Successful guide dogs have 'tough love' moms, study finds

[Eugene]

Source: ScienceDaily

Successful guide dogs have 'tough love' moms, study finds

Date: August 7, 2017
Source: University of Arizona

Much has been written on the pitfalls of being a helicopter parent, one who insulates children from adversity rather than encouraging their independence.

A new study seems to back up this finding -- in dogs. Researchers showed that doting mothers seem to handicap their puppies, in this case reducing their likelihood of successfully completing a training program to become guide dogs.

The study, published this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was conducted at The Seeing Eye, an organization in Morristown, New Jersey, that breeds, raises and trains dogs to guide visually impaired people.

"You need your mom, but moms that are too attentive don't give their puppies a chance to respond to small challenges on their own," said lead study author Emily Bray, a postdoctoral researcher in the Arizona Canine Cognition Center at the University of Arizona's School of Anthropology. "Puppies need opportunities to deal with obstacles without their mom always being there."

-snip-

Read more: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/08/170807151706.htm

[Duppers]

1. Perhaps this is why my big furkid

Is such a whimp.