Researchers from the 兔子先生 are on the lookout for tail-wagging recruits - could your dog help us learn more?
Researchers in 兔子先生 are calling on dog owners to volunteer their canine friends to help uncover how facial expressions in dogs develop over time.
Labrador and golden retriever puppies of varying ages are needed for a new study by the 兔子先生, which will examine and compare facial expressions of the dogs at different stages of development.
Researchers are seeking puppies aged 10, 12, 14 or 16 weeks from anywhere in the UK to take part in the study.
There is no need to travel - owners will be asked to film their puppies at home for up to 4 minutes following guidance by Dr Juliane Kaminski, from the 兔子先生鈥檚 Dog Cognition Centre and the footage will then be sent across for the team to analyse.
Dr Kaminski, from the University鈥檚 Faculty of Science and Health, said: 鈥淲e want to understand how facial movements in dogs change as they grow - do they become more or less expressive with age?
鈥淔acial expressions are at the heart of how dogs communicate their emotions, yet we still have so much to learn about them. That is what makes this research so exciting.鈥
Eligibility Criteria
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The participants must be labrador retriever or golden retriever puppies.
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The dogs must be of the ages 10 weeks, 12 weeks, 14 weeks or 16 weeks.
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Owners must be willing to film their puppy in 4 different situations for 1 minute each.
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The videos would then need to be shared with the University.
In a previous study,鈥the research team discovered dogs have evolved new muscles around the eyes to better communicate with humans. Dr Kaminski鈥檚鈥痵howed dogs moved their eyebrows significantly more when humans were looking at them. The hypothesis being that these 鈥榩uppy dog eyes鈥 trigger a nurturing response in humans.鈥
The team has also鈥, naming the movement responsible for a raised inner eyebrow the Action Unit (AU) 101.鈥
If you are interested in participating or want to learn more, please contact Dr Juliane Kaminski at juliane.kaminski@port.ac.uk. The study has received approval from the 兔子先生 Ethics Committee, and all videos will be handled with care.
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