Dogs may not seem terribly bright when they're
chasing their own tails, but in many ways they
are clever creatures. In particular, they are very
socially aware, both of humans and of each
other.
Many studies have reported that they can sense
human emotions. Recent research has found
that they can tell the difference between happy
and angry faces, and even show jealousy .
It now seems that they can sense when a
person is untrustworthy. Once a dog has
decided a person is unreliable, it stops following
the cues they give.
It's been known for years that dogs understand
what it means when a human points at
something. If a dog's owner points to the
location of a ball, stick or food, the dog will run
and explore the location the person is pointing
to.
The latest research shows they are quick to
figure out if these gestures are misleading.
In a study published in the journal Animal
Cognition , a team led by Akiko Takaoka of
Kyoto University in Japan presented 34 dogs
with three rounds of pointing.
In the first round, the experimenters accurately
pointed to where food was hidden in a
container. But in the second round, they pointed
to an empty container.
In the third round, the same experimenter again
pointed to the container with food.
But now the dog did not respond to the
experimenter's cue. That suggests, says
Takaoka, that the dogs could use their
experience of the experimenter to assess
whether they were a reliable guide.
After these rounds a new experimenter
replicated the first round. Once again, the dogs
followed this new person with interest.
Takaoka says she was surprised that the dogs
"devalued the reliability of a human" so quickly.
"Dogs have more sophisticated social
intelligence than we thought. This social
intelligence evolved selectively in their long life
history with humans."
The next step, she adds, will be to test closely
related species such as wolves. This would then
reveal the "profound effects of domestication"
on the social intelligence of dogs.
The study highlights that dogs like things to be
predictable, says John Bradshaw of the
University of Bristol in the UK, who was not
involved with the research.
As soon as events in their lives become
irregular they will look for alternative things to
do.
And if they consistently don't know what's
going to happen next they can get stressed,
aggressive or fearful, he adds. "Dogs whose
owners are inconsistent to them often have
behavioural disorders."
This last part of the experiment can be
explained by the fascination dogs have with
anything new: "Dogs are almost information
junkies", says Bradshaw, so a new experimenter
is "trusted" once more.
The finding comes as no surprise to dog owner
Victoria Standen. She owns a collie (pictured),
which is considered to be among the most
intelligent breeds.
When out for a walk, the collie will sit at the
point of a junction and wait to see which way to
go. "I've taken to pointing which direction and
after she looks that way, she looks back to me
to check it's okay to run off," says Standen.
What's more, if a stranger has proven to be
unreliable (and not a food source) her dog is
less likely to trust them.
It has become increasingly clear that dogs are
more intelligent than was once believed, but
their intelligence is very different to ours, says
Bradshaw.
"Dogs are very sensitive to human behaviour
but they have fewer preconceptions," he says.
"They live in the present, they don't reflect back
on the past in an abstract way, or plan for the
future."
And when they encounter a situation, he adds,
they will react to what's there "rather than
thinking deeply about what that entails".
Dogs then, are clearly not mindlessly listening
to us when we gesture which this study
provides more evidence for, says Brian Hare
who is chief scientific officer at Dognition.
"They evaluate the information we give them
based in part on how reliable it is in helping
them accomplish their goals. Many family dogs,
for instance, will ignore your gesture when you
point incorrectly and use their memory to find a
hidden treat,” adds Hare.
http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150220-dogs-know-if-youre-untrustworthy

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