Replication Data for: Effect of pre-session training on performance in a judgement bias test in dogs
Borealis
Krahn, Joseph;
Azadian, Amin;
Cavalli, Camilla;
Miller, Julia;
Protopopova, Alexandra
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2024-01-15
Spatial judgement bias tests (JBTs) can involve teaching animals that a bowl provides a reward in one location but does not in another. The animal is then presented with the bowl placed between the rewarded and the unrewarded locations (i.e., ambiguous locations) and their latency to approach reflects expectation of reward or ‘optimism’. Some suggest that greater ‘optimism’ indicates better welfare. However, performance in JBTs may also indicate learning history independently from welfare determinants. We hypothesized that dogs’ ‘optimism’ in a follow-up JBT may be impacted by a learning treatment. Pet dogs (n=16) completed a JBT pre-treatment, a trial-based learning treatment, and a JBT post-treatment. During the JBT, dogs were presented with 5 locations: 1 rewarded, 1 unrewarded, and 3 ambiguous (all unrewarded). Dogs were randomly assigned to a trial-based learning task—a nose-touch to the palm of the hand. In Discrimination (n=8), the dog was presented with two hands in each trial, only rewarded for touching one specific hand. In Generalization (n=8), dogs were presented with one hand per trial in alternating sequence and were yoked to dogs in the Discrimination to receive the same number of rewarded and unrewarded trials (to control for possible frustration). Using a linear mixed model including dog identity as a random effect, we found no difference in the change in approach latency to the ambiguous locations between the dogs across treatments (P=0.97). ‘Optimism’ as measured in this JBT may not be sensitive to the type of training used in our study.