An approach to canine behavioural genetics employing guide dogs for the blind

Factors associated with pet dog behavior in Thailand

Background and Aim

Dog behavior problems pose serious public health and economic and animal welfare concerns. There are many factors influencing dog behavior. This study aims to explore factors associated with pet dog behavior in Thailand using the Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ).

Materials and Methods

The Thai version of the C-BARQ was validated in 2022. The online C-BARQ survey (Google Forms) was advertised and distributed on social media for 3 months. There were a total of 1827 respondents to the survey. The relationship among 12 subscales and variables was analyzed using Spearman's correlation.

Results

"Excitability," "attachment- and attention-seeking," and "chasing" were the three most reported behavior problems. "Trainability," a favored dog behavior, also had a high score in the study. These behaviors were associated with the owner's age, house type, the dog's historical background, the number of dogs and the presence of other species in the household, the dog's training, diet types, and the daily number of meals. The lowest mean score was for "owner-directed aggression," and it was associated with the dog's gender and size, the number of dogs and the presence of other species in the household, the dog's training, and the number of daily meals.

Conclusion

This is the first empirical study demonstrating factors related to dog behavior in Thailand. It provides an in-depth understanding of the prevalence and factors associated with Thai pet dog behavior and important knowledge for further studies to advocate for dog-human relationships and contribute to a reduction in dog abandonment in Thailand.

Application of an Adapted Behaviour Change Wheel to Assistance Dog Puppy Raising: A Proposed Raiser-Centred Support Program

Puppy raising (PR) programs recruit volunteer community members (raisers) to raise assistance dog (AD) candidates from puppyhood until the dogs are ready for advanced training. Once qualified, ADs assist human handlers with a disability to live more independently. Unfortunately, about 50% of all puppies do not meet the behavioural standards required for further training after completing a PR program. This increases costs and lengthens the time taken for a handler to obtain an AD. Research has identified several factors that influence raisers' experiences. It has also shown that raisers' socialisation and training practices affect perceived puppy behaviour. Drawing on the argument that puppy raiser practices are central to improving overall puppy raising program outcomes, this paper interprets recent findings within the framework provided by the behaviour change wheel-an established behaviour change framework-to suggest a coordinated approach to supporting puppy raisers. The recommendations will allow future research to employ more objective measures and more rigorous experimental designs as the field attempts to corroborate existing findings and develop evidence-based models of practice.

Czechoslovakian Wolfdog Genomic Divergence from Its Ancestors Canis lupus, German Shepherd Dog, and Different Sheepdogs of European Origin

This study focused on the genomic differences between the Czechoslovakian wolfdog (CWD) and its ancestors, the Grey wolf (GW) and German Shepherd dog. The Saarloos wolfdog and Belgian Shepherd dog were also included to study the level of GW genetics retained in the genome of domesticated breeds. The dataset consisted of 131 animals and 143,593 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The effects of demographic history on the overall genome structure were determined by screening the distribution of the homozygous segments. The genetic variance distributed within and between groups was quantified by genetic distances, the FST index, and discriminant analysis of principal components. Fine-scale population stratification due to specific morphological and behavioural traits was assessed by principal component and factorial analyses. In the CWD, a demographic history effect was manifested mainly in a high genome-wide proportion of short homozygous segments corresponding to a historical load of inbreeding derived from founders. The observed proportion of long homozygous segments indicated that the inbreeding events shaped the CWD genome relatively recently compared to other groups. Even if there was a significant increase in genetic similarity among wolf-like breeds, they were genetically separated from each other. Moreover, this study showed that the CWD genome carries private alleles that are not found in either wolves or other dog breeds analysed in this study.

Raising an Assistance Dog Puppy-Stakeholder Perspectives on What Helps and What Hinders

Simple Summary

Puppy raisers (or foster families) are volunteers who care for assistance dog puppies until they are ready to learn how to help people with a disability. During this period, some puppies develop behaviours unsuitable for assistance roles and end up changing careers or being rehomed as pets, which is wasteful. Puppy raisers control the early experiences of their puppies, and they vary in their puppy-raising outcomes, but we do not know what specifically helps some puppy raisers produce puppies that are behaviourally suitable for an assistance role. In this study, we interviewed 17 people from seven countries who were either experienced puppy raisers or provider program staff, or both. Their responses suggested several individual factors (expectations, competency, perseverance and passion) and social factors (informational and emotional supports), in addition to the puppies’ characteristics, that influenced the experiences and perceived effectiveness of their puppy-raising practices. These factors are also evident in other well-established areas of research (e.g., education, volunteerism, social support, and organisational performance). We propose recommendations for assistance dog organisations based on those relevant frameworks, which focus on enhancing puppy raisers’ competency, positive experiences, and program retention.

