See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/227413291

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for

School Children

Article in Anthrozoös · September 2008

DOI: 10.2752/175303708X332071

CITATIONS READS

26 1,398

3 authors, including:

Grahame Coleman Margaret Hay

University of Melbourne Monash University (Australia)
209 PUBLICATIONS 9,049 CITATIONS 59 PUBLICATIONS 1,361 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Margaret Hay on 22 May 2014.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 271

ANTHROZOÖS VOLUME 21, ISSUE 3 REPRINTS AVAILABLE PHOTOCOPYING © ISAZ 2008

PP. 271–284 DIRECTLY FROM PERMITTED PRINTED IN THE UK
THE PUBLISHERS BY LICENSE ONLY

An Evaluation of a Pet
Ownership Education
Program for School Children
Grahame J. Coleman, Margaret J. Hall and
Margaret Hay
Animal Welfare Science Centre, School of Psychology, Psychiatry and
Psychological Medicine, Monash University, Australia
Address for correspondence: ABSTRACT Children aged 5 to 6 years are disproportionately suscepti-
Prof. Grahame Coleman,
School of Psychology, ble to dog bite attacks relative to the adult population and there is a need
Psychiatry and Psychological to provide them with well-validated education programs to teach correct
Medicine, Monash University,
Building 17, behavior when interacting with dogs. The main aim of this study was to
Clayton Campus, assess the immediate and longer-term learning outcomes of the Re-
Wellington Road,
Clayton, Victoria 3800, sponsible Pet Ownership Program (RPOP), delivered to young Australian
Australia. children in their preparatory year of primary schooling. A further aim was
E-mail:
Grahame.Coleman@med. to investigate the impact of class size on learning outcomes of the RPOP.
monash.edu.au Children’s ability to identify potentially dangerous dogs through canine
body language, their knowledge of how to interact with dogs, and their
knowledge of aspects of responsible pet ownership were assessed by
measuring the immediate (within 2 weeks following the RPOP) and de-
layed (2 and 4 months post-RPOP) retention of this knowledge. Prepara-

Anthrozoös DOI: 10.2752/175303708X332071

tory-aged children who had participated in the RPOP showed a better
capacity to correctly identify emotions in cartoon, photographic, and video
depictions of dogs than did those children who had not. In general, this
effect did not persist 4 months after completion of the RPOP. In the case
of the photographic presentations, children could correctly identify an
angry dog, although this had disappeared in the groups that were as-
sessed 2 and 4 months after the program. Children’s role-play responses
to interacting with a dog and its owner persisted for 4 months after the
RPOP. In general, children did not identify dog behaviors that were rele-
vant to the emotions of anger, fear, or happiness that had not been in-
cluded in the RPOP. This suggests that there is specificity in the
knowledge that the children received from the program. Children’s knowl-
edge of responsible pet ownership was higher for those who had just
been through the program compared with those who had not. There was
271

little evidence of retention of this information 2 and 4 months after

AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 272

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

instruction. Results suggest that the test measures used are appropriate to assess the effects
of the program with young children. That little longer-term retention of information (especially
4 months post-RPOP) was evident indicates the need for follow-up instruction to improve the
longer-term learning outcomes of the RPOP.

Keywords: child education, dog bite, evaluation, responsible pet ownership

❖
Australia has an estimated national dog population of three million, with 40% of house-
holds owning an average of 1.5 dogs (Ozanne-Smith, Ashby and Stathakis 2001). An
unfortunate consequence of the rising number of domestic dogs in the Australian
community is that dog bite and other dog attacks are becoming a substantial public health
concern (Ozanne-Smith, Ashby and Stathakis 2001). Of the dog-related hospitalizations re-
ported in Victoria for the period 1995–1996, about 37% were of children less than 5 years of
age, around 18% were of children aged between 5 and 9 years, and about 8% were of chil-
dren between 10 and 14 years. It is apparent that children are disproportionately susceptible
to dog bite attacks relative to the adult population. A child’s relative size and the proximity of their
face to a dog also increases the likelihood that facial injuries during an attack will occur.
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association Task Force Report on Canine
Aggression and Human–Canine Interactions (2001), it is young children’s natural behavior that
makes them susceptible to dog attack-related injuries. Child-like activities such as running,
yelling, grabbing, hitting, quick and darting movements, and maintaining eye contact place
young children at increased risk for dog bite injuries.
Ashby (1996) reported that the areas most frequently injured during a dog attack involving
a child were the head and face. The potential for permanent serious injury (i.e., blindness, fa-
cial damage) is highlighted by the fact that around one-third of children who receive a dog bite
are injured severely enough to warrant hospital admission (Routely and Valuri 1993).
Another aspect of concern is that around two-thirds of child-related dog bites are perpe-
trated by family pets or dogs that are known to the victim (Victorian Injury Surveillance System
1989). Spiegel (2000) reported that almost half of the 486 five- to 12-year-olds (mean age of
8.18 years) involved in a dog bite prevention program in Maryland USA reported receiving a dog
bite. In over 80% of these cases the child was familiar with the offending dog. The increased in-
cidence of dog attacks on children, along with the harmful outcome of these attacks in terms of
physical injury and the potential for the development of an enduring fear of animals, means that
reducing the incidence of dog attacks on children is an important public health consideration.
Dog bite prevention programs have been around for decades, however, few have been
evaluated and their effectiveness in teaching children how to avoid a dog attack is not known.
Two recent studies (Chapman et al. 2000; Spiegel 2000) have investigated the learning out-
comes of educational programs designed to teach children the appropriate precautionary be-
haviors around dogs, including the correct procedure for approaching dogs and how to identify
potentially threatening dogs (i.e., angry or scared dogs).
Anthrozoös

