It can be affected by the value or quality of the stimulus and how long or how often it is presented. Rate of habituation varies between individuals. Habituation highlights dogs' learning and memory skills: "No need to respond to X, Y or Z. Dogs probably couldn't live alongside us as our partners in crime if they didn't habituate to the many things they encounter day-in and day-out. "To respond to every novel or alarming stimulus, regardless of its significance, may waste energy and thus be maladaptive," explains The Encyclopedia of Applied Animal Behaviour and Welfare. Habituation occurs when an individual learns not to respond to a previously arousing stimulus, in this case, the mirror. When this happens, dogs are displaying one of the most useful-and ubiquitous-types of learning in the animal kingdom: habituation. Mirrors fall to the backdrop of life, not worthy of their time. YOU MEAN NOTHING TO ME… Dogs come to find that neither play overtures nor stiffness amounts to anything, and they stop attending to mirrors. In some cases, dogs display less jovial postures toward the dog-image staring back, such as body stiffness, unwavering staring, or raised hackles. Young dogs often treat the image in the mirror not as themselves, but as if another dog play bowed, pawed, barked, or started to zoom around the room. Upon first encountering a mirror, dogs-like other animals-may react as if the image is another member of their species, in this case, another dog. If that dog lives in your home, maybe you were camera ready, prepared to capture The Incident, post its hilariousness to YouTube, and sit back and watch the views pour in. ![]() ![]() IN THE BEGINNING… You've probably seen a dog encounter a mirror for the first time. Instead, their relationship with mirrors seems to come in three equally interesting flavors. No dog will ever gaze into a mirror and reflect, "So THAT'S what my ears look like." But that shouldn't suggest mirrors are meaningless to dogs. Dogs don't use mirrors to refer back to themselves like we do.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |