Meet Rudy, The Dog Who Is Being Raised With Science

Rudy the staghound gets to enjoy a lot of the things that many pets do: trips to the beach, playtime at the dog park, napping on the couch.

But Rudy’s adventures and home life are examined a lot more closely than those of an ordinary pet, because he’s being raised with science.

That’s how Australian canine researcher Mia Cobb puts it on a blog, charmingly called “Do You Believe In Dog?”, that she co-writes with fellow canine scientist Julie Hecht.

“It means we’re putting all that we know about what dogs need to live a healthy, happy and engaging life into practice,” Cobb explains. “From using learning theory in how we train him, to what we know about how to familiarize young dogs with loud noises, how to enjoy visiting new places, what rewards are most effective to get the behavior we want, how to be comfortable being alone if we’re not home, socializing him with other dogs, how to interact safely with adults and children — there’s been scientific research in all these areas and many more.

“We’re trying to put all that knowledge into setting Rudy up to have an awesome life.”

Raising a dog with science looks a lot like raising a well-trained dog. Cobb says the difference is that she’s basing her “Raising Rudy” choices on studies and peer-reviewed findings which are often published behind paywalls and other places that trainers and regular, non-Ph.D. dog owners can’t see them.

A recent trip to the shore with Rudy involved more than a swim and sandy play time. There was also an opportunity to think carefully about how to introduce Rudy to new stimuli and reinforce good recall and obedience. There were a few “oops” moments, too — like when Rudy ate a dead crab while off-leash. But even that fit in with Cobb’s scientific method.

I’d encourage people to really think about what dogs want or like independently of their own preferences. If in doubt, give your dog a choice. A lot of people — on Twitter anyway! — want science to enable dogs to talk to people. But we need to realize that dogs ARE communicating with us every day through their behavior, we just need to pay attention.

Do dogs like wearing princess outfits or going sky diving? Maybe some do, but if we remove the element of choice, we’re potentially compromising their welfare.

One other thing I thought of that many dog owners and even some trainers mistake is the capacity for their dogs to demonstrate “guilty behavior.” The scenario where the owner returns to a destroyed cushion or dug up garden bed and report the dog “looked guilty?” Scientific enquiry has demonstrated that dogs are not feeling guilty in the way that people tend to think, but instead, responding to the human behavior based on past experiences. (See: Behavioural Processes, Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Domestic Dog Cognition and Behavior, and Behavioural Processes.)

“Experiencing new substrates underfoot in a fun way, playing retrieve with toys on this slippery cardboard,” says Cobb — who threw squeaky toys onto cardboard so Rudy would learn to associate the sensation of walking on slippery sensations with a good time.

This interview has been edited for length, and Australian spellings have been converted into American English.

Keep tabs on Rudy and his science on the Do You Believe In Dog? blog, Facebook page and using the hashtag #RaisingRudy on Twitter.

Get in touch at arin.greenwood@huffingtonpost.com if you have an animal story to share!

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