Abstract

Assistance dog puppies live with their raisers for up to 16 months before entering advanced training and, hopefully, becoming qualified to help people with a disability. Almost half of the puppies fail to meet the behavioural standards required for assistance dogs, and some puppy raisers produce more behaviourally favourable puppies than others. It is unclear what factors influence puppy-raising practice quality. To understand this, we interviewed 17 participants, including experienced puppy raisers (n = 8), provider organisation staff (n = 4), and those who have served both as puppy raisers and staff (n = 5). Results of a thematic analysis suggest three groups of influencing factors, namely intrapersonal factors, social support, and puppy characteristics. Intrapersonal factors such as expectations, competency, perseverance and passion were reported to influence puppy raisers’ experiences, puppy-raising quality, and continuity of service. Contextual factors such as availability of social support (informational and emotional supports) and less-demanding puppies both led to positive puppy-raising experiences, while the former also contributed to puppy raisers’ perceptions of competency. Future research should quantitatively examine the interrelationships of these factors concerning puppies’ behavioural development. Meanwhile, organisations could consider these factors when developing their recruitment and puppy-raiser support programs.

Effect of Canine Oxytocin Receptor Gene Polymorphism on the Successful Training of Drug Detection Dogs

Drug detection dogs can be trained to locate various prohibited drugs with targeted odors, and they play an important role in the interdiction of drug smuggling in human society. Recent studies provide the interesting hypothesis that the oxytocin system serves as a biological basis for co-evolution between dogs and humans. Here, we offer the new possibility that genetic variation of the canine oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene may regulate the success of a dog's training to become a drug detection dog. A total of 340 Labrador Retriever dogs that were trained to be drug detection dogs in Japan were analyzed. We genotyped an exonic SNP (rs8679682) in the OXTR gene and compared the training success rate of dogs with different genotypes. We also asked dog trainers in the training facility to evaluate subjective personality assessment scores for each dog and examined how each dog's training success was related to those scores. A significant effect of the OXTR genotype on the success of the dogs' training was found, with a higher proportion of dogs carrying the C allele (T/C and C/C genotypes) being successful candidates than dogs carrying the T/T genotype. Dog personality scores of Training Focus (Factor 1) were positively correlated with an increased likelihood that a dog would successfully complete training. Although the molecular mechanism of the OXTR gene and its functional pathway related to dog behavior remains unknown, our findings suggest that canine OXTR gene variants may regulate individual differences between dogs in their responsiveness to training for drug detection.

Spotlight on Assistance Dogs-Legislation, Welfare and Research

Simple Summary

Assistance dogs support humans with a variety of disabilities. Although guide dogs in particular have a long tradition in Western cultures, the legal situation around assistance dogs has been insufficiently developed in many countries so far—a situation that potentially negatively affects both animal and owner. There is also an insufficient amount of research examining assistance dogs in other areas. Studies investigating assistance dogs’ welfare status, cognitive and behavioural capacities, selection criteria for the best fitting individuals, effective training and management practices, and genetic issues, are so far mainly lacking. This review takes a comprehensive approach—it initially outlines important aspects of the current legal situation for assistance dogs in the European Union and Australia, and then it summarizes research findings focusing on dogs’ welfare, cognition, behaviour, health and training. For each of these areas, the need for future development is highlighted and potential ideas for future directions are discussed.

Abstract

Assistance dogs are a very diverse group of working dogs that are trained to assist humans with different types of disabilities in their daily lives. Despite these dogs’ value for humankind, research on their welfare status, cognitive and behavioural capacities, selection criteria for the best fitting individuals, effective training and management practices, and genetic issues are so far lacking. This review highlights the need to address these topics and to promote progress in legal issues around assistance dogs. The topic of assistance dogs is approached comprehensively by outlining the current status of knowledge in three different dimensions: (1) the legal dimension, outlining important legal issues in the EU and Australia; (2) the welfare dimension; and (3) the dimension of research, covering assistance dog selection and training. For each of these three dimensions, we discuss potential approaches that can be implemented in the future in order to support assistance dog working performance, to protect the dogs’ welfare, and to improve our knowledge about them. Additionally, there remain many legal issues, such as the presence of assistance dogs in public areas, the resolution of which would benefit both the assistance dog and the owner with disability.

