Canine Behaviour & Training

Ways of Explaining Behaviour

13th October 2012

Ways of Explaining Behaviour

Session 1

What is a ‘behaviour’?

What is a ‘behaviour’?

A behaviour is a response to an internal or external stimuli

“Behavioural Stimulus”

Stimulus=TriggerStimulants stimulate= the 5 sensesAnimal Responds to stimuli through voluntary or involuntary effecter muscle contraction

Senses and effecter muscles controlled by nervous system

What is ‘psychology’?

A relatively new science ( about 130 year old)

Difficult to define

“Psychology simply cannot be defined…psychology is what scientists and philosophers have created to try understand the minds and behaviours of various organisms.”

(Penguin Dictionary)

What is ‘psychology’?

Psychology is the study of the mind

(so animal or dog psychology is the study of animal/dog mind!)

How have we found out about dog psychology?

Adapted (and modified) the findings of research with humans

(dogs have also helped with human research)

This is known as “comparative psychology”

For the purpose of this course Canine Psychology is:

The study of the behaviour and some of the reasons why the behaviour has taken place

Ethology

The study of behaviour.

Concepts of Ethology have changed over time as have people’s ideas about behaviour, how animals learn & ‘the mind’ have changed

Learning & the mindGreek Philosophers-Learning was about

finding ‘truth’…animals though could no even feel pain!

Socrates Plato Aristotle

(469-399BC) (427-347BC) (384-322BC)

Dialectism Rationalism EmpiricismDiscovering truth Discovering Discovering through truth through about theconversation self-reflection world around

by using senses

Learning & the mindRoman Philosophers-Learning was about developing skill

Roman Catholic Church (500-1500AD)

• Memorisation

• Recitation

Transmission based Learning

Learning & the mindRenaissance Philosophers- (1400-1500AD)

Learning was about:

• Exploration• Freedom of thought (Humanism)• Thinking and understand ideas

Influential figures at this time:• Copernicus (1473-1543)• Martin Luther (1483-1546)

Learning & the mind

Renaissance Philosophers- (1500-1700AD)

Influential figures at this time and their ideas:• Descartes (1596-1650): Revival of Plato’s ideas of

innate knowledge, defined reflex action (early nature approach)

• Locke (1632-1704): Revived ideas of Aristotle that the mind is a blank canvas to be shaped by environment (nurture approach)

• Rousseau (1712-1778): Presented ideas of shaping that occurs through experience of things around (nurture)

• Kant (1724-1804): Extended Plato’s rationalist theory to include a ‘prior’ knowledge which can be built on with experience (interactionalist)

Learning & the mind

Psychology based learning- (1800-1900AD) Scientific approaches

Thorndike Pavlov Skinner

(1874-1949) (1849-1936) (1904-1990)

Stimulus Response Learning by Trial and ErrorAssociation association. Outcomes and with trial and error Natural responses consequences(an impulse reaction) and learnt responses

And more recently things like IQ and intelligence

have become more of interest

The effect of biology of behaviour

Inheritance of Traits (Genes)

Behaves way of dam or sire

Instinctive Behaviours (that of the specie)

Innate behaviours

(that of the breed)

Known as:Nature approach

Inherited Traits=characteristics

Physical

Physiological

Behavioural (as brain is an organ also)

Genetic Predispositions (the likelihood of being sufficiently motivated to)

herding

digging

trekking scent

guarding

killing vermin

The effect of biology (non-inherited)-internal stimuli

Pain

Hunger & Food given (e.g allergies)

Thirst

Hormones

Disease

Instinctive & Innate Behaviours

Instinct

“Natural Motivation to specific behavioural performance”

Occurs as part of a fixed action pattern I.e one stimulus triggers a behaviour and that behaviour (along with stimulus) triggers next

Instinctive Behaviours link to survival (although all behaviours do!)

Examples of Instinctive Dog Behaviours:

Instinctive Dog Behaviours

Lick offspringFind teatSucklePerform certain communication?

(appeasing gestures, barking, scenting..)

ChewingReproducing?

Some times it is hard to tell if behaviours are purely Instinctive or part learnt.

Innate Dog Behaviours

These are what are often seen as breed traits and relate to the breed groups dogs fit into:GuardingHerdingTrekkingChasingCapturingRetrieving

How the breed groups developed

Guarding = working dogs

people started keeping stock Food Sourceherding =pastoral (humans got sense!)

companion= toy + utility

Hunting human hunting methods developed

treking retrieving chasing+capturing

hounds gundogs hounds+ terriers

In training we link the innate behaviours to ‘desires’ (or more commonly referred to as motivations) and use dogs motivational preferences to encourage learning and to effectively reward

NEED desires=

NEED reward=

WANT desire=

WANT reward=

LIKE desire=

LIKE reward=

So, instinctive behaviours relate to survival and reproduction (caring for young, hunting (or parts there of), communication to work co-operatively and prevent conflict.

Some instinctive behaviours relate to the ‘fight and flight’ responses which are initiated by the sympathetic involuntary nervous system.

