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Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

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Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#81

Post by hinkley »

bell-cot wrote: post #39
hinkley wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There’s some documentation out there suggesting the original Labrador retrievers had food obsession as a trait in common with bidability, which is why more than half of them end up chonky. Not all have the gene but odds are high. There’s a guy who trawls dog rescues looking for retrievers who are toy obsessed and then trains them to hunt truffles. He reasons you can’t reward them with food for finding even tastier fo…

From a dog's PoV , are truffles actually tastier than high quality dog treats?

Truffles are, it turns out, highly attractive to most mammals. The scent makes us want to dig them up. They’re so strong to overcome the layer of soil on top of them.

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#82

Post by teekert »

shpx wrote: post #78
hippo22 wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Watching a dog that likes playing fetch is cathartic. I truly wish I had that level of purpose and fulfillment in my life.

Dog breeds are not real animals, they're some sort of half-artificial thing created by imperfectly writing some people's desire into another species's genetic code. If you make an artificial thing that really wants to do some specific thing, like a computer endlessly printing "hello world" millions of times a second, it's not surprising to see it do the thing it was created to do. I wouldn't say the computer "wants"…

Dogs were domesticated by sort of not letting them grow up. We selected for the ones that retained puppy features into adulthood. They don't loose big eyes, hanging ears, retained playful/less aggressive behavior that is better for living with siblings.

Perhaps the obsession with fetching came with that?

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#83

Post by emerongi »

tguvot wrote: post #75

I have 2 standard poodles that come from working (hunting) lineage. After few throws of tennis ball they realize that game is rigged, and just go away, making me to go and retrieve the ball

My grandparents had a hunting dog. She did not care about "play-time" at all. On the other hand, she got excited when she heard "forest" or "rabbit". Had to be careful with those words.

I think when she wasn't in the forest, she was just waiting to go there again. Instead of ball, it was forest.

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#84

Post by rini17 »

brap wrote: post #80
rini17 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pretty hard to avoid any situations where pulling is possible. Such as on leash. You usually have to intensely train working dogs not to pull on leash. They would still fixate on other behaviors they are trained on. And if not trained and neglected, often have destructive behaviors.

My bad, I meant specifically pulling a sled

It's not about sled. They just naturally pull. I have a GSD that has never seen a sled or dog pulling anything. But my crazy ex very easily teached the dog to pull him while on scooter or bicycle.

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#85

Post by LeifCarrotson »

turkey99 wrote: post #47
gwbas1c wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As in I'm obligated to throw the damn ball. As opposed to my Newfoundland that will tease me with the ball and then I'm obligated to chase her until she wears out, I catch her, or I bribe her with a treat.

I’m hoping this is a puppy trait. Thats what my one year old golden-doodle does

It can be trained, at least in some cases.

When attention/reward/engagement cease when the ball is not returned and dropped - literally turn around and walk away dejectedly - but a successful return results in praise, treats, and MORE FETCH, my dog quickly learned to bring it back.

For my sister's dog, the key is to have a second ball alluringly held ready to throw - the one that's already in the mouth is forgotten about except as a means to get the second ball thrown. The dog has to bring it "all the way!" (point at the ball that was dropped halfway back) before the second ball is thrown.

It's definitely a tough one to solve, though, especially when the act of running around with the ball in the mouth is the rewarding behavior...

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#86

Post by actionfromafar »

teekert wrote: post #82
shpx wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dog breeds are not real animals, they're some sort of half-artificial thing created by imperfectly writing some people's desire into another species's genetic code. If you make an artificial thing that really wants to do some specific thing, like a computer endlessly printing "hello world" millions of times a second, it's not surprising to see it do the thing it was created to do. I wouldn't say the computer "wants"…

Dogs were domesticated by sort of not letting them grow up. We selected for the ones that retained puppy features into adulthood. They don't loose big eyes, hanging ears, retained playful/less aggressive behavior that is better for living with siblings. Perhaps the obsession with fetching came with that?

Also, Humans were domesticated by sort of not letting them grow up. Maybe that’s the reason we get along so well.

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#87

Post by Pulcinella »

quotemstr wrote: post #50
Pulcinella wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would many, many, many people choose to piss and shit themselves in public instead of stopping for a few minutes to use the restroom? Why would someone choose the push a button every 5 seconds to the point where it ruins their life? Put it another way: why would gambling companies continue to develop gambling machines? Why not stop with the mechanical, one-armed-bandit of the early 1900s if what they do has no ef…

Perhaps by the time someone's at the shitting at the seat phase of a gambling habit the neurological feedbacks arising from the intermittent reward schedule have become too strong for him to resist on his own. But who made him start gambling in the first place? It's not like people who start gambling don't know how it ends. The most addictive slot machine in the world can't compel someone to sit at it for the first t…

Perhaps by the time someone's at the shitting at the seat phase of a gambling habit the neurological feedbacks arising from the intermittent reward schedule have become too strong for him to resist on his own.

Bingo. The machines don't play themselves, of course. But at the same time, the manufacturers and casinos know exactly what they are doing. I would say:

We've utterly lost the capacity for describing deficiencies of the conscience.

applies to those the manufacturers and casinos as well.

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#88

Post by micromacrofoot »

gigatree wrote: post #43
cmrdporcupine wrote: post #2

If there's a frisbee or ball in sight, my female border collie won't even attend to basic bodily needs. And she'll chase the object while she's in pain and exhausted or shivering with cold and not notice. She has lupoid onychodystrophy which causes her nails to come in deformed and split and painful and she'll still obsess on some running play/task while she's got bleeding paws and can barely walk. An an owner we hav…

It’s kind of funny how the idea of behavior being a result of breeding goes out the window when it comes to pitbulls. Retrievers naturally retrieve, collies naturally herd, but when a murder-canine eats a family it’s all “oh it could have been any breed”.

it's more nuanced - "pitbull" isn't a single breed, it's a category

none of the dogs in the category were bred to kill indiscriminately - they were expected to obey handlers just like any other working breed

and there are a number of fighting breeds outside of the category as well

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#89

Post by [deleted] »

shpx wrote: post #78
hippo22 wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Watching a dog that likes playing fetch is cathartic. I truly wish I had that level of purpose and fulfillment in my life.

Dog breeds are not real animals, they're some sort of half-artificial thing created by imperfectly writing some people's desire into another species's genetic code. If you make an artificial thing that really wants to do some specific thing, like a computer endlessly printing "hello world" millions of times a second, it's not surprising to see it do the thing it was created to do. I wouldn't say the computer "wants"…

[deleted]

Re: Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toys

#90

Post by electroglyph »

i haven't seen any mention of lasers here, so i'll add my laser anecdote. I have a very active German shepherd rescue. I made the mistake of introducing him to the laser pointer which I used to exercise my previous dog, a doberman. Now he lives and breathes for laser. He nags me all day long. He sometimes sees laser dots where there aren't any. His appetite for laser can never be satiated, heh
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