Is There an Association between Paw Preference and Emotionality in Pet Dogs?

Area of Science:

• Animal behavior
• Comparative psychology
• Veterinary neurology

Background:

• Preferential limb use in humans and animals is theorized to correlate with emotionality.
• Understanding this link could identify limb preference as a marker for emotional vulnerability and affective disorders.
• This study investigates the relationship between paw preference and emotionality in domestic dogs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the potential relationship between paw preference and emotionality in pet dogs.
• To assess paw preference using a Kong™ toy and two locomotion tests.
• To evaluate dog emotionality using the Positive and Negative Activation Scale (PANAS).

Main Methods:

• Assessed paw preference during a Kong™ test and two distinct locomotion tasks.
• Administered the Positive and Negative Activation Scale (PANAS) to measure emotionality.
• Analyzed correlations between paw preference across tasks and between paw preference and PANAS scores.

Main Results:

• Significant positive correlations were observed for paw use between the locomotion tasks, indicating stable paw preference across different movements.
• Correlations between the Kong™ Test and locomotion tests were only partially significant, possibly due to test limitations or biomechanics.
• No significant correlations were found between paw preference tests and PANAS emotionality scores.

Conclusions:

• Dog paw preference appears to be task-specific and may lack consistency across different activities.
• The findings challenge the utility of paw preference as a universal marker for emotional functioning in dogs.
• Methodological considerations regarding task specificity are crucial for future research on animal limb preference and emotionality.