Investigating Attachment Bonds in Dogs

Abstract

As a result of living alongside humans for many centuries, dogs have developed unique social and emotional abilities that allow them to form close relationships with humans. The relationship between dogs and their human caregivers has been described as analogous to that of human parents and their children. There has been recent interest in studying the human-dog relationship from the perspective of attachment theory. Attachment theory suggests that human infants are born with an innate attachment system that ensures proximity of the infant to attachment figures and that attachment figures can serve as a secure base from which to explore the environment. Infants can be classified into one of four attachment styles based upon their secure base use and the balance of proximity seeking behaviors with the attachment figure and exploratory behaviors. Attachment theory has previously been applied to dogs, indicating that dogs indeed form attachment-like bonds with their human caregivers and that these bonds are comparable to the attachment bonds of human children. Behavioral classifications of attachment style have also been applied to dogs. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the development, stability, and implications of attachment style in dogs. Chapter 1 of this paper provides an introduction to attachment theory and its application to dogs. Chapter 2 compares attachment and social preference across companion and candidate detection dogs. The distribution of attachment security in candidate detection dogs was found to differ significantly from companion dogs, with candidate detection dogs showing more secure attachment than companion dogs. Both companion dogs and candidate detection dogs were found to significantly prefer a familiar caregiver to an unfamiliar stranger. Chapter 3 explores the formation and stability of attachment bonds in the first year of life for a population of candidate detection dogs, as well as possible links between attachment and detection performance for this population. Evidence of attachment was found in some dogs as early as 6 weeks of age, with all dogs showing evidence of attachment by 5 months. Attachment style was found to be largely stable across the first year of life. A significant relationship was observed between attachment style and reward focus and confidence in an unfamiliar location, but there was largely no relationship between attachment style and detection task performance. Chapter 4 evaluates the ability of adult working dogs to form new attachment bonds. Adult working dogs were found to readily form new attachments with new social partners. Chapter 5 explores the role of temperament on attachment in companion dogs. Temperament and attachment were found to be largely independent constructs, however, there is support for the role of differential susceptibility on attachment style formation. Finally, Chapter 6 provides a summary of findings and offers general conclusions on the development, stability, and implications of attachment in dogs.