The Nervous System

Central and Peripheral Nervous System

•Autonomic (involuntary) vs Somatic (voluntary)

•Sympathetic vs Parasympathetic

The Autonomic Nervous System is further divided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous responses. The parasympathetic responses are normal functioning responses maintaining homeostasis (natural balance) whilst the sympathetic controls the important flight/flight response seen in animals and humans.

The diagram summarises the divisions.

Nervous Reflexes

Reflex Arc- Involuntary Peripheral Nervous Response

Involuntary Nervous responses cause…

Flight, Fight and Freeze ResponsesAll animals have flight and fight responses. These are behavioural responses that come as a result of an influx of adrenaline around the body, and the response of the sympathetic nervous system to a potential danger or threat.

The involuntary response to run or fight back is present in all animals including humans, as it is necessary for survival. Most animals will choose flight over fight as fighting is costly.

The degree of flight or fight and the option chosen at that time will depend on various factors including:·        Genetic programming (“flightiness”)·        Experience, training, socialisation and habituation of the animal (if the animal can recognise quickly that there is nothing really to fear)·        Health and fitness (if it has the ability to flee or defend)·        Escape option (can it get away)·        Resources of value (if there is something worth protecting other than itself e.g food, offspring)An alternative option is Freeze, known as Tonic Immobilisation

Level of behavioural response dependant on:

Genes (personality) “flightiness”

Experience (socialisation & habituation)

Habituation

Escape options

Resources

Can we over ride instinctive behaviours?

In human personality types those of higher neuroticism find themselves easily upset or nervous from minor stressors, they have low activation thresholds (i.e can’t tolerate much arousal) and are unable to prevent or control emotional reactions. On the other hand very stable (low neuroticism) people have much more emotional control, calm and controlled under pressure.

The same may appear in dogs as an element of ‘nature’ (and possibly nurture)

Yes! with learning through training (voluntary nervous system)If we assume all behaviour is due to genes or biology (including instinct) then we have a problem, in that in a similar way to physical characteristics we won’t be able to change them

The effect of learning on behaviour (behaviourists school of thought)Performs behaviour as a result of environment (external stimulus)

Behaviours are learnt (from

dam, sire or siblings)

Comes from own experience

Nurture approach

External Stimuli

Temperature

Light intensity

Other animals and people

Novel & Learnt Stimuli

Learning (in brief)

Socially By AssociationBy trial & error

e.g puppy steal bone from adult…growl followed by snap, to avoid snap get away as growl heard, growling and snapping are frightening, keep away with adults from bones.. This might be learnt through one trial learning.

(but also associative learning occurring)

Combined effects

Interactionist Approach

Relationship between nature and nurture

Cognition

Mental processes such as thinking or the ability to work things out in one’s head.

Cognitive abilities of animals have always been questioned;

Aristotle decided that although animals could learn and

remember only people were really capable of thinking.

Emotions

An area where human and canine mental processes are compared and show both similarities and differences is emotions.

Scientifically one should be cautious in make the comparisons so not to be Anthropomorphic.

Anthropomorphism

Caution should be used when talking about emotions e.g “happiness” in animals including dogs. To be ‘happy’ is an emotional state, just as it is to be ‘sad’ or ‘bored’.

We do not know for a FACT that dogs experience these emotions in the same way we do. Physiological responses can be linked to emotional feelings such as release of oxytocin and endorphins, adrenaline and cortisol.

To attribute human emotions to animals is considered Anthropomorphic, and although may be suitable for anecdotal speech has no scientific grounding.

Describing EmotionsSince the time of Aristotle understanding of animal and canine

mind has moved on, physiological evidence suggests similarities in some parts of the brain that are involved with emotion, but in the case of the dog this part is much smaller as more brain is dedicated to sensory perceptions.

Although recent research suggests animals have consciousness (self awareness), their ability to feel of emotions is still very controversial.

Explaining our emotions is generally not easy…so how do we be able to expect to explain canine ones?

Could be said that dogs that are easily trained are intelligent…but can only be trained in areas where have aptitude.

IQ and intelligence

Some dogs have demonstrated remarkable intelligence.

In some cases their intelligence is the ability to read tiny subtle non verbal cues from us!

The ability to do what appear highly intelligent tasks can be linked back to our nature, nurture and interactionist approach

For example why is it not common to see a Yorkie herd sheep?Too small,Not learned itNot inherited aptitude to do so

nor being give opportunity to learn

Looking at Breeds

…their common physical traits (adapted for roles)

…breed aptitudes (innate behaviours) commonly seen in the breed or breed group

Gundogs

Houndsdolicocephalic

Pastoral

Working

Terriers

Toy Breeds

Utility Dogs

SummaryHow can we explain behaviour?

Dogs behave the way they do because they inherited it from their parentsDogs behave the way they do because of experience and learningDogs behave the way they do as affected by illness, diet, hormones and growing up (maturation)Dogs possibly work out how to behave in certain circumstances (cognition)Behaviour is dictated by physical ability (e.g size and anatomy)

…and because they are dogs!