Assessing preference and reinforcer effectiveness in dogs

The paired-stimulus (PS) preference assessment has been shown to be effective in assessing preference with animal subjects, including dogs; however, evaluations on whether preferred stimuli would also function as reinforcers are lacking. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the use of the PS preference assessment as a predictor of reinforcer effectiveness in eight dogs. The assessment was followed by concurrent and progressive ratio schedules to evaluate the reinforcer efficacy of food items. Results showed that the preference assessment predicted reinforcer efficacy for all subjects. Benefits of using this assessment with dogs are discussed.