Editorial: Working Dogs: Form and Function

Conservation detection dogs: A critical review of efficacy and methodology

Conservation detection dogs (CDD) use their exceptional olfactory abilities to assist a wide range of conservation projects through the detection of target specimens or species. CDD are generally quicker, can cover wider areas and find more samples than humans and other analytical tools. However, their efficacy varies between studies; methodological and procedural standardisation in the field is lacking. Considering the cost of deploying a CDD team and the limited financial resources within conservation, it is vital that their performance is quantified and reliable. This review aims to summarise what is currently known about the use of scent detection dogs in conservation and elucidate which factors affect efficacy. We describe the efficacy of CDD across species and situational contexts like training and fieldwork. Reported sensitivities (i.e. the proportion of target samples found out of total available) ranged from 23.8% to 100% and precision rates (i.e. proportion of alerts that are true positives) from 27% to 100%. CDD are consistently shown to be better than other techniques, but performance varies substantially across the literature. There is no consistent difference in efficacy between training, testing and fieldwork, hence we need to understand the factors affecting this. We highlight the key variables that can alter CDD performance. External effects include target odour, training methods, sample management, search methodology, environment and the CDD handler. Internal effects include dog breed, personality, diet, age and health. Unfortunately, much of the research fails to provide adequate information on the dogs, handlers, training, experience and samples. This results in an inability to determine precisely why an individual study has high or low efficacy. It is clear that CDDs can be effective and applied to possibly limitless conservation scenarios, but moving forward researchers must provide more consistent and detailed methodologies so that comparisons can be conducted, results are more easily replicated and progress can be made in standardising CDD work.

Physical activity and sport-specific training patterns in Swedish sporting and working trial dogs-A questionnaire survey

OBJECTIVE

To explore physical activity patterns, including conditioning exercise and sport-specific training, and management routines utilized by handlers of Swedish sporting and working dogs participating in agility, obedience, rally obedience and working trial disciplines.

PROCEDURES

Dog handlers provided information on competition-level dogs through an internet-based cross-sectional and descriptive survey on physical activity, sport-specific training and management. Results are reported overall and stratified by participation in specific disciplines.

RESULTS

We received 1615 replies to the questionnaire. After data cleaning, 1582 dogs (98%) remained for the analysis. Of these, 430 participated in agility, 790 in obedience, 596 in rally obedience, and 847 dogs had competed in a working trial, i.e., messenger, protection, search or tracking. Number of disciplines performed by each dog varied between one and five. Most common was participation in one (n = 767, 48%) or two (n = 541, 34%) disciplines. Out of the dogs competing in one discipline, 38% (n = 294) were considered to be specialized as they actively trained only that discipline for ≥10 months per year. The vast majority of the dogs (n = 1129, 71%) received more than 1 h of daily physical activity, e.g., walks, and only n = 51 (3%) were never exercised off-leash. Preferred self-selected gait was trot (n = 907, 57%) and gallop (n = 499, 32%). A fifth (n = 319, 20%) never played with other dogs. The majority (n = 1328, 84%) received more than 1 h of vigorous physical conditioning exercise per week. Almost three quarters (n = 1119, 71%) participated in physical conditioning exercise. Two thirds (n = 953, 60%) participated in at least 3 h of sport-specific training per week and only a very small portion (n = 35, 2%) trained their specific discipline less than once per week. Median total work load, i.e., all daily physical activity, vigorous physical conditioning exercise and sport-specific training, was 16.5 h per week.

CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE

We observe physical activity at moderate to high durations and moderate to vigorous intensities among Swedish sporting and working trial dogs. Most dogs received physical conditioning exercise, but not all dogs were warmed up before training and competition. Our study provides veterinary professionals and dog trainers with valuable insights on the physical exposures and management routines of sporting and working trial dogs.

Dog Handler Beliefs regarding Barriers and Facilitators to Canine Health Promotion and Injury Prevention in Swedish Working Dog Trials and Competitions

Dog trials and competitions involve various sport disciplines, e.g., obedience, agility, working dog trials and rally obedience. Dog handlers navigate their dogs through physically and mentally demanding tasks. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of barriers and facilitators to canine health promotion and injury prevention described by dog handlers.

