Evaluation on Effects of Play and Passive Situation Tests in Predicting Training Successful Rate for Guide Dogs

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-5817.2015.03.007

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To establish the methods and evaluation criterion for play and passive situation tests of DMA (dog mentality assessment) and detect their effects on predicting the training successful rate for guide dogs. Method According to the methods of common temperament tests and considering the behavior characteristics of guide dogs, the methods of play and passive situation tests for guide dogs’ behavior and the related evaluation criterion for 5 behavioral variables in total were established. The behavioral variables were Interest in play, grabbing, tug-of-war in play test and activity I and activity II in passive situation test. Seventeen guide dogs and 17 eliminated dogs from Chinese Guide Dogs Training Centre of Dalian were used to examine the predicting effects of the 5 behavioral variables on the training successful rate for guide dogs. Result According to the results of statistical analysis, the “activity I” in the passive situation test showed higher significant difference between guide dogs and eliminated dogs (P=0.003), and the “activity II” in the passive situation test showed significant difference (P=0.014). However, no significant difference was detected for the rest variables in play test between guide dogs and eliminated dogs (P>0.05). While, there were clear trends showed that the scores of eliminated dogs were higher than that of guide dogs in variable of Interest in play. The distribution analysis of the numbers of guide dogs and eliminated dogs in 3 different score grades (1~2 points, 3~4 points and 5 points) of each variable showed: for Interest in play, more guide dogs distributed in 1~2 points and less guide dogs distributed in 5 points compared to eliminated dogs; for grabbing, the distribution of guide dogs and eliminated dogs had a similar trend; for tug-of-war, more eliminated dogs distributed in 1~2 points and 5 points grade compared to guide dogs; for activity I and activity II, more guide dogs distributed in 1~2 points and less guide dogs distributed in 3~4 points compared to eliminated dogs. Conclusion The methods and evaluation criterion for play and passive situation test were successfully established. The “activity I” and “activity II” are confirmed as two effective variable indexes to predict the training successful rate for guide dogs.

Key words: Guide dogs, Play test, Passive situation test, Training successful rate

CLC Number:

Q95-33

ZHANG Ya-li, ZHOU Zi-juan, YU Jian-xiong, HAN Fang, WANG Liang, JIANG Xin, AI Bo, WANG Ai-guo, WANG Fu-jin, WANG Jing-yu. Evaluation on Effects of Play and Passive Situation Tests in Predicting Training Successful Rate for Guide Dogs[J]. Laboratory Animal and Comparative Medicine, 2015, 35(3): 212-217.

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