Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks: Using the Academic Classroom to Improve the Adoption Outcomes of 10 Shelter Dogs

Animal shelters around the US are commonly overpopulated, and canine-specific behavioral rehabilitation opportunities within shelters are limited. The current project explored the possibility of integrating a canine-training program into the academic undergraduate Psychology curriculum. Students enrolled in the "Canine Learning and Behavior" class at Saint Francis University fostered and trained a total of 10 shelter dogs throughout three academic semesters, and the effectiveness of the program on the behavior of the dogs was evaluated. Findings demonstrated that the behavioral repertoire of all trained dogs improved, as assessed using a 10-item questionnaire tailored to the American Kennel Club "Canine Good Citizen" (AKC-CGC) test. Results also demonstrated that most dogs passed the AKC-CGC test conducted by a certified evaluator, and that all dogs were successfully adopted into their forever homes. The implications, limitations, and future directions of the study are discussed.