Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Every year a large number of dogs enter animal shelters across the world. The basic environment in shelters is not ideal for dogs, which makes it essential to create the best possible environment for them. Allowing dogs to express their natural behaviours and meet their needs is important but challenging. The sense of smell is considered the most important sense for domestic dogs. Previous research has shown that scent enrichment has positive effects on welfare indicators in shelters. NoseWork (NW) is an activity where dogs use their sense of smell to find scents in different locations and has been shown to provide cognitive benefits for dogs. Previous research shows that dogs trained in NW display more optimistic behaviour after the training period compared to before the training began. Researchers suggest that activities in which dogs use their sense of smell may be a way to improve dogs’ well-being. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether NW training can improve the well-being of dogs in shelters and reduce their stress levels.

A total of twelve dogs were included in the study and received NW training over a two-week period at the shelter. The experiments included three different phases; bringing a dog into the training room, where it was directly observed for two minutes (appetitive phase). This was followed by the NW session, consisting of 10 to 15 searches depending on the day (training phase). After training the dog was returned to its own crate where it was filmed for 25 minutes (post-consummatory phase). Before training, anticipatory behaviour was observed (2 min); during training, attempts were made to identify a self-selected scent mark; and after training, subsequent behaviours were observed (5 min).

The collected data provide insights of the possible effects that NW have on dogs living in shelters. The results showed that panting increased during the appetitive phase and during the post-consummatory phase the dogs lay down more quickly over time. These findings suggest that the dogs calmed down quicker after consistent NW training. Overall, the results indicated that NW can have a positive impact on dogs’ welfare during their time at the shelter. More research, involving a larger number of dogs and a longer period of NW training, is needed to draw more reliable conclusions. Future studies should also investigate how NW may influence stereotypical behaviours in shelter dogs, as a reduction was observed in the one dog that exhibited repetitive stress-related behaviour in this study.