Owner-reported aggressive behavior towards familiar people may be a more prominent occurrence in pet shop-traded dogs

There is longstanding recognition of the adverse effect of stressful experiences during early critical developmental periods and the later association with problematic behavioral issues in dogs. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the origin/source of puppies (pet shop vs. breeder) was associated with later potential problematic behaviors. We did a cross-sectional survey of Italian dog owners, who were asked to complete an online version of our Relazione Cane-Proprietario questionnaire, providing information about themselves, their dogs, and whether the animals exhibited any of 16 potential problem behaviors. Pearson χ2 test of independence was applied in 2 × 2 contingency tables and binary logistic regressions to analyze the effects of source of acquisition on behavioral patterns while controlling for various owner- and dog-related variables. The odds of displaying owner-directed aggression were significantly greater for the dogs that had been purchased from a pet store as puppies than those purchased from a breeder (control group). We also found an association between a dog's pet store origin and other potential problem behaviors, including house soiling, body licking, and separation-related behavior, but this relationship was confounded by the effect of a set of owner-related factors. These findings indicate that obtaining puppies from pet stores may predispose them to potentially exhibit owner-directed aggression as adults. We suggest that further research in prevention of problem behaviors in adult dogs should be aimed at identifying the root causes of pet store-related behavioral issues, without ignoring confounding at a household level.