Dog Lovers Can Participate in a Study to Help Their Canine Companions

Would you answer 100 questions to help save the lives of dogs? That is what Dr. Nicholas Dodman of the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and James Serpell, Ph.D. at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania are asking dog parents.

If you live with dogs, Dodman and Serpell want you to participate in their study, which examines how a dog owner’s personality and psychological status affects a pet’s behavior. The Animal Ownership Interaction Study is being done at The Simon Foundation’s Center for Canine Behavior Studies. The objective of the study, which will initially run for two years, is to elucidate the positive and negative aspects of owners’ interaction with their dogs.

From the results of this study, Dodman and Serpell expect to be able to help owners understand the influence they are having on their pets' behavior and to be able to modify their interactions with their dogs in a positive way.

Participating in the study requires a few minutes of your time, and is purely voluntary and anonymous. Registration for the study is now open. To learn more and register, click here.

Michele C. Hollow writes about pets and wildlife for Parade and other publications. She is the author of The Everything Guide to Working with Animals, and she write the animal advocacy blog Pet News and Views. You can connect with her on Twitter.