Swiss-Austrian study finds dogs show signs of addiction

Dogs may develop compulsive play habits, Swiss study finds Keystone-SDA

Some dogs drop everything for a toy. Their behaviour mirrors the kind of addiction seen in humans hooked on gambling or online gaming, according to an Austro-Swiss research team writing in Scientific Reports.

A dog so obsessed with its toy it can’t let go – sounds sweet, but it could be a sign of something more serious. Researchers at Vienna’s University of Veterinary Medicine, led by Stefanie Riemer, say this kind of behaviour can resemble gambling addiction in humans. Some dogs kept playing even when they were clearly exhausted or injured.

Researchers tracked how 105 dogs, aged between one and ten, played with their favourite toys and found signs of compulsive behaviour. The study, which included Alja Mazzini, Katja Senn and Federico Monteleone from the University of Bern, focused on dogs described by their owners as highly play-driven.

Among the most common breeds were Malinois (18), Border Collies (9) and Labrador Retrievers (9) – typical working breeds. Owners were also asked how often their dogs used toys in everyday life.

Food didn’t even register for some dogs

For 33 of the dogs, the behaviour started to look like addiction. They showed an intense fixation on their toy, ignored food and interaction with their owner, and kept trying to get hold of the toy even when it was out of reach. When the toy was taken away, they struggled to calm down, even after 15 minutes.

The findings back up individual reports of addiction-like play in dogs, the researchers say. Just like behavioural addictions in humans, the compulsive drive to keep going even when it causes harm is a key feature. The team says more research is needed to understand why some dogs are more prone to this kind of behaviour and to assess the physical impact, such as strain on joints and ligaments.

Many mammals and birds play

Play is common across mammals, especially the young, and even some birds. It’s usually a sign of well-being, but it can also be a way of coping with stress or easing social tension. And sometimes, what starts out as harmless fun can tip into compulsive behaviour, resembling a form of addiction.

Behavioural addictions share the same brain mechanisms and symptoms as substance dependence. In humans, it’s not just gambling or gaming – sport, sex, shopping and work can also become addictive.

Signs of addictive behaviour in lab animals

Behavioural addictions have also been studied in animals. For instance, mice bred to run excessively show withdrawal symptoms, similar to those seen in drug addiction, when they’re forced to stop.
“Just like overtraining in humans, compulsive running in rodents can interfere with daily routines and affect behaviours like nest-building and self-protection,” the researchers explain.

Dogs can show signs of addiction without any deliberate training or exposure, researchers say. This behaviour seems to emerge spontaneously and years of selective breeding may play a role, especially in working breeds and lines. Young dogs with a strong drive to play are often easier to train, more focused, and less easily distracted. This is why such breeds are specifically selected for their play motivation as an indicator of performance.

As family pets, such dogs are often unsuitable due to their high impulsivity, something that is not sufficiently clear to all those who find Border Collies adorable, for example.

Translated from French with DeepL/sp

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