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Decreased risk-proneness with increasing age in equally raised and kept wolves and dogs

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Title: Decreased risk-proneness with increasing age in equally raised and kept wolves and dogs
Authors: Hillary Jean-Joseph, Kim Kortekaas, Friederike Range, Kurt Kotrschal
Source: PLoS One ; issn:1932-6203
Publisher Information: Public Library of Science
Publication Year: 2025
Subject Terms: Dogs, Animals, Wolves Physiology, Humans, Behavior, Animal Physiology, Male, Female, Rate Physiology, Heart, Risk-Taking, Age Factors, Fear Physiology, Fear Psychology, Aging Physiology, Aging Psychology
Description: A basic mechanism of domestication is the selection for fearlessness and acceptance of humans as social partners, which may affect risk-taking behavior and the ability to use humans as social support, both at the behavioural and physiological levels. We combined behavioural observations with heart rate parameters (i.e., HR and heart rate variability, HRV) in equally raised and housed wolves and dogs to assess the responses to food offered in the vicinity of a potential stressor (an unknown spinning object) with and without social support from a familiar human. Based on previous studies on neophobia in wolves and dogs, we expected dogs to be less scared of the object, approach more quickly, show less ambivalent behaviour, lower HR, and higher HRV, than wolves, especially at the presence of a human partner. However, we found that mainly age and the presence of a familiar human affected the behaviour of our subjects: older wolves and dogs were generally bolder and faster to approach the food and the familiar human's presence increased the likelihood of taking it. HR rate parameters were affected by age and the stage of the test. Wolves and dogs showed particularly high HRs at the beginning and end of the test sessions. We conclude that in our paradigm, wolves' and dogs' risk-proneness varied with age, rather than species. Additionally, the presence of a familiar human increased the motivation of both, dogs and wolves to take the food.
Document Type: article in journal/newspaper
File Description: application/pdf
Language: English
Relation: isPartOf:https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:605[Open Access Publications]; https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:3874
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0313916
Availability: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0313916
https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:3874
Rights: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ; Copyright: © 2025 Jean-Joseph et al. ; open access
Accession Number: edsbas.F9576467
Database: BASE
Description
Abstract:A basic mechanism of domestication is the selection for fearlessness and acceptance of humans as social partners, which may affect risk-taking behavior and the ability to use humans as social support, both at the behavioural and physiological levels. We combined behavioural observations with heart rate parameters (i.e., HR and heart rate variability, HRV) in equally raised and housed wolves and dogs to assess the responses to food offered in the vicinity of a potential stressor (an unknown spinning object) with and without social support from a familiar human. Based on previous studies on neophobia in wolves and dogs, we expected dogs to be less scared of the object, approach more quickly, show less ambivalent behaviour, lower HR, and higher HRV, than wolves, especially at the presence of a human partner. However, we found that mainly age and the presence of a familiar human affected the behaviour of our subjects: older wolves and dogs were generally bolder and faster to approach the food and the familiar human's presence increased the likelihood of taking it. HR rate parameters were affected by age and the stage of the test. Wolves and dogs showed particularly high HRs at the beginning and end of the test sessions. We conclude that in our paradigm, wolves' and dogs' risk-proneness varied with age, rather than species. Additionally, the presence of a familiar human increased the motivation of both, dogs and wolves to take the food.
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0313916