Chapman et al. (2000) evaluated a 30-minute dog attack prevention program (Prevent-a-
Bite) conducted by an accredited dog handler. One hundred and ninety-seven grade 1 stu-
dents (7 to 8 years of age) from four primary schools in metropolitan Sydney, Australia who had
completed the course in the previous 7 to 10 days formed an intervention group. An additional
149 grade 1 students of the same age and from four geographically similar schools who had
272

not completed the program served as a comparison group. Children in both the intervention
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 273

Coleman et al.

and comparison groups were unobtrusively video-recorded playing unsupervised in their re-
spective school grounds where a docile dog was tethered five meters from its disguised owner.
A review of the video footage revealed that children who had received the intervention dis-
played appreciably greater precautionary behavior and approached the dog less often relative
to the children who had not completed the program. The most salient response to the teth-
ered dog in the intervention group was to observe it from a distance. In contrast, the most
salient response by the children who had not completed the program was to approach, pat,
and attempt to excite the dog. Precautionary behavior was evident in very few children who
had not completed the program. Based on these findings, Chapman et al. (2000) concluded
that the Prevent-a-Bite program was successful in teaching children the appropriate precau-
tionary behavior to perform around unfamiliar animals.
Spiegel (2000) assessed the learning outcomes of an elementary school dog bite preven-
tion program in Maryland, USA. The Be Aware, Responsible and Kind (BARK) dog bite pre-
vention program is an hour long educational intervention designed to teach elementary-age
children precautionary behavior around dogs, including the recognition of potentially danger-
ous dogs from canine body language. The course incorporates a range of written materials,
video footage, interactive discussions, and role-playing with toy dogs. Learning outcomes
were assessed using a pre- and post-intervention design. A total of 486 five- to 12-year-olds
(mean age 8.18 years) were administered a questionnaire just prior to, and 2 weeks after com-
pletion of, the BARK program. The questionnaire assessed children’s learning of the appro-
priate behaviors when interacting with dogs, dog bite prevention, and changes in their
understanding of dog behavior. Spiegel found an increase in children’s knowledge at the post-
program measure for the following aspects: that most dog-related injuries occur in the home
or immediate neighborhood, that direct contact with sleeping or eating dogs should be
avoided, and that a person should never run away from a dog. Children also displayed a
greater recognition of canine body language after completing the program. Based on these
findings, Spiegel concluded that the BARK program was highly effective in teaching elemen-
tary-age children how to prevent or avoid potentially threatening situations involving dogs.
While the studies conducted by Chapman et al. (2000) and Spiegel (2000) indicate good
learning outcomes shortly after completion of dog bite prevention programs, neither study in-
cluded a longer term measure, and no conclusion regarding the retention of the information
over time could therefore be made. Improvements in knowledge shortly after completing an
educational intervention only provide an indication of the short-term impact of the intervention.
It is only through the longer-term assessment of knowledge retention several months after an
intervention that assimilation of the information at a cognitive level can be determined, and the
true impact on the intervention assessed.
Cognitive developmental issues are an important consideration when assessing children’s
learning. Assessing the longer-term outcomes of educational interventions targeted to pri-
mary-age children is of particular importance, given the range of cognitive developmental
stages represented at primary school level. A child’s level of cognitive development not only
Anthrozoös

impacts on his or her learning of information presented during instruction, but also on their
longer term retention of this information (Kail and Cavanaugh 2007).
Children in their first year of primary school are in the transitional period between early
childhood, ending at age 6, and middle childhood, beginning at age 7 and continuing through-
out the primary school years (Gething, Papalia and Olds 1995). This period marks, in Piaget-
273

ian terms, the transition period from the pre-operational thinking of pre- and early-school
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 274

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

children to the concrete operational abilities of pre-adolescence. Piaget characterized pre-op-

erational thinking as illogical, as evidenced by artificialist and animistic causal attributions for
phenomena or events (Piaget 1972). Artificialism is the belief that natural events are caused by
or for human activity, while animism is the attribution of consciousness to inanimate objects.
By concrete operations beginning at age 6 or 7, the bodily activities of the preceding pre-op-
erational period evolve into operations (i.e., activities of the mind) (Pulaski 1971). In Piagetian
terms, full concrete operations are not achieved until age 12; however, the beginnings of this
cognitive stage are evident in early primary-age children.
Whether children’s level of cognitive development is a contributing factor to their learning
and retention of information imparted during dog prevention programs is unclear. The positive
learning outcomes reported in the studies reviewed earlier indicate that primary-age children
are capable of learning the material. However, the lack of a delayed measure means that chil-
dren’s ability to retain this information has not been established. Furthermore, their use of older
children (around 8 years of age) means that the learning outcomes of dog bite prevention pro-
grams delivered to younger children (in their first years of schooling) remains largely unknown—
Chapman et al. (2000) assessed the learning outcomes in older children (7 to 8 years); Spiegel
(2000) included a wider age range in his study, although the overwhelming majority of partic-
ipants (over 90%) were enrolled in grades 2 to 5. The higher incidence of dog attacks on
younger children (pre-grade 2), as detailed earlier, indicates the need to educate younger chil-
dren on dog attack avoidance. The ability of younger children to learn and retain information
about dog bite prevention, however, remains unclear, and therefore needs to be determined.
The Victorian State Government enacted The Domestic (Nuisance and Feral) Animals Act
in 1994, to address a broad range of issues surrounding domestic animals in the community.
This Act aimed to highlight the importance of responsible pet ownership, to promote animal
welfare, to protect the natural environment and its fauna from the increasing problems asso-
ciated with stray and feral animals, and to introduce a statewide registration and identification
scheme for cats and dogs. An important component of the Act was to provide funding for the
implementation of a statewide school-based educational program, the Responsible Pet Own-
ership Program (RPOP). The RPOP provides teaching materials to primary teachers to edu-
cate children in responsible pet care and ownership, and incorporates a school visit by an
accredited dog handler and their temperament-tested dog. The aims of the school visits are
to reinforce the message of responsible pet ownership to children and to teach children dog
attack avoidance.
By mid-2001, 757 primary schools had participated in the RPOP, with a further 125 schools
booked for visits in that year. Therefore, almost 100,000 primary school children had directly
experienced the program in Victoria. The key objectives of the RPOP are to provide children
with the knowledge and skills necessary to become responsible pet owners, including caring
for the good welfare of their pets and fulfilling their legal obligations as pet owners. An addi-
tional objective is to make children aware of unsafe situations with dogs and provide them
with behavioral strategies to avoid dog attacks. A further objective is to make children aware
Anthrozoös

of the impact that feral and nuisance domestic pets have on the native environment.
The aim of this study was to assess the immediate and longer-term learning outcomes of
the RPOP delivered to young children in their preparatory year of primary schooling. A further
aim was to investigate the impact of class size on learning outcomes of the RPOP. Children’s
knowledge of aspects covered in the RPOP, specifically their ability to identify potentially dan-
274

gerous dogs through canine body language, their knowledge of how to interact with dogs, and
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 275

Coleman et al.

their knowledge of aspects of responsible pet ownership were assessed by measuring the im-
mediate (within 2 weeks following the RPOP) and delayed (2 and 4 months post-RPOP) re-
tention of this knowledge. Information of this type is important, not only to determine learning
outcomes of the RPOP delivered to young children, but also to identify areas of the program
that may need improvement.

Methods
The RPOP Content
The Prep-Talk component of the RPOP is a 30-minute session conducted by an accredited
RPOP trainer accompanied by a temperament-tested dog. Factual information about respon-
sible pet ownership and canine body language is presented to children in cartoon format. Chil-
dren are taught the necessity of registering cats and dogs to ensure the identification and return
of lost pets. Children are also taught the importance of selecting the appropriate dog for the fam-
ily (i.e., in terms of size and temperament) and providing appropriate care for pets.
Canine body language is presented with the aim of teaching children how to identify po-
tentially threatening (i.e., angry or fearful) dogs. The salient features of an angry dog covered
in the RPOP are: visible teeth, laid back but not totally lowered ears, raised tail, raised hack-
les, and raised body (i.e., dog standing on the tips of its paws to increase its stature). The
salient features of a fearful dog are: ears laid completely back, tail curled under its body, and
hunching or lying down to decrease stature.
Role-play activities with an imaginary angry dog teach children how to respond if con-
fronted with a potentially threatening, unaccompanied dog. Children are also taught how to
interact with a dog on a lead with its owner, by role-playing this situation with the trainer and
actual dog. Correct responses to the unaccompanied dog role-play include: standing still
with hands by side, looking away from the dog, and slowly backing away, hands at side. Cor-
rect verbal and behavioral responses to the accompanied role-play include: the child ask-
ing the owner if he/she could pat the dog, child holding out the back of their hand for the
dog to sniff, and the child patting the dog under the chin and moving away from it if it ap-
pears unhappy.
Selection of Schools
The criteria for inclusion in the study were that the schools had to be in similar geographic
areas and that they had participated in the RPOP in the required time frame or had yet to
complete the program. Twenty-seven schools fulfilling the criteria of the study were contacted
from a list provided by the Victorian Canine Association (Coordinators of the Responsible Pet
Ownership Program for Schools). Five schools declined to participate, six could not be sched-
uled to fit in with the 2-week window for evaluation, one was atypical (gifted children), and the
remaining 15 schools were included in the study. The control group was taken from schools
which had agreed to participate in the RPOP but which had not yet done so.
Participants
Anthrozoös

One hundred and twenty-six preparatory students aged 5–6 years from eight private and
seven public schools in the eastern region of Melbourne participated in the study. Three stu-
dents were excluded from the analysis of data for the following reasons: one child had severe
learning disabilities and two children were absent on the day of the RPOP, as confirmed by their
respective teachers. The sample for the analysis therefore included 123 children. The sample
275

was evenly split by gender: 52% were boys and 48% were girls.
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 276

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

Experimental Design
To determine learning outcomes of the RPOP Prep-Talk, knowledge of aspects covered in the
program were assessed immediately (2 weeks), 2 months, and 4 months following the pro-
gram. All but one group was assessed within the optimal time frame. The “immediate-medium”
group was unavailable for evaluation until approximately 5 days after the 2-week period had
elapsed, due to the students’ participation in other curriculum activities. The RPOP was de-
livered to class sizes ranging from 15–20 and up to 80 or more; therefore three groups of chil-
dren selected from different-sized classes were assessed in each of the experimental
treatments. These were a small (approximately 25), medium (approximately 50), and a large
(approximately 75) condition. Since children comprising the control group had not yet partic-
ipated in the RPOP, these participants were randomly assigned to a small, medium, or large
condition. All groups comprised one school only, with the exception of the 4-month (large), 2-
month (small), and immediate (large) groups, which comprised two schools. Thus, there were
two factors: class size (small, medium, and large) and time after RPOP (immediate, 2 month,
4 month, and control). Between nine and 11 children were assessed in each cell.
Pilot Study
A small pilot study was conducted to assess the appropriateness of the test materials with
preparatory-aged children. Three students from an inner-city primary school preparatory class,
who had not participated in the RPOP, were individually tested in a room separate from their
normal classroom. The pilot revealed that all test measures, a detailed description of which fol-
low, were appropriate for use with children of this age. The children found them both com-
prehensible and engaging.
Materials
The accurate assessment of young children’s knowledge requires that they communicate what
they know to the investigator. Test measures were therefore constructed that were appropri-
ate for the developmental level of preparatory-age children. A combination of visual presenta-
tions, verbal questioning, and role-play were used. Visual presentations accompanied by
game-like activities represent common pedagogical practice at preparatory level and were
therefore incorporated in the testing procedure. Visual presentations were in the form of car-
toon, photographic, and digitalized video images of a dog. Each type of visual stimulus was
used to determine children’s ability to identify each of the salient physical characteristics evi-
dent in potentially dangerous dogs that were taught in the RPOP.
Three dog emotions (happy, scared, and angry) were depicted in each condition, with
the salient characteristics of each emotion consistent across the three types of visual pre-
sentations. Cartoon images were used to replicate the RPOP presentation, and photographic
and video images were used to assess children’s ability to identify canine body language in
an actual dog. Representations of a happy dog were included, although this information is not
covered in the RPOP. The happy dog was included to determine children’s ability to detect a
range of emotions in dogs and to ensure that children understood the underlying RPOP mes-
Anthrozoös

sage—that it is unsafe to approach any unaccompanied dog, even if it appears non-threat-

ening (i.e., happy). The physical features (i.e., canine body language) to describe angry, fearful,
and happy dogs were: “Angry”—ears laid back, teeth visible, tail raised, hackles up, stand-
ing up; “Scared”—ears laid back, tail curled under, hunching or lying down; “Happy”—ears
and head raised, tail wagging, happy facial features (smiling, raised eyebrows, cheerful eyes,
276

cheerful expression).
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 277

Coleman et al.

Cartoon and photographic representations were in the form of A4 laminated sheets. Sym-
bolic representations of each emotion were presented in the form of three (6 cm) discs. Chil-
dren were requested to match the emotion displayed on each disc with that of the cartoon and
photographic representations of each dog emotion. Video presentations were in the form of
four 13-second digitized video recordings of a dog mimicking each of the three dog emotions,
as well as displaying a neutral disposition (i.e., no obvious indication of emotion). These were
individually displayed on a notebook computer using Windows Media Player®. To reduce the
effect of stereotyping of dog temperament by breed, the same dog was used for photographic
and video representations.
Children’s knowledge of responsible pet care, as taught in the RPOP, was assessed via direct
questioning (e.g., “Why do we register our dogs?”, “Why do we need to be careful when choos-
ing a puppy?” and “Why do we need to make sure our pets have toys to play with?”). Finally, chil-
dren’s knowledge of the correct procedure for approaching dogs was assessed via role-play using
a soft toy dog (70 cm in height and of Husky breed) and videoed with a Panasonic S-VHS MS4
video camera set on a tripod. Although all responses were recorded on a data recording sheet,
role-play responses were videoed to allow for additional later scoring, if required.
According to Geldard and Geldard (1998), role-play is highly appropriate to determine
knowledge in preparatory-age children who, at 6 years of age, have not yet reached the level
of cognitive maturity required to engage in abstract thinking. Such children are, therefore, best
able to express what they know through activity-based exercises.
The potential for anxiety in children who may be fearful of dogs limited the use of real dogs
during the testing process. Therefore photographic and digitalized video images of dogs were
used as visual stimuli, and a toy dog used for the role-play component. All participating schools
were sent a laminated “award” poster at the completion of the study, as a gesture of appre-
ciation for their involvement.
Procedure for Recruitment and Obtaining Consent
Approval for the study was obtained from the Monash University Standing Committee on Eth-
ical Research Involving Humans, Monash University Animal Experimentation Ethics Commit-
tee, Department of Education, Employment and Training, The Catholic Education Office,
principals from participating schools, and parents or guardians of the children. Both re-
searchers also obtained mandatory police checks.
At the commencement of the recruiting phase, letters were posted to 27 school principals.
Letters were followed up with a phone call a few days later. If a principal agreed to allow his/her
school to participate, a suitable date was organized and confirmed in writing. Later, principals
were telephoned directly and information about the evaluation was faxed, followed by another
telephone call to arrange a suitable time to visit the school. Once a suitable date was arranged,
a cover letter confirming the date of visit, two posters advertising the project to be displayed
at the school, and “parent packs” containing a parent cover letter, consent letter, and ex-
planatory statement sealed in an envelope with “Dear parent’ written on the front were sent to
Anthrozoös

the school. The packs were randomly distributed to children by their teacher. The total num-
ber of parent packs distributed was 296.
Procedure for Testing
The same two researchers conducted the testing across all schools. One acted as the data
recorder, recording each child’s responses on the data recording sheet. The other conducted all
277

aspects of the testing. An interview area was provided for the researchers on arrival at each school.
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 278

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

At the commencement of testing, each child was escorted from the classroom by the re-
searcher to the interview area. During this time, the child was encouraged to talk about his or
her pet, so that the child felt at ease with the researcher and with the testing process. On ar-
rival at the interview area, the child was introduced to the data recorder and seated. The in-
terview and test procedures were described to the child.
Demographic data were recorded followed by an icebreaking exercise in which the child
and the interviewer made “sleepy,” “surprised,” or “sad” faces together. Following this, three
cartoon pictures were presented face down in front of the child. The three discs depicting
symbolic representations of emotions were placed randomly face upward beneath the cartoon
pictures. The interviewer turned over the cartoon pictures and the child was asked to match
the appropriate “emotion” disc with each picture (i.e., attach the “happy” disc to the “happy”
cartoon dog; the “scared” disc to the “scared” cartoon dog, and the “angry” disc to the “angry”
cartoon dog). The child was then asked to identify the aspects of canine body language that
indicated the selected emotion in the dog.
The next phase involved assessing children’s knowledge of various aspects of responsi-
ble pet ownership. Each child was asked the following questions:
■ Do you know why we register our dogs and cats and get a tag to go on their collar?”
■ Why do we need to be careful when we choose a puppy—what might happen if we
choose the wrong dog for the family?”
■ Why do we need to make sure our pets have toys to play with?”
The same procedure as detailed for presentation of the cartoon images was followed for
the photographic representations of an angry, happy, and scared dog.
The child was then shown a video of an angry dog. The child was asked to identify whether
the dog was happy, scared, or angry. The child was then asked to role-play with the toy Husky
dog what he or she would do if they encountered this dog and it was alone in the street. The
child was then asked what he or she would do if the dog moved away. This was repeated with
video footage of the happy dog and the scared dog.
The interviewer stood beside the toy Husky (with a lead attached) and asked the child to
pretend that the toy dog was being walked by its owner. The child was invited to move for-
ward and meet the dog. The interviewer then asked the child the following questions:
■ If you wanted to come and meet my dog, what would you do first?” (The child was in-
vited to approach and meet the dog)
■ Would you like to stroke my dog?”
■ If my dog didn’t look happy when you came near, what would you have done?”
Role-play responses were recorded on the data sheet and video-recorded to allow for later
assessment, if required.
Anthrozoös

Creating the Dependent Measures

Dependent measures used for the analysis were constructed by combining children’s re-
sponses to each aspect of the test procedure to form composite variables. Within each com-
posite variable, children’s responses were assigned a score of 1 if they included this aspect in
their response, and a 0 if they did not. For the visual (i.e., cartoon and photographic) repre-
278

sentations of each of the three dog emotions (i.e., happy, scared, and angry), the attributes of
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 279

Coleman et al.

canine body language that indicate each dog emotion (see Table 1) were summed to create
composite measures for each representation. Two composite measures were developed for
each representation. One included only those aspects of canine body language that were cov-
ered in the RPOP. Another contained aspects identified by the children that were not covered
in the RPOP, but were features of each image. This additional measure was created to distin-
guish facts learnt during the RPOP from general knowledge gathered outside of the program.
Table 1 contains the aspects that were included in the composite measures for each visual rep-
resentation of each dog emotion.
Similarly, responses to short-answer questions on responsible pet ownership were com-
bined to form composite measures based on information included in the RPOP. The items
that were included in this composite measure are contained in Table 1.