METHODS

Qualitative inductive content analysis was applied to systematically organize and interpret narrative data from 654 respondents' answers to open-ended questions in an anonymous online inquiry.

RESULTS

Two categories, with seven sub-categories, emerged from the analysis: (1) Challenges in applying the regulations in dog trials and competitions, and (2) Implementation of animal welfare and canine well-being approaches. Respondents described the challenges in applying regulations in dog trials and competitions and lack of scientific research as barriers to their intent to prevent injuries in their dogs. Implementation of animal welfare and canine well-being approaches were described as facilitators.

CONCLUSION

The findings imply that the stakeholders continuously need to work on bridging possible gaps between the canine welfare criteria and the scientific and empirical knowledge in canine sports and performance medicine.

Canine Mobility Maintenance and Promotion of a Healthy Lifestyle

This article highlights the recommendations and considerations for maintaining a healthy canine lifestyle. A key component of a healthy lifestyle is the enhancement and optimization of mobility. Mobility is essential in maintaining a high quality of life and involves the interplay of a dog's structure, posture, body condition score, physical exercise, and a healthy human-animal bond throughout a dog's lifetime.

Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation in Working Dogs

Canine sports medicine and rehabilitation recently have evolved to embody the optimization of performance, injury prevention, and mitigation of musculoskeletal degeneration. This article discusses the diverse factors and considerations of working dog wellness and injury prevention and the importance of recognizing normal and abnormal posture and anatomic structure for performance evaluation and early indication of musculoskeletal injury. The importance of a canine physical fitness program is highlighted and the need for a 4-phase recovery plan to determine if a working dog can safely return to work after injury discussed.

Operational Canine

Operational K9s encompass a unique population of working dogs that serve as a force multiplier in various civilian law enforcement, force protection, search and rescue, and humanitarian operations. These elite canines do not volunteer to serve, yet they are some of the most faithful and dependable operators in the field. They undoubtedly perform an invaluable service in today's society and are owed a tremendous debt of gratitude for their selfless service, loyalty, and sacrifices. This article describes the unique characteristics and occupational hazards that pertain to the community of Operational K9s.

Is cognition the secret to working dog success?

Dogs' special relationship with humans not only makes them ubiquitous in our lives, but working dogs specifically perform essential functions for us such as sniffing out bombs and pulling wheelchairs for the disabled. To enhance the performance of working dogs, it is essential to understand the cognitive skills that underlie and lead to their success. This review details recent work in the field of canine cognition, including how dogs have evolved socio-cognitive skills that mimic or, in some cases, rival even our closest primate relatives. We review how these findings have laid the foundation for new studies that hope to help enhance working dog programs. This includes work that has begun to reveal the development and stability of the most important traits for service work. Discoveries like these suggest the possibility of translating what we have learned to improve breeding, selection, and training for these jobs. The latest research we review here shows promise in contributing to the production of better dogs and, consequently, more help for people.

The Penn Vet Working Dog Center Fit to Work Program: A Formalized Method for Assessing and Developing Foundational Canine Physical Fitness

Fit to Work is a formalized working dog foundational physical fitness assessment and development program. The Penn Vet Working Dog Center developed this program to address the needs of working dog handlers, trainers, and programs for simple, effective, and efficient methods to develop and assess working dog physical fitness. Fit to Work focuses on the foundational fitness modalities of strength, stability, mobility, and proprioception. The Penn Vet Working Dog Center piloted and refined this program over 3 months in a closed population of 31 working dogs in training. Fit to Work consists of posture development and maintenance, warm-up and cool-down routines, training exercises, and assessment methods. To simplify implementation for dogs and personnel, the foundational training program incorporates a discrete number of exercises, standardized progression steps, defined criteria for progression, and a reduced emphasis on learned behaviors. Fit to Work also enables safe and progressive assessment of foundational fitness through a tiered and inexpensive process. Future research will focus on validation of training and assessment methods, development of assessment standards, and correlation of physical fitness with operational performance.