Shorter headed dogs, visually cooperative breeds, younger and playful dogs form eye contact faster with an unfamiliar human.

ABSTRACT: Forming eye contact is important in dog-human communication. In this study we measured what factors affect dogs' propensity for forming eye contact with an experimenter. We investigated the effect of [1] cephalic index (head shape's metric, indicator of higher visual acuity at the centre of the visual field), [2] breed function (visual cooperativeness), [3] age and [4] playfulness with strangers in 125 companion dogs. Cephalic index was measured individually and analysed as a continuous variable. Results showed that [1] dogs with a higher cephalic index (shorter head) established eye contact faster. Since cephalic index is highly variable even within a breed, using artificial head shape groups or breed average cephalic index values is not recommended. [2] Breed function also affected dogs'

SUBMITTER: Bognar Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8084920 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature