Studies on olfactory acuity in dogs. (1) discriminatory behaviour in problem box situations

Abstract

In all, thirty-six dogs were used in attempting to establish olfactory discrimination in three types of problem boxes which required a right or left hand turning response at the choice point. In most instances it was questionable whether the animals were discriminating between the odour substances when they made a successful response, or whether they were utilising some other set of non-olfactory cues. It was clear that they would use a flashing light or some useful signal from a dog handler to better advantage in associating a proper turn with reward than they would seize upon differences in smell to guide them. They could readily learn the steps necessary to escape from a box without ever learning to associate a given odour with a proper turn.