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Simple Summary: Dogs are undeniably capable of effective cooperation with humans, whether their task is herding, hunting, or assisting disabled people. However, the factors influencing family dogs' spontaneous tendency to cooperate remains unexplored. Our aim was to investigate if breed function, training experience, and owner-reported social motivation level were associated with successful spontaneous dog–owner cooperation. We tested family dogs from different breed groups (non-working dogs, cooperative/independent working breeds), with various training backgrounds in a cooperative task, in which they had to work together with their owners to achieve a common goal. We measured whether dogs paid attention to their partner, understood the problem situation, and were willing to help their owners. Breed groups had no significant effect on the dogs' behaviour. Dogs with high training levels and high social motivation were more attentive and more cooperative. This implies that in future studies, special attention should be dedicated to consider the subjects' training background and social motivation. Our findings emphasise the need for test procedures that do not rely on specific trained skills of the dogs. Dogs' ability to cooperate with humans is widely acknowledged, but the factors influencing their spontaneous cooperative tendencies are largely unknown. We investigated whether breed function, training experience, and owner-reported social motivation level contribute to spontaneous dog–owner cooperation. Family dogs (N = 100) of three breed groups (non-working dogs, cooperative/independent working breeds) with various training experiences were tested in an 'out–of–reach' task with their owners as their partners, who never directly asked for help during the test. We measured dogs' behaviour along three main components of successful cooperation: paying attention, understanding the problem, and willingness to cooperate. Breed groups had no significant effect on dogs' behaviour. No factor was associated with the behavioural variables related to not understanding the task. Dogs with high training levels and high social motivation showed more attention-related behaviours and were more likely to help the owner (training level and social motivation were not correlated with each other). Our results highlight the importance of training experience and social motivation in dogs' attentiveness and spontaneous cooperativity. This also points to the need for careful sample balancing and experimental procedures that do not rely on specific trained skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder in humans, characterised by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Evidence suggests that family dogs can exhibit behaviours similar to symptoms of ADHD seen in humans. While past research mainly used questionnaires to assess ADHD-like behaviours in dogs, we aimed to create a simple behavioural test battery covering key ADHD symptom dimensions: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Using our previously validated questionnaire (Dog ADHD and Functionality Rating Scale–DAFRS; 2024) in a study involving 59 dogs, we correlated owner-rated DAFRS scores with behavioural test outcomes to further validate our questionnaire. In a subsample of 38 dogs, we also determined whether there is a difference in how owner- and trainer-rated ADHD scores are linked with the test variables. Our test battery included attention, plush dog, leash, and sit tests, all showing significant correlations with the relevant questionnaire scores in an expected direction. Both owner- and trainer-rated ADHD questionnaire factor scores showed correspondence with the relevant behavioural test variables. Dogs' training status only showed association with the sit test. The test battery proved to be consistent in time; test–retest analyses demonstrated moderate-to-excellent agreement across all tests. Our findings endorse the validity of our questionnaire and behavioural tests, providing valuable tools for assessing inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity in dogs. Family dogs exhibit neuropsychological deficits similar to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in humans. Questionnaire methods have mostly been used to assess ADHD-like behaviours in dogs. In addition to our validated questionnaire (Dog ADHD and Functionality Rating Scale–DAFRS; 2024), we developed a simple behavioural test battery covering the ADHD symptom domains (i.e., inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity) in dogs. Our main aim was (i) to provide a final external validation step to the DAFRS by examining its associations with the test variables (N = 59); and (ii) to compare owner- and trainer-rated factor scores' associations with the test variables (n = 38). We developed four tests covering the ADHD symptom domains: the attention test (inattention), the plush dog test (impulsivity), the leash test, and the sit test (hyperactivity). All four behavioural variables correlated with their respective questionnaire scores, i.e., the strongest for hyperactivity, and the least strong for inattention. Both owner- and trainer-rated scores (n = 38) correlated with the relevant test variables in an expected direction. Dogs' training status was linked only to the sit test results. Test–retest analyses (n = 34) indicated moderate-to-excellent agreement across all behavioural variables. Our findings support the validity of our novel human-analogue questionnaire for dogs as the behavioural tests strongly correlate with the relevant questionnaire scores, indicating that the two constructs together can effectively assess inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity in dogs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dog is a so far unique species to study interspecific communication and a promising evolutionary model for preverbal human communication. Recently cats were reported to show some similar skills to dogs. Here we directly compared both the testability and the success of companion dogs and cats in relying on human distal pointing gestures. Due to differences in their domestication, social and ecological background, and developmental processes, we expected better performance from dogs compared to cats. Using an object-choice task, cats made considerably fewer choices than dogs in the laboratory environment, and their tendency to make a choice declined during trials. They were slightly more testable at home, where their willingness to choose did not decrease over time. Dogs made more successful choices than cats, both at the group and individual level, irrespective of the type of the pointing gesture. Older cats were more successful. Despite the two species' rather similar role nowadays as human companions, our results support previous findings suggesting that, compared to the dog, the cat is a less ideal model to study some human communicative abilities in a laboratory environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dog is a so far unique species to study interspecific communication and a promising evolutionary model for preverbal human communication. Recently cats were reported to show some similar skills to dogs. Here we directly compared both the testability and the success of companion dogs and cats in relying on human distal pointing gestures. Due to differences in their domestication, social and ecological background, and developmental processes, we expected better performance from dogs compared to cats. Using an object-choice task, cats made considerably fewer choices than dogs in the laboratory environment, and their tendency to make a choice declined during trials. They were slightly more testable at home, where their willingness to choose did not decrease over time. Dogs made more successful choices than cats, both at the group and individual level, irrespective of the type of the pointing gesture. Older cats were more successful. Despite the two species' rather similar role nowadays as human companions, our results support previous findings suggesting that, compared to the dog, the cat is a less ideal model to study some human communicative abilities in a laboratory environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]