Relationship between paw preference strength and noise phobia in Canis familiaris.

Full Abstract

The authors investigated the relationship between degree of lateralization and noise phobia in 48 domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) by scoring paw preference to hold a food object and relating it to reactivity to the sounds of thunderstorms and fireworks, measured by playback and a questionnaire. The dogs without a significant paw preference were significantly more reactive to the sounds than the dogs with either a left-paw or right-paw preference. Intense reactivity, therefore, is associated with a weaker strength of cerebral lateralization. The authors note the similarity between their finding and the weaker hand preferences shown in humans suffering extreme levels of anxiety and suggest neural mechanisms that may be involved.((c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: Branson, N J (NJ); Rogers, L J (LJ);

Affiliation: Centre for Neuroscience and Animal Behavior, School of Biological, Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia. nbranson(-atsign-)une.edu.au

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Journal of comparative psychology (Washington, D.C. : 1983) (J Comp Psychol), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2006-Aug; vol 120 (issue 3) : pp 176-83

Dates: Created 2006/08/08; Completed 2006/12/22;

PMID: 16893254, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Acoustic Stimulation
Animals
Arousal
Dogs - psychology

Dogs - psychology
Fear - psychology
Functional Laterality
Noise

These are the highest related articles currently in the database:

See 100+ related articles.