Personality consistency analysis in cloned quarantine dog candidates

In recent research, personality consistency has become an important characteristic. Diverse traits and human-animal interactions, in particular, are studied in the field of personality consistency in dogs. Here, we investigated the consistency of dominant behaviours in cloned and control groups followed by the modified Puppy Aptitude Test, which consists of ten subtests to ascertain the influence of genetic identity. In this test, puppies are exposed to stranger, restraint, prey-like object, noise, startling object, etc. Six cloned and four control puppies participated and the consistency of responses at ages 7–10 and 16 weeks in the two groups was compared. The two groups showed different consistencies in the subtests. While the average scores of the cloned group were consistent (P = 0.7991), those of the control group were not (P = 0.0089). Scores of Pack Drive and Fight or Flight Drive were consistent in the cloned group, however, those of the control group were not. Scores of Prey Drive were not consistent in either the cloned or the control group. Therefore, it is suggested that consistency of dominant behaviour is affected by genetic identity and some behaviours can be influenced more than others. Our results suggest that cloned dogs could show more consistent traits than non-cloned. This study implies that personality consistency could be one of the ways to analyse traits of puppies.

Glutathione supplementation to semen extender improves the quality of frozen-thawed canine spermatozoa for transcervical insemination

The present study was conducted to evaluate whether supplementation of semen extender with glutathione (GSH) can maintain the quality of frozen-thawed canine spermatozoa. Eighteen ejaculates were obtained from 5 dogs and placed in extender (20% egg yolk, Tris, citric acid, lactose, raffinose, antibiotics and 6.5% glycerol) containing 0 (control), 2.5, 5, 7.5 or 10 mM GSH. The samples were cooled to 4 C and then frozen in liquid nitrogen vapor. Motility parameters of the sperm were evaluated at 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 12 and 24 h after thawing. Sperm motility was higher in the 5 mM GSH group than in the control or 2.5 and 10 mM GSH groups; this effect was observed at 1 to 24 h after thawing (P < 0.05). The 5 mM GSH group had a higher sperm viability index at 12 and 24 h after thawing compared with the other groups (P < 0.05). Acrosome integrity, evaluated at 4 h after thawing, was greater in two of the GSH-treated groups (5 and 10 mM) compared with the control. Lipid peroxidation (LP) levels immediately after thawing were lower in the 5 and 10 mM GSH groups compared with the control, while those at 12 h after thawing did not differ significantly. Frozen-thawed semen in the 5 mM GSH group was used for transcervical insemination of 4 bitches, resulting in delivery of 5 puppies from 2 bitches. These results indicate that supplementation of semen extender with 5 mM GSH was effective in improving motility, longevity and acrosomal integrity and inhibiting LP levels in post-thaw canine spermatozoa, without any adverse impacts on full-term development after transcervical insemination.

Genetics and behavior: a guide for practitioners

Phenotyping behavior is difficult, partly because behavior is almost always influenced by environment. Using objective terms/criteria to evaluate behaviors is best; the more objective the assessment, the more likely underlying genetic patterns will be identified. Behavioral pathologies, and highly desirable behavioral characteristics/traits, are likely complex, meaning that multiple genes are probably involved, and therefore simple genetic tests are less possible. Breeds can be improved using traditional quantitative genetic methods; unfortunately, this also creates the possibility of inadvertently selecting for covarying undesirable behaviors. Patterns of behaviors within families and breed lines are still the best guidelines for genetic counseling in dogs.

Holding back the genes: limitations of research into canine behavioural genetics

Canine behaviours that are both desirable and undesirable to owners have a demonstrable genetic component. Some behaviours are breed-specific, such as the livestock guarding by maremmas and flank sucking seen in Dobermanns. While the identification of genes responsible for common canine diseases is rapidly advancing, those genes underlying behaviours remain elusive. The challenges of accurately defining and measuring behavioural phenotypes remain an obstacle, and the use of variable phenotyping methods has prevented meta-analysis of behavioural studies. International standardised testing protocols and terminology in canine behavioural evaluations should facilitate selection against behavioural disorders in the modern dog and optimise breeding success and performance in working dogs. This review examines the common hurdles faced by researchers of behavioural genetics and the current state of knowledge.

QTL analysis of behavior in nine-spined sticklebacks (Pungitius pungitius)

The genetic architecture of behavioral traits is yet relatively poorly understood in most non-model organisms. Using an F2-intercross (n = 283 offspring) between behaviorally divergent nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) populations, we tested for and explored the genetic basis of different behavioral traits with the aid of quantitative trait locus (QTL) analyses based on 226 microsatellite markers. The behaviors were analyzed both separately (viz. feeding activity, risk-taking and exploration) and combined in order to map composite behavioral type. Two significant QTL-explaining on average 6 % of the phenotypic variance-were detected for composite behavioral type on the experiment-wide level, located on linkage groups 3 and 8. In addition, several suggestive QTL located on six other linkage groups were detected on the chromosome-wide level. Apart from providing evidence for the genetic basis of behavioral variation, the results provide a good starting point for finer-scale analyses of genetic factors influencing behavioral variation in the nine-spined stickleback.