Table 1. Items included in the composite measures for children’s responses to cartoon
and photograph images of three dog emotions, short answer questions, and role-play.
Dog Emotion Canine Body Language
(as taught in RPOP)
Angry Ears laid back, teeth visible, tail raised, Angry mouth, growling, looks angry,
hackles up, standing up
Scared Ears laid back, tail curled under,
hunching or lying down
*Happy Ears and head raised, tail wagging,
happy facial features (smiling, raised
eyebrows, cheerful eyes, cheerful
expression)
Short Answer Correct Responses
Questions to Short Answer Questions
(as taught in RPOP)
Why do we register our Identification and return of lost dog
dogs and cats?
Why is it important to Might grow too big for house/family
choose the right dog for
the family? What might
happen if we choose the
wrong dog?
Role-Play Correct Role-Play Responses
Condition (as taught in RPOP)
Owner Present Ask owner if can pat dog, hold out
hand for dog to sniff, pat side of
chest,pat under chin, would leave
dog alone (if dog didn’t look happy)
Owner not Present Stand still, hands by side, gazing
*Added Factual Information
angry eyes, angry eyebrows
Paws out in front, looks sad/scared,
looking up, scared/sad eyes, sad
mouth, scared/sad eyebrows
Added Factual Information
No other factual information offered
Might grow up to be aggressive, might
be destructive to our property, might
not be compatible with our family,
might run away, will have to return pet
to dog home or pet shop
Role-Play Errors
Didn’t know what to do, pat top of
head, between ears, pat back of head,
pat along back, interact with dog (if
dog didn’t look happy)
Approach dog, move away forward,
Anthrozoös

away, back away, leave dog alone,
move away backward
* not included in the RPOP
pat dog on head/between ears, pat
back of head, behind ears, pat chest/side,
pat nose, crouch to dog, pick up dog,
run away, put hand out, interact with
dog, didn’t know what to do
279
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 280

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

Composite variables were also constructed to assess the children’s responses to the role-
play activity. Scores were assigned on the basis of number of correct (i.e., appropriate be-
havior toward the dog, as covered by the RPOP), and incorrect responses (i.e., role-play
errors). The aspects that comprised the correct and incorrect responses were summed to
form composite measures of these aspects. The items that were included in these composite
measures are contained in Table 1.

Table 2. Descriptive statistics and variable labels for composite measures used in the analysis.
Control Immediate 2 Months 4 Months
(n = 32) (n = 30) (n = 30) (n = 31)
Measure Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD
Scared
Cartoon 1.03 0.93 1.50 1.01 1.90 0.84 1.45 1.12
Photograph 0.97 0.90 1.17 0.95 1.33 1.06 1.10 0.83
Angry
Cartoon 1.50 1.14 2.43 1.30 2.40 1.40 1.84 1.13
Photograph 1.03 0.74 1.67 1.03 1.20 0.81 1.06 0.89
RPOP plus Additional Items
Scared
Cartoon 2.03 0.93 2.33 1.09 2.73 1.05 2.42 1.20
Photograph 1.72 1.02 1.77 0.86 1.90 0.99 1.71 1.04
Angry
Cartoon 2.31 1.18 2.93 1.34 3.10 1.40 2.68 1.14
Photograph 1.72 0.63 2.00 1.14 1.77 0.94 1.90 0.87
Happy
Cartoon 1.94 0.88 1.90 0.88 2.07 0.87 2.00 0.93
Photograph 1.81 0.74 1.90 0.96 2.03 0.67 1.90 0.83
Role-Play for Each Dog Emotion
Scared Correct 0.28 0.63 1.03 1.81 0.57 1.10 0.65 0.98
Scared Error 1.81 1.06 1.33 0.84 2.13 1.25 1.87 1.06
Happy Correct 0.41 1.01 0.73 1.39 0.60 0.93 0.87 1.45
Happy Error 2.13 1.13 1.27 1.17 2.00 0.91 1.84 1.13
Angry Correct 0.63 1.13 2.07 1.76 2.30 1.80 1.58 1.73
Angry Error 1.66 1.23 1.07 1.08 1.03 0.96 1.19 1.08
RPOP Knowledge Variables
Responsible Pet Ownership
(RPOP content) 0.78 0.83 1.60 1.30 1.10 0.96 1.00 0.82
Responsible Pet Ownership
(RPOP + Additional Items) 2.78 1.36 3.30 1.42 2.97 1.52 2.97 1.33
Anthrozoös

Role-Play with Owner Present

Correct Approach 0.56 0.56 1.63 0.85 1.50 0.68 1.16 0.58
Incorrect Approach 1.03 1.20 0.80 0.92 0.60 0.72 0.61 0.95
280
AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 281

Coleman et al.

