Observational Learning of an Acquired Maternal Behaviour Pattern by Working Dog Pups: An Alternative Training Method?
J.M. Slabbert and O. Anne E. Rasa
Conference Proceedings, 4th International Working Dog Breeding Association, Melbourne, Australia, Vol. 4, pp. 39-44, 2005
Abstract
A study of German Shepherd police-breeding pups found that extended maternal care, letting pups observe their trained mothers detecting narcotics, significantly improved the pups' own detection performance at 6 months. The effect held independent of how long the maternal care lasted.