Human-Canine Relationships: Dog Behavior and Owner Perceptions

Owning a dog has many physiological and psychological advantages; however, dog behavior can manifest itself in a variety of negative ways, including aggression. Research suggested that genetics and environment might play a role in aggression. It was demonstrated that owners can affect their dogs’ behaviors. Owners can unwittingly condition or encourage their dogs to misbehave, whether through their inaccurate perceptions or misguided actions towards the dogs. Dog behavior specialists view owner education as the key to solving the communication barrier between human and canine. The present study’s purpose was to assess if this view was possible. The research question asked if owners who perceived to know about their dogs’ breed characteristics would have better behaved dogs than those who did not know. A survey scrutinized some owner factors, their perceptions of their dogs, and whether or not they thought a behavior therapist would be beneficial. The sample of rural participants generally believed their pets to be well behaved, and were not interested in a behavior therapist. However, there was a significant correlation between dog misbehavior and thinking that a behaviorist would be beneficial. There appeared to be no relationship between perceived knowledge and the amount of misbehavior. HUMAN-CANINE RELATIONSHIPS 4 Human-Canine Relationships: Dog Behavior and Owner Perceptions The relationship between people and dogs is one of the oldest human-animal liaisons in history. In modern times, dogs have provided aid in the mental health field, especially in regards to children and the elderly, and provided an exercise companion to encourage a less sedentary lifestyle. Nevertheless, they can express a number of unwanted behaviors, the most pressing misbehavior taking the form of aggression. There are a large number of theories and studies done to ascertain the causes or factors of misbehavior (chiefly aggression) and how they are exhibited, some of which conflict with one another. A number of dog behavior specialists now claim that owners play a major role in their dogs’ behavior. They believe that education is the key to the dilemma of misbehavior. The main purpose of this research was to determine if there was a correlation between perceived knowledge of the owned breed and the dog’s behavior, as well as assessing the desire for professional intervention. This study is done in the hope that others may improve upon it, so that not only will there be more knowledge concerning the human-canine bond, but a subsequent enhancement of the relationship for both owners and the dogs they love. Importance of Human-Canine Bond The human-animal bond has been defined by the American Veterinary Medical Association as a mutually beneficial, dynamic relationship between people and animals that is influenced by behaviors that were essential to the health and wellbeing of both (Schaffer, 2009). Out of all the bonds made between humans and animals, the human-canine relationship was arguably the strongest and oldest. J. Archer commented that fossils show people associating with canines since the dawn of humanity (Fawcett & Gullone, 2001). Tomb paintings, ancient artifacts and texts revealed that dogs have played a role in human societies for thousands of years. Through the ages, dogs have helped guard and herd livestock, guard homes and castles, pull sleds and HUMAN-CANINE RELATIONSHIPS 5 carts, find criminals and victims, and hunt and provide meat, and were the first animal to be domesticated (Dotson & Hyatt, 2008; Schaefer, 2002). Today, canines have become a part of the human family. “Approximately 61 million dogs are pets in the United States” (Marinelli, Adamelli, Normando & Bono, 2007, p. 457). The 2002 United States Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook stated that, out of American dog owners, 51 percent perceived their dogs as members of the family (Dotson & Hyatt, 2008). After domesticating the dog, man formed a bond between owner and canine (Marinelli et al., 2007). The Positive Effects of Canines on Humans The positive correlation between physiological and psychological benefits with canine companionship has been well documented. Many researchers have listed such benefits as, lowered heart rates, blood pressure, and anxiety. Dog companionship has also been associated with the, “alleviation of depression and greater self-esteem” (Martin & Farnum, 2002, p. 658). The history of using animal companionship for physically or mentally ill people dated back to the York Retreat in England, one of the few places in the 1700s that did not treat mentally ill patients like criminals. William Tuke, the founder, encouraged patients to do activities such as reading, writing, exploring the grounds, wearing normal clothing (as opposed to uniforms), and caring for animals. Nurturing animals was supposed to present socialization, provide pleasure, and promote recovery. Other early organizations