Scared Cartoon RPOP Total Angry Cartoon RPOP Total

2.0 2.6

Mean Correct Features of an Angry Cartoon Dog Identified

Mean Correct Features of a Scared Cartoon Dog Identified
1.8 2.4

1.6 2.2

1.4 2.0

1.2 1.8

1.0 1.6

0.8 1.4
Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month

Angry Photo RPOP Total Angry Role Play RPOP Total

Mean Correct Features of a Photo of an Angry Dog Identified

1.8 2.5

Mean Total Correct Role Plays to an Angry Dog

1.7
1.6 2.0
1.5
1.4
1.5
1.3
1.2
1.0
1.1
1.0
0.8 0.5
Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month

Scared Role Play Errors Happy Role Play Errors

2.2 2.2

2.0 2.0
Mean Role Play Errors to a Scared Dog

Mean Role Play Errors to a Happy Dog

1.8 1.8

1.6 1.6

1.4 1.4

1.2 1.2
Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month

RPOP Knowledge Role Play to Owner’s Dog

1.8 1.8
Mean Correct Role Plays with Owner’s Permission

1.6
1.6
Mean Knowledge Items Correct

1.4
1.4
1.2
1.2
1.0
Anthrozoös

1.0
0.8
0.8
0.6

0.6 0.4
Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month Control Immediate 2-Month 4-Month
281

Figure 1. Dependent variables showing significant effects of the RPOP.

AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 282

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

Results
Composite measures formed the dependent variables for univariate analyses of variance to
compare the control groups with the immediate, 2-month and 4-month groups on each of the
dependant variables. No significant differences between class sizes were found for any of the
measures. Therefore, treatment conditions were analyzed using a one-way analysis of variance,
with the control group and the three intervention groups (immediate, 2-month and 4-month
post-RPOP) as the four treatment levels. Treatment means, standard deviations, and cell sam-
ple sizes for each composite measure are given in Table 2.
Univariate analyses of variance to compare the control classes with the immediate, 2-month
and 4-month classes were carried out on each of the dependent variables. Significant main ef-
fects of the program were found for children’s ability to correctly recognize dog behaviors that
reflect its emotional state and were covered in the RPOP program. Figure 1 provides a graph-
ical representation of these results. These significant effects occurred for recognition of emo-
tional state in cartoon presentations of a scared dog (F(3,119) = 4.05, p < 0.05) and an angry dog
(F(3,119) = 4.10, p < 0.05), photo presentation of an angry dog (F(3,119) = 3.45, p < 0.05), role-play-
ing behavior to an angry dog (F(3,119) = 6.53, p < 0.01) and role-playing to a dog with the owner’s
permission (F(3,119) = 15.55, p < 0.01). Similarly, a significant effect was found for the extent of
children’s knowledge about dog ownership (F(3,119) = 3.73, p < 0.05).
Dunnett post-hoc tests revealed that the immediate group performed better than the con-
trol group on recognition of emotional state in cartoon and photo presentations of an angry
dog, role-playing behavior to an angry and a scared dog, role-playing to a dog with the owner’s
permission, and knowledge about dogs. Similarly, the 2-month group performed better than
the control group on recognition of emotional state in cartoon presentations of an angry dog
and a scared dog, role-playing behavior to an angry dog, and role-playing to a dog with the
owner’s permission. With the exception of role-playing to a dog with the owner’s permission,
there were no significant differences between the control group and the 4-month group.
Significant main effects were not found in those variables that included factual material that
was not covered in the program. Also, dependent variables based on a happy dog (also not
covered in the RPOP program) showed no significant effects.
The incidence of inappropriate behavior in the role-play situations was also analyzed. Signifi-
cant effects were found for role-play errors in relation to both a scared dog (F(3,119) = 2.95, p < 0.05)
and a happy dog (F(3,119) = 3.68, p < 0.05). Dunnett post-hoc tests revealed that the immediate
group performed better than the control group on errors in role-playing behavior to a happy dog.

Discussion
The key finding of this study was that preparatory-aged children who had participated in the
RPOP showed a better capacity to correctly identify emotions in cartoon depictions of dogs
than did those children who had not participated in the program. This is demonstrated by the
fact that children in the immediate group scored better than did those in the control group on
their ability to correctly identify characteristics of both a scared and an angry dog. However,
Anthrozoös

this effect did not persist for the 4-month group and there was no significant difference between
the control group and the 4-month group on these variables. Children were not able to cor-
rectly identify the happy dog from a cartoon presentation, but it should be remembered that
the RPOP did not contain a presentation of a happy dog. This provides some support for the
interpretation that the children’s improved knowledge immediately following the RPOP could
282

be attributed to the actual material presented in the program.

AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 283

Coleman et al.

