Canine Ergonomics

As with many developing fields, the literature on working dogs is scattered across several non-overlapping disciplines from forensics and the life sciences to medicine, security, and wildlife biology. This book draws together related research into an interdisciplinary resource of science-based information. Providing a complete overview, from physiology to cognition, the book discusses working dogs from a scientific perspective. It covers a wide range of current and potential tasks, explores ergonomic and cognitive aspects of these tasks, and covers personality traits and behavioral assessments of working dogs.

Since Canis lupus familiaris first shared a fire with man, dogs have been trusted and valued coworkers. This book draws together related research from different fields into an interdisciplinary resource of science-based information. It discusses working dogs from a scientific perspective. It explores ergonomic and cognitive aspects of these tasks.

Canine Ergonomics: Introduction to the New Science of Working Dogs. Skill and Expertise in Working Dogs: A Cognitive Science Perspective. Social Learning in Dogs. Temperament and Personality in Working Dogs. Overview of Scent Detection Work: Issues and Opportunities. Evaluating Learning Tasks Commonly Applied in Detection Dog Training. Attention in Dogs: Sustained Attention in Mine Detection as Case Study. Olfaction and Explosives Detector Dogs. Conservation Dogs. Working Dogs: The Last Line of Defense for Preventing Dispersal of Brown Treesnakes from Guam. Canine Augmentation Technology for Urban Search and Rescue. Physiological Demands and Adaptations of Working Dogs. Physical and Mental Stress of SAR Dogs During Search Work. Signs of Physiological Stress in Dogs Performing AAA/T Work. Benefits of Animal Contact and Assistance Dogs for Individuals with Disabilities. Conclusion: Working Dogs and the Future.