Abstract
The domesticated dog (Canis familiaris) is one of the few animals that is capable of receiving and responding to simple human cues, which appears to be the product of long-term co-evolution with humans (Anderson et al. 1995; Itakura at al. 1996). Dogs require high levels of responsiveness in order to obtain and use simple human cues appropriately (Mckinley et al. 2000). For example, many dogs respond successfully to simple cues, such as an eye glance. Evolution of responsiveness in dogs may have evolved in response to human preferences, although the preference for responsive dogs has not been determined. This study will determine whether humans prefer a type of responsiveness in dogs, i.e. the dogs ability to use simple cues. To determine if humans prefer dogs that use simple cues, we first videoed dogs from the Gulf Coast Humane Society that varied in their ability to utilize human cues. Videoed dogs were then paired; each pair of dogs consisted of a more responsive individual (dog that required less cues to complete a task) and a less responsive individual (a dog that required more cues to complete a task). A nation-wide survey was run in which participants were asked to compare and evaluate the two dogs. Results demonstrate that people prefer dogs that utilized simple cues whether they are evaluating a dog individually or in comparison to another dog. These findings are consistent with the idea that humans show a preference for a responsive dog. The evidence of preference identifies a mechanism that would promote responsiveness and facilitate the coevolution between humans and dogs.