Abstract

Effective communication between dogs and their owners is an essential aspect of good

training and a strong relationship (Hare, 2004). In the research, three different social cues were

used to identify which would best assist a dog in comprehending the goal of its owner,

specifically to locate a hidden tennis ball. It was predicted that dogs would be most likely to find

a tennis ball when the tester utilized vocal cues. The next most effective social cue would be

approaching the location, followed by pointing and facing towards the object. All of these cues

would be more effective than the baseline control -- no social cues. First, the dog was tested with

vocal cues. The tester approached and squatted behind the hidden location, calling the dog’s

name. Then the dog was tested with the “gaze and point” technique. The tester turned their body

towards the location and pointed to where the dog should go. Next, the dog was tested with local

enhancement. For these trials, the tester walked towards and squatted behind the correct location.

Finally, a the control was tested, where the tester gave no hints as to where the ball was hiding.

Each of these cues were tested five times per each of the ten dogs. Overall, the vocal cues were

most effective, with an average of 4.6 out of 5 successful trials. This was followed by local

enhancement (4.5/5), then “gaze and point” (3.2/5), and lastly, the control (2.6/5). The results

indicate that 1.) dogs may be most likely to find a hidden tennis ball when the tester utilizes

vocal cues, 2.) there may not be a strong difference in compliance between male and females,

and 3.) there may not be strong differences in compliance depending on dog age. The experiment

as a whole suggests that the more hints or steps per social cue, the easier and more clear the goal

was to the test subject. In future experiments, this research could lead to discoveries on a dog’s

response to other species, besides humans, or the results of other social cues.