Date of Award

2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Harley, Heidi

Area of Concentration

Psychology and Environmental Studies

Abstract

Rough-and-tumble play is a type of social play characterized by both competition and cooperation. The experience of rough-and-tumble play may allow juveniles to calibrate their emotional response and improve motor, neural, and social development. Playing as adults has been shown to reduce current stress levels. In the animal kingdom, rough-and-tumble play typically happens between familiar individuals. At off-leash dog parks, familiar and unfamiliar individuals play, which requires intricate social coordination. How do they do it? Here we observed naturally occurring playful behaviors of domestic dogs in 14 dyadic play bouts at an off-leash dog park in Bradenton, Florida. We video-recorded and coded for behavior modification between play partners, supine position, reinitiation of play, and restraint of aggressive behavioral sequences. Some dogs substantially varied their behavior across play partners (measured by the percentage of time spent supine), while other dogs remained relatively constant. The presence of play is often used as an indicator of positive welfare; play is self-reinforcing and may well be a meaningful experience for the development of domestic dogs.

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