Research shows high degree of variability between individual animals – with implications for owners
From sociable labradors to aggressive pitbulls, when it comes to canine behaviour there are no end of stereotypes. But research suggests such traits may have less to do with breed than previously thought.
Analysis of the survey results for purebred dogs suggested about 9% of behavioural variation was explained by breed. There were also some differences based on dogs’ ancestral functions. For example, herding breeds were, among other traits, more biddable. Labrador retriever ancestry was associated with mutts who had few qualms about getting wet, yet such ancestry appeared to have no link to human sociability.
But not all behaviours were found to be heritable, including how easily a dog is provoked by a frightening trigger – a finding that suggests that how aggressive a dog is may have little to do with genetics.“They should pay much less attention to all the stories about what their dog’s breed ancestry says about their behaviour and personality, and pay attention to the dog sitting in front of them,” said Karlsson.
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