Incidental spatial memory in the domestic dog (Canis familiaris)

Abstract

We built upon previous work by Fujita et al. (2012, Animal Cognition, 15(6), 1055-1063) to create an experiment that investigated the presence of incidental memory for the spatial location of uneaten food in the domestic dog. Here, we dissociated potentially incidental spatial memory from the incidental memory for the characteristics of objects, in this case, food bowls. Eighteen household domestic dogs of various breeds and age were presented with four bowls. Each bowl contained either a novel object, treats the dog could consume, treats it could not consume, or it was left empty. Following a delay, the dogs returned to the laboratory and were presented with empty bowls in the same spatial orientation as the initial exposure and could move freely between bowls. This experiment required no previous training outside of basic obedience and so avoids the possibility that performance on the test was a conditioned response. We hypothesized that domestic dogs would be able to remember the location of uneaten food when presented with an unexpected memory test. We found that dogs in this study showed no evidence that they encoded spatial location in the absence of other cues that could be used to distinguish food bowls at specific locations. This suggests that dogs in previous experiments were more dependent on incidentally encoding the "what" and "in what" of this task than the "where," in the absence of features making each location distinct.

Dogs (Canis familiaris) use odor cues to show episodic-like memory for what, where, and when.

“…In these studies, the authors emphasized that recalling an event can only be considered an episodic memory if the event was encoded incidentally. That is, information from the event must have been encoded without knowing that it must be remembered later (Singer & Zentall, 2007; Sluka et al, 2018; Zentall, Singer, & Stagner, 2008; Zhou, Hohmann, & Crystal, 2012). Unexpected tests were used to encourage incidental encoding in Experiments 2 and 3.…”

Public Perspectives on Strays and Companion Animal Management in Malaysia

“…They can rear sheep, rescue victims, and provide safety to others. One limited study of 18 household dogs found that they lacked spatial memory and were more focused on the "what" of a task rather than the "where" [55]. Another study of canine cognitive abilities found that dogs' capabilities are no more exceptional than those of other animals, such as horses, chimpanzees, or cats [56].…”

Public perspectives on strays and companion animal management in Malaysia

“…Take dogs as an example, we recognize their ability to rear sheep, rescue victims, providing safety and be helpers to humans or their owners. However, one limited study of 18 household dogs found that they lacked spatial memory and were more focused on the "what" of a task rather than the "where" [56]. Another study of canine cognitive abilities found that dogs' capabilities are no more exceptional than those of other animals, such as horses, chimpanzees, or cats [57].…”