to use companion animals as a part of treatment were Bethel in Germany, and the American Red Cross study at the AAF Convalescent Center (Schaefer, 2002). Canines began to be used in other ways than to bring psychological health to the mentally ill, one of which was in the offices of child psychologists. The utilization of animals in child psychology began with Boris Levinson using his dog as a bridge to communicate with a HUMAN-CANINE RELATIONSHIPS 6 withdrawn boy. At the time, Levinson called it social facilitation, later dubbed Animal Assisted Therapy, or AAT (Fawcett & Gullone, 2001). Animal Assisted Therapy was the latest method of helping people with many physiological and psychological issues (Schaffer, 2009). In the clinical realm, dogs were utilized to aid children with a plethora of physical, behavioral, and cognitive disorders with positive results. Lately, research conducted on the effects of AAT on children with pervasive developmental disorders (Martin & Farnum, 2002). Studies indicated that AAT might improve children with conduct disorder and deficit hyperactivity disorder. The idea behind it was that caring for animals gave children an opportunity to feel competent without fear of any negative evaluation. However, there has been a lack of empirical evidence that strongly concluded the benefits of AAT for children (Fawcett & Gullone, 2001), especially children with developmental disorders (Martin & Farnum, 2002). There were studies that indicated that owning pets, like dogs, exhibited positive effects for children. Owning a pet could heighten their autonomy, supporting the popular notion that a pet encouraged responsibility. Children with pets tended to have higher self-esteem and more positive self-concept than their pet-less counterparts. Explanations for such findings included that pets acted as a resource for support during stress, especially when there was no human support available (Van Houtte & Jarvis, 1995). It was previously found that children developed a sense of security from an animal companion, stuffed animal, or fictional animal (Schaefer, 2002). At night, a small child may have received comfort from his pet dog sleeping by his bed, or by cuddling his stuffed dog (Martin & Farnum, 2002). Pets might have special benefits for boys’ social development, as seen in a study concerning the effects of pets on children’s behavior. It was found that caring and playing with a pet was not affected by the children’s HUMAN-CANINE RELATIONSHIPS 7 gender. This finding was significant because it showed that pets gave boys an opportunity to display nurturing behavior without upsetting gender roles (Schaefer, 2002). Dogs are not only used with children. They have often been in nursing home environments to bring joy to the residents, who often spend the rest of their lives cut off from friends and family. AAT has been known to help victims of loneliness begin to interact more with their environment, eliciting smiles and even conversation from the most socially distant elderly person (Schaffer, 2009). Dog ownership in general has been shown to benefit the elderly. There was an association between the frequency of visiting physicians and the accumulation of stressful life events, such as the death of loved ones, for seniors without pets. However, this finding was negated when it came to pet owners. Pets provided a sense of companionship, security, and love for their elderly owners. Stronger attachment levels to pets tended to correlate with better mental and physical health. Out of the pets looked at in one particular research endeavor, dogs provided the most social benefits. Unlike the other pets, dogs were better stress relievers. Dog owners spent more time with their dogs, and did more activities outside with their dogs, which may have helped keep seniors more physically active. Dogs were more likely than other pets to provide feelings of security for their elderly owners (Siegel, 1990). Another area where the human-canine bond has been positive is exercise (Cutt, Giles-Corti, & Knuiman, 2008). With the rise in obesity, inactivity was connected with chronic health problems, early deaths, and billions of dollars spent on healthcare. Therefore, there have been a number of studies concerning the link between dog ownership and physical activity (Brown & Rhodes, 2006). In both the United States and Austria, dog owners were more likely to achieve the recommended amount of time of physical activity than non-dog owners (Brown & Rhodes, 2006; Cutt et al., 2008). In Australia, women were about 31 percent less likely to walk when they had HUMAN-CANINE RELATIONSHIPS 8 no companion or pet. A dog for a walking companion could provide her owner with a sense of safety when walking alone, especially at night or dangerous neighborhood. Dog-walking has been shown to increase social contact with other people (Cutt, Giles-Corti, Knuiman, & Burke, 2007). Not all dog owners walk their dogs. Though dog owners walk more than others, about 60 percent of dog owne