In order to establish that children were able to generalize from the cartoon depictions
presented in the RPOP to photographs and video presentations of real dogs, children were
required to identify emotions in dogs presented using these media. In the case of the pho-
tographic presentations, children could correctly identify an angry dog, although this ability
had disappeared in the groups that were assessed 2 and 4 months after the program.
Children’s role-play behavior after watching a video clip of an angry dog followed by role-
play with a toy dog showed the correct behavioral responses for both the immediate group
and the 2-month group. The effect was not evident for the 4-month group. Children showed
fewer role-play errors with the happy dog immediately after the program but this effect had
disappeared in both the 2- and 4-month groups. Although there were overall differences
amongst the groups in role-play responses to a scared dog, there were no specific differences
between the control group and any of the individual treatment groups. These results indicate
that children do learn to respond appropriately to the behavior of dogs, but that in these
preparatory-aged children the effects do not persist. Only in the case of children’s role-play
to a dog with the owner’s permission was there any evidence of the effect persisting for 4
months after the RPOP.
In general, children did not identify dog behaviors that were relevant to the emotions of
anger, fear, or happiness that had not been included in the RPOP. As indicated earlier, this
suggests there is specificity in the knowledge that the children assimilated from the program.
Finally, children’s knowledge of why it is necessary to register dogs, why care needs to be
taken choosing a puppy, and why dogs need an enriched environment was higher for those
who had just been through the program compared with the control group. Again, this effect
was not present for the 2-and 4-month groups.
Given that significant effects of the RPOP on children’s knowledge and behavior were
found, this suggests that not only does the RPOP adequately communicate information to
preparatory-aged children in a manner that is understood, but also that the structured inter-
view technique used here is an appropriate way to assess the effects of the program. It remains
to be seen whether these techniques are appropriate for older children or whether a more
formal examination type of approach would be better.
The results certainly indicate that most of the knowledge obtained from the RPOP does
not persist for many months. Although some teachers reported conducting follow-up classes,
it was firstly very difficult to establish whether or not this had happened, and secondly, what
the nature of the follow-up was. Therefore, it may be that a systematic approach to follow-
ups is necessary.
While it is likely that participation in the program in each year of school would serve this
purpose, the data here suggest that preparatory-aged children might remain at risk of dog
bite unless more intensive follow-ups are used. The results of the evaluation indicate that in-
formation taught in the RPOP needs to be reinforced either in the home or school environment.
For example, information packs (including posters depicting children safely interacting with
dogs at home and in the community) and information about the program could be provided
Anthrozoös

for parents of children participating in the RPOP.

Given that two-thirds of dog bite injuries in children are from the child’s own dog or from
dogs familiar to them (VISS 1989), it may be prudent to expand the section covering interact-
ing with dogs at home and familiar dogs. For example, video footage of children interacting with
familiar dogs and role-playing responses to situations that may potentially provoke aggression,
283

for example, when a dog is having its meal, may be useful.

 AZ VOL. 21(3).qxp:Layout 1 6/18/08 9:43 AM Page 284

An Evaluation of a Pet Ownership Education Program for School Children

One school in the evaluation reported that they had not yet received their RPOP follow-up ma-
terial. Also, some of the data provided to the researchers by the RPOP administration was incor-
rect, indicating that there may be some problem in gathering correct data about school size, class
size, and class levels of schools participating in the RPOP. It is unclear whether these errors were
a result of incorrect feedback from the RPOP trainers or due to some other mechanism.
Based on the findings in this study, the RPOP Prep-Talk successfully teaches preparatory-
aged children to correctly identify emotions in dogs, interact with dogs accompanied on a
lead, to avoid unaccompanied dogs, and care for pets at home. The challenge is to encour-
age longer-term retention of this information. Given the higher risk of dog bite to the prepara-
tory-aged group (Routely and Valuri 1993), it is probably worth investing the effort to provide
more intensive tuition to these young children. A further study with a larger sample size may
be warranted. Whether or not the same findings would be evident in older children participat-
ing in the RPOP also remains to be established.

Acknowledgements
Funding for this project was provided by the Bureau of Animal Welfare, Department of Primary
Industries, Victoria, Australia. Alanna Sawyer (Monash University) kindly provided the artwork
and digitalized video footage for the study. Greg Fontana from Alpha Dog Training kindly
provided the expertly trained dog featuring in the photographic and video materials.

References
American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). 2001. Task force on canine aggression and human–canine
interactions. A community approach to dog bite. Veterinary Medicine Today 218: 1733–1749.
Ashby, K. 1996. Dog bites. Hazard 26: 7–13.
Chapman, S., Cornwall, J., Righetti, J. and Sung, L. 2000. Preventing dog bites in children: randomized control
trial of an educational intervention. British Medical Journal 320: 1512–1513.
Geldard, K. and Geldard, D. 1998. Counselling Children: A Practical Introduction. London: Sage Publications.
Gething, L., Papalia, D. E. and Olds, S. W. 1995. Life Span Development. Roseville, Australia: McGraw-Hill
Book Company.
Kail, R. V. and Cavanaugh, J. C. 2007. Human Development: A Life-Span View. 4th edn. Belmont, CA:
Thompson Wadsworth.
Ozanne-Smith, J., Ashby, K. and Stathakis, V. Z. 2001. Dog bite and injury prevention—analysis, critical review,
and research agenda. Injury Prevention 7: 321–326.
Piaget, J. 1972. Intellectual evolution from adolescence to adulthood. Human Development 15: 1–12.
Pulaski, M. A. S. 1971. Understanding Piaget: An Introduction to Children’s Cognitive Development. New York:
Harper & Row, Publishers.
Routley, V. and Valuri, J. 1993. Home injuries. Hazard 14: 1–20.
Spiegel, I. B. 2000. A pilot study to evaluate an elementary school-based dog bite prevention program.
Anthrozoös 13: 164–173.
Victorian Injury Surveillance System. 1989. Hazard 3: 1–11.
Anthrozoös
284

View publication stats