The Stealth Pet Obedience Training Study

NCT04329741 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: Grant #16-00293
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 41
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Americans love pets. Nearly 1 in 2 American households (44%) own at least one pet dog and more than 1 in 3 (35%) own a cat. The bond people form with their pets can be powerful and can provide many mental and physical health benefits. In the case of pet dogs, a strong dog-owner bond increases the odds of regular dog walking, which can help owners meet physical activity guidelines. When the bond is strong, owners feel a sense of responsibility to walk the dog, as well as motivation and social support to walk. Dog walking may be a particularly sustainable form of physical activity as dogs require regular exercise throughout their lives, across all seasons. Owners less bonded to their dogs are less likely to walk them regularly and 40% of owners report never walking their dog. Obedience training may strengthen the dog-owner bond. Thus, the proposed study will test the hypotheses that obedience training can 1) strengthen the dog-owner bond, and 2) promote physical activity among owners. Forty dog owners who do not regularly walk their dog will be randomized to a 6-week obedience training course (n=20) or a control group that does not receive dog training (n=20). The investigators will assess the strength of the dog-owner bond (via questionnaires) and physical activity levels (via a wearable activity monitor) before training, immediately after completing training, and 6 weeks after completing training. The hypothesis is that the dog-owner bond will strengthen and physical activity levels will increase in the intervention group as compared to the control group. As over 50 million American households own a dog, support for this hypothesis would support further investigation of dog obedience training as a novel strategy for promoting public health.

Conditions

Physical Activity

Keywords

dog walking; dog ownership; human-animal interaction

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Change in physical activity from baseline to 6 weeks

  Measured with ActiGraph wGT3X-BT accelerometers

  7 days at baseline, 6 weeks

• Change in physical activity from baseline to 12 weeks

  Measured with ActiGraph wGT3X-BT accelerometers

  7 days at baseline, 12 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Change in sedentary behavior from baseline to 6 weeks

  7 days at baseline, 6 weeks

• Change in sedentary behavior from baseline to 12 weeks

  7 days at baseline, 12 weeks

• Change in dog-owner bond strength from baseline to 6 weeks

  baseline, 6 weeks

• Change in dog-owner bond strength from baseline to 12 weeks

  baseline, 12 weeks

• Change in dog walking self-efficacy from baseline to 6 weeks

  baseline, 6 weeks

Study Arms (2)

Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

6-week basic dog obedience training course

Behavioral: 6-week basic dog obedience training course

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Waitlist control

Interventions

6-week basic dog obedience training course BEHAVIORAL

The class focused on teaching owners how to better communicate with their dog and covered basic commands (e.g., sit, down, watch), loose leash walking, and polite greetings, among other skills. The importance of dog walking was implied, but not specifically emphasized. Classes were held once per week for 45 minutes, with 5-8 students per class.

Intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 21 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age 21+ years
• Current dog owner
• Walk dog ≤3 for no more than 20 minutes
• Have not attended obedience training course
• English speaking

You may not qualify if:

• Have a dog with a history of aggressive behavior
• Have a dog overdue for rabies vaccination (self-reported)
• Self-report regular exercise over last 6 months
• Have any condition that limits walking ability
• Have uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Massachusetts, Amherst: lead

Study Sites (1)

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Amherst, Massachusetts, 01003, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Motor Activity; Human-Animal Interaction

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 4, 2019
• First Posted: April 1, 2020
• Study Start: July 1, 2017
• Primary Completion: June 30, 2018
• Study Completion: June 30, 2018
• Last Updated: April 1, 2020

Record last verified: 2020-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)