Effect of Sex and Reproductive Status on Inhibitory Control and Social Cognition in the Domestic Dog (Canis familiaris)

Abstract

Sex differences in a variety of cognitive traits have long been reported in various species, including dogs. However, only a few canine studies have taken the possible effect of reproductive hormones into account. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of sex and reproductive status of pet dogs (N = 1032) on two cognitive traits: inhibitory control and social cognition. Inhibitory control was assessed using the cylinder test, and the dogs’ tendency to initiate social contact with a human during a problem-solving situation was assessed using the unsolvable task. Female dogs had a significantly higher success rate in the cylinder test compared to males, and they spent significantly more time in human-directed behavior during the unsolvable task. In contrast, males spent significantly more time in independent behavior during the unsolvable task. Reproductive status had no significant effect on the results of the cylinder test or the unsolvable task. Our results showed that female dogs asked for more help/used a more cooperative strategy during a problem-solving situation and had greater inhibitory control compared to males. According to our results, it seems likely that these sex differences were not influenced to a large extent by reproductive hormones.

Impulsivity as a trait in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris): A systematic review and meta-analysis.

“…Moreover, our estimate of between-study heterogeneity was low, suggesting that, even with small samples, we do not seem to have large sampling effects differing across studies. This is reassuring given the variation observed in dogs in breed, sex, and neuter status, some of which can influence impulsivity (Junttila et al, 2021(Junttila et al, , 2022. Nevertheless, as is often the case with meta-analyses (Valentine et al, 2010), we cannot draw strong conclusions and must call for more studies with larger sample sizes to address these questions.…”

Dogs Exhibiting High Levels of Aggressive Reactivity Show Impaired Self-Control Abilities

“…Despite a number of studies reporting no sex differences in inhibitory control in dogs ( 13 , 19 , 22 ), a recent study ( 63 ) found that female dogs displayed better inhibitory control, making investigation of sex differences an interesting aspect for future research. In our study, the fact that the aggression test was performed first followed by two cognitive test on the same day may present a serious limitation.…”

Impulsivity as a trait in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris): A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…An active area of research in human and rat impulsivity explores the mechanisms underlying this construct (Robbins & Dalley, 2017). Though studies of genetic (Hejjas et al, 2007;Kubinyi et al, 2012), neural (Cook et al, 2016), and hormonal (Rayment et al, 2020;Junttila et al, 2021) mechanisms of impulsivity are increasing in canine science, we lack a coherent research program on the underpinnings of impulsivity in dogs, and further investigations in this area could be a fruitful area of research (Olsen, 2018). Understanding the genetic, neural, and hormonal influences on impulsivity has critical implications for the breeding, selection, and training of not only pet dogs but also working and service dogs.…”