Can we estimate dogs' recognition of objects in mirrors from their behavior and response time?

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• 作者：Megumi Fukuzawa ; ^{fukuzawa.megumi@nihon-u.ac.jp} ; Ayano Hashi
• 关键词：behavior ; dogs ; mirror ; response time
• 刊名：Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research
• 出版年：2017
• 出版时间：January-February 2017
• 年：2017
• 卷：17
• 期：Complete
• 页码：1-5
• 全文大小：391 K
• 卷排序：17

文摘

Dogs seem to use mirrors as problem-solving tools, but it is difficult for us to determine when dogs are able to recognize mirrors. Our aim was to examine dogs' behaviors to investigate how they recognize objects visible in mirrors. Ten pet dogs that had never undergone mirror exposure testing were recruited and categorized into 2 groups: a habituation group (HG) and nonhabituation group. The HG was given time to explore the test room before each test. A food reward was placed in a bowl positioned on the far side of an opaque barrier. The dog was able to confirm the presence of the reward via the mirror but was unable to confirm it directly. Both the time taken for the dog to get the reward and the dog's behaviors in obtaining it were recorded. The test was performed 20 times for each dog, and a score of more than 17 of 20 times was set as the criterion including that the dog had recognized the mirror. All dogs achieved the criterion, and the time they took to get the reward was shortened significantly with repetition, irrespective of the group. However, both the time taken to reach the reward and the time spent looking in the mirror were significantly shorter in the HG than in the nonhabituation group. These results suggested that experience in habituation with a mirror affected an exploratory response in the dogs and also indicated that dogs were able to generalize the mirror silhouette and to use the mirrors without human communicative cues.