Dogs choose a human informant: Metacognition in canines

The presence of metacognition in animals has been suggested by the observation that non-human primates will seek out information about the location of a hidden reward before responding. In experiment 1, dogs failed to make an information-seeking response that involved re-positioning themselves in space so that they could view a cue that indicated the location of food. In experiments 2 and 3, dogs were allowed to choose between two people, an informant that pointed to the location of food and a non-informant that provided no information. Dogs showed a clear preference for the informant, even when choice of the informant led to no greater chance of reward than choice of the non-informant. In a procedure that involves human communication, dogs show information-seeking behavior.

Research highlights▶ Dogs failed to seek out information about the location of reward by re-orienting their position in space. ▶ When given a choice between a person who pointed to the location of food (informant) and a person who did not (non-informant), dogs preferred the informant. ▶ Dogs showed evidence of information seeking behavior, but only when cued by humans. ▶ These findings raise questions about metacognition in dogs.