Note: This was not the actual study setup. But it's still cute. Credit: GorillaAttack / Shutterstock Most pet owners know that dogs are masters at the art of getting humans to obey their wishes, whether it’s a trip outside or retrieving a tennis ball that rolled under the couch. For decades, researchers have assumed that dogs’ imploring gazes were a brilliant problem-solving strategy: “I’ll just get the human to do it.” But a new study suggests that dogs may have become so dependent on human cues that they give up easily when confronted with a challenging problem.
For instance, in a 2003 experiment, researchers challenged dogs and wolves with an impossible puzzle: a tasty treat trapped in a box, with no way to remove it. While the wolves kept trying, the dogs quickly gave up and looked to the nearest human for help. “This has traditionally been interpreted as the ...
