Could greater time spent displaying waking inactivity in the home environment be a marker for a depression-like state in the domestic dog?

Harvey, N. D., Moesta, A., Kappel, S., Wongsaengchan, C., Harris, H., Craigon, P. J. and Fureix, C. (2019) Could greater time spent displaying waking inactivity in the home environment be a marker for a depression-like state in the domestic dog? Animals, 9(7), p. 420. (doi: 10.3390/ani9070420) (PMID:31284425) (PMCID:PMC6680786)

Abstract

Dogs exposed to aversive events can become inactive and unresponsive and are commonly referred to as being “depressed”, but this association remains to be tested. We investigated whether shelter dogs spending greater time inactive “awake but motionless” (ABM) in their home-pen show anhedonia (the core reduction of pleasure reported in depression), as tested by reduced interest in, and consumption of, palatable food (KongTM test). We also explored whether dogs being qualitatively perceived by experts as disinterested in the food would spend greater time ABM (experts blind to actual inactivity levels). Following sample size estimations and qualitative behaviour analysis (n = 14 pilot dogs), forty-three dogs (6 shelters, 22F:21M) were included in the main study. Dogs relinquished by their owners spent more time ABM than strays or legal cases (F = 8.09, p = 0.032). One significant positive association was found between the KongTM measure for average length of KongTM bout and ABM, when length of stay in the shelter was accounted for as a confounder (F = 3.66, p = 0.035). Time spent ABM also correlated with scores for “depressed” and “bored” in the qualitative results, indirectly suggesting that experts associate greater waking inactivity with negative emotional states. The hypothesis that ABM reflects a depression-like syndrome is not supported; we discuss how results might tentatively support a “boredom-like” state and further research directions.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This project was funded by a Waltham Collaborative Behaviour andWelfare Award to Carole Fureix and Naomi D. Harvey. Carole Fureix was supported by a European Marie Curie FP7 IEF Fellowship (fellowship no. 626732) and internal funding from the University of Plymouth School of Biological and Marine Sciences during the project period and Naomi D. Harvey was supported by funding from Guide Dogs, a Dogs Trust Canine Welfare grant and The University of Nottingham HERMES Fellowship through the period of the study. The APC fees were met by internal funding from the University of Plymouth School of Biological and Marine Sciences and The University of Nottingham.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Wongsaengchan, Chanakarn

Creator Roles

Wongsaengchan, C.: Investigation, Writing – review and editing

• Authors: Harvey, N. D., Moesta, A., Kappel, S., Wongsaengchan, C., Harris, H., Craigon, P. J., and Fureix, C.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences
• Journal Name: Animals
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2076-2615
• ISSN (Online): 2076-2615
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2019 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Animals 9(7):420
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License