This study explored the influence of five types of olfactory stimulation (control, lavender, chamomile, rosemary and peppermint) on the behaviour of 55 dogs housed in a rescue shelter. The dogs were exposed to each type of olfactory stimulation, through the diffusion of essential oils, for 4 h a day for 5 days, with an intervening period of 2 days between conditions. The dogs’ behaviour was recorded on days 1, 3 and 5, during each condition of olfactory stimulation. Certain aspects of the dogs’ behaviour were influenced by the odours.
To investigate the role of experience in humans’ perception of emotion using canine visual signals, we asked adults with various levels of dog experience to interpret the emotions of dogs displayed in videos. The video stimuli had been pre-categorized by an expert panel of dog behavior professionals as showing examples of happy or fearful dog behavior. In a sample of 2,163 participants, the level of dog experience strongly predicted identification of fearful, but not of happy, emotional examples.
American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior. (2008). AVSAB position statement on Puppy Socialization. Retrieved February 14, 2022, from https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Puppy_Socialization_Position_Statement_Download_-_10-3-14.pdf
Bray, E.E., Sammel, M.D., Cheney, D.L., Serpell, J.A. And Seyfarth, R. M. (2017). Characterizing Early Maternal Style in a Population of Guide Dogs. Frontiers in Psychology.
Yu, Y., Wilson, B., Masters, S., van Rooy, D., and McGreevy, P. Mortality resulting from undesirable behaviours in dogs aged three years and under attending primary-care veterinary practices in Australia. problem behavior intervention
Scott, J.P. and Fuller, J.L., (1965). Genetics and the social behavior of the dog. 1st ed. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Socialization Early Exposure
