The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

A survey of behavioural characteristics of pure-bred dogs in Italy

A survey of behavioural characteristics of pure-bred dogs in Italy
A survey of behavioural characteristics of pure-bred dogs in Italy
The selection of dog breeds for functionality has progressively lost its importance and behavioural attributes originally selected are often now considered problems in household contexts. This study investigated behavioural characteristics of the 49 most popular breeds of dogs in Italy. Questionnaires were sent to 112 Italian veterinarians and 56 non-veterinarians (trainers, behaviour counsellors and animal charity officers) who rated breed behavioural characteristics and compared the behaviour of males and females. Females were considered more trainable for obedience, more demanding of affection and more housetrainable. Males were rated higher than females for all other traits except playfulness and general activity. Principal factor analysis with varimax rotation generated two principal factors (labelled aggressivity and reactivity/immaturity) that accounted for 56% of the total variance. Nine breed groups with different behavioural characteristics were generated by K-means cluster analysis. These groupings had similarities with the groupings presented in the USA and UK, e.g. of the seven breeds rated as high in aggressivity in this study, five were rated high in all three countries, the Miniature Schnauzer was rated high for aggressivity in Italy and the US, but the Yorkshire Terrier was rated high only in Italy. These results provide further evidence of the need for care when transposing breed behavioural advice or treatments between countries.
dogs, breed differences, behaviour, domestication
0168-1591
118-130
Notari, L.
78d8133d-ff30-407c-88b6-8d8e398d28d7
Goodwin, D.
44ea5b5f-3933-4171-83b6-8d48928e27ca
Notari, L.
78d8133d-ff30-407c-88b6-8d8e398d28d7
Goodwin, D.
44ea5b5f-3933-4171-83b6-8d48928e27ca

Notari, L. and Goodwin, D. (2007) A survey of behavioural characteristics of pure-bred dogs in Italy. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 103 (1-2), 118-130. (doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2006.03.018).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The selection of dog breeds for functionality has progressively lost its importance and behavioural attributes originally selected are often now considered problems in household contexts. This study investigated behavioural characteristics of the 49 most popular breeds of dogs in Italy. Questionnaires were sent to 112 Italian veterinarians and 56 non-veterinarians (trainers, behaviour counsellors and animal charity officers) who rated breed behavioural characteristics and compared the behaviour of males and females. Females were considered more trainable for obedience, more demanding of affection and more housetrainable. Males were rated higher than females for all other traits except playfulness and general activity. Principal factor analysis with varimax rotation generated two principal factors (labelled aggressivity and reactivity/immaturity) that accounted for 56% of the total variance. Nine breed groups with different behavioural characteristics were generated by K-means cluster analysis. These groupings had similarities with the groupings presented in the USA and UK, e.g. of the seven breeds rated as high in aggressivity in this study, five were rated high in all three countries, the Miniature Schnauzer was rated high for aggressivity in Italy and the US, but the Yorkshire Terrier was rated high only in Italy. These results provide further evidence of the need for care when transposing breed behavioural advice or treatments between countries.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: 1 March 2007
Keywords: dogs, breed differences, behaviour, domestication

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 56828
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/56828
ISSN: 0168-1591
PURE UUID: fed158d2-93f9-4056-bfb5-bda059eab6f6

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 06 Aug 2008
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 11:03

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: L. Notari
Author: D. Goodwin

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×