DRD4 and TH gene polymorphisms are associated with activity, impulsivity and inattention in Siberian Husky dogs

Both dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) exon 3 and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) intron 4 repeat polymorphisms have been linked to activity and impulsivity in German Shepherd dogs (GSDs). However, the results in GSDs may not be generalisable to other breeds, as allelic frequencies vary markedly among breeds. We selected the Siberian Husky for further study, because it is highly divergent from most dog breeds, including the GSD. The study sample consisted of 145 racing Siberian Huskies from Europe and North America. We found that this breed possesses seven DRD4 length variants, two to five more variants than found in other breeds. Among them was the longest known allele, previously described only in wolves. Short alleles of the DRD4 and TH repeat polymorphisms were associated with higher levels of activity, impulsivity and inattention. Siberian Huskies possessing at least one short allele of the DRD4 polymorphism displayed greater activity in a behavioural test battery than did those with two long alleles. However, the behavioural test was brief and may not have registered variation in behaviour across time and situations. Owners also completed the Dog-Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale (Dog-ADHD RS), a more general measure of activity and attention. Siberian Huskies from Europe with two short alleles of the TH polymorphism received higher ratings of inattention on the Dog-ADHD RS than did those with the long allele. Investigation of the joint effect of DRD4 and TH showed that dogs possessing long alleles at both sites were scored as less active-impulsive than were others. Our results are aligned with previous studies showing that DRD4 and TH polymorphisms are associated with activity-impulsivity related traits in dogs. However, the prevalence of variants of these genes differs across breeds, and the functional role of specific variants is unclear.

Behavioral profiles of feline breeds in Japan

To clarify the behavioral profiles of 9 feline purebreds, 2 Persian subbreeds and the Japanese domestic cat, a questionnaire survey was distributed to 67 small-animal veterinarians. We found significant differences among breeds in all behavioral traits examined except for "inappropriate elimination". In addition, sexual differences were observed in certain behaviors, including "aggression toward cats", "general activity", "novelty-seeking", and "excitability". These behaviors were more common in males than females, whereas "nervousness" and "inappropriate elimination" were rated higher in females. When all breeds were categorized into four groups on the basis of a cluster analysis using the scores of two behavioral trait factors called "aggressiveness/sensitivity" and "vivaciousness", the group including Abyssinian, Russian Blue, Somali, Siamese, and Chinchilla breeds showed high aggressiveness/sensitivity and low vivaciousness. In contrast, the group including the American Shorthair and Japanese domestic cat displayed low aggressiveness/sensitivity and high vivaciousness, and the Himalayan and Persian group showed mild aggressiveness/sensitivity and very low vivaciousness. Finally, the group containing Maine Coon, Ragdoll, and Scottish Fold breeds displayed very low aggressiveness/sensitivity and low vivaciousness. The present results demonstrate that some feline behavioral traits vary by breed and/or sex.

Important behavioral traits for predicting guide dog qualification

Guide dogs for the blind help blind people physically and mentally in their daily lives. Their qualifications are based on health, working performance and temperament; approximately 70% of dogs that fail to qualify are disqualified for behavioral reasons. In order to achieve early prediction of qualification, it would be essential as the first step to identify important temperament traits for guide dogs. Therefore, we administered a questionnaire consisting of 22 temperament items to experienced trainers to assess candidate dogs at the Japan Guide Dog Association after three months of training, which was at least three months prior to the final success (qualified as a guide dog) or failure (disqualified for behavioral reasons) judgment. Factor analyses of question items stably extracted three factors with high internal consistency, Distraction, Sensitivity and Docility. When we compared factor points between successful dogs and failed dogs, the successful dogs showed significantly and consistently lower Distraction points and higher Docility points. Additionally, Distraction points could predict qualification with 80.6% accuracy and detect 28.2% of the failed dogs that had higher Distraction points than any of the successful dogs. Of the nine question items not included in the three factors, two items (;Aggression' and ;Animal interest') were consistently associated with qualification. These results suggest that Distraction is stably assessable and has the strongest impact on success or failure judgment; therefore, it will be the first target to establish a behavioral test that may lead to early prediction of guide dog qualification.