Analysis of Concentration of Guide Dogs from Training Behaviors

Abstract

In guide dog training, it is necessary to judge from the behavior of the target guide dog what state of concentration the dog is in and give appropriate instructions accordingly. It is thought that there is a difference between a student practicing training and a skilled trainer in terms of the appropriateness of judging the situation and giving proper instructions in response to the situation. In this study, by taking videos of guide dogs in training and asking trainers to score the concentration of the dogs on the training conditions, we examined whether there was a difference in scores between skilled and novice trainers. We also examined whether there was a relationship between the dog’s skeletal posture information and its score. As a result, we confirmed that there was a significant difference in scores between skilled and novice trainers. We also found that when the dog’s nose is in a lower position, corresponding to a ground-sniffing motion, its concentration scores tend to be lower. These findings have the potential to be useful for the efficient training of guide dogs.