via a dog personality questionnaire. The results demonstrated good convergent as well as discriminant validity. To conclude, the VIDOPET is not only a highly reliable and valid tool for measuring dog personality, but also the first test to show consistent behavioural traits related to problem solving ability and frustration tolerance in pet dogs.

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“…Conversely, reactivity, protectiveness, and fearfulness are additional dimensions to the five-factor model. Reactivity emerged in several studies on non-human animals [ 3 , 5 , 7 , 32 , 35 ], while protectiveness has been previously used in the description of dogs’ personalities [ 8 ], but did not emerge in studies evaluating cats [ 7 , 9 ]. In cats, instead, some authors have identified dimensions such as dominant and curious [ 36 , 37 ] or human aggressive [ 7 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, there are different human perceptions and knowledge of dog and cat personalities. First, behavioural traits of dogs are widely recognised [ 9 , 17 , 35 ], while cats’ personalities, behavioural needs, sociality, and cat-human communication are still poorly understood [ 9 , 19 , 36 ]. Cats may use different communication tools from dogs [ 20 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

My Dog Is Not My Cat: Owner Perception of the Personalities of Dogs and Cats Living in the Same Household

Menchetti

Calipari

Guelfi

et al. 2018

Animals

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Simple SummaryA growing number of dogs and cats live together, sharing both a common home and common owner. Nevertheless, how do owners of both cats and dogs living in the same household perceive their pets’ personalities? We tried to answer this question by using a questionnaire targeted at people who owned both dogs and cats. Sociability, protectiveness, reactivity, neuroticism, and fearfulness were the traits that emerged and that diversified themselves according to species. Moreover, intrinsic animal factors, such as age and gender, demographic characteristics of the owner, and environmental context seem to modulate the perceived personality traits in a species-specific way. As personality might influence pets’ welfare and adaptability to the home environment, owners of multiple pets should know and take into consideration both common and differential aspects of their pet’s personality to optimise cohabitation among dogs and cats.AbstractThis study aims to define the personality traits perceived by the owners of multiple pets and to evaluate how they are modulated by experiential-environmental factors. A questionnaire was administered to 1270 owners of multiple pets (dogs and cats) to collect data on the demographics, management, and personality of their pets. Data were analysed by principal component analysis, bivariate, and multivariable models. Five personality traits emerged in dogs and cats: sociability, reactivity, protectiveness, neuroticism, and fearfulness. The owners perceived differences in the personality of their pet: dogs scored higher in sociability, protectiveness, and reactivity, while lower in the neuroticism dimension compared with cats (p < 0.001). Age similarly affected sociability (p < 0.01), and reactivity (p < 0.001) in both dogs and cats, while species-specific gender differences were found as to fearfulness (p < 0.05) and neuroticism (p < 0.001). The age of acquisition modulated several traits in dog personality, while living with conspecifics especially influenced cats. Physiological, behavioural, and evolutionary characteristics could explain species differences. Moreover, intrinsic and extrinsic factors modulated the five dimensions of dogs and cats in a diversified fashion, suggesting complex interactions between species and the environment. However, owners could have had different attitudes with their animals which could have influenced personality perception.

show abstract

Does Subjective Rating Reflect Behavioural Coding? Personality in 2 Month-Old Dog Puppies: An Open-Field Test and Adjective-Based Questionnaire

Cited by 24 publications

References 55 publications

Breed, sex, and litter effects in 2-month old puppies’ behaviour in a standardised open-field test

Breed, sex, and litter effects in 2-month old puppies’ behaviour in a standardised open-field test

Personality traits in companion dogs—Results from the VIDOPET

My Dog Is Not My Cat: Owner Perception of the Personalities of Dogs and Cats Living in the Same Household

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