Who’s a Good Handler? Important Skills and Personality Profiles of Wildlife Detection Dog Handlers
Abstract
:Simple Summary
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Questionnaire
Questionnaire Distribution
2.2. Data Analyses
3. Results
3.1. General Handler Information
3.2. Important Handler Characteristics and Knowledge
3.3. Personality Profiles
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Appendix A
Appendix A.1. Important Dog-Handler Traits
- (1)
- Please indicate which of the following qualities and characteristics you agree are important for a wildlife detection dog-handler to possess, along with the qualities you agree you personally possessed when you first began wildlife detection dog work. The ratings are classed as follows:
Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Disagree nor Agree Agree Strongly Agree 1 2 3 4 5 Qualities/Characteristics of Dog-Handler Important Dog-Handler Traits (Please Rate 1–5) Qualities You Possessed (Please Click the Boxes) High level of physical fitness/stamina ☐ Knowledgeable of canine olfactory physiology ☐ Skilled in dog handling ☐ Experienced in dog training ☐ Knowledgeable on dog behaviour ☐ Ability to read dog body language ☐ Theoretical background in ecology ☐ Practical ecological experience ☐ Sound knowledge of target species ☐ Ability to read wind direction ☐ Navigational skills ☐ Team player ☐ Strong leader ☐ Ability to trust in a dog’s indications ☐ Strong working ethic ☐ Skilled in report writing ☐ - (2)
- Do you believe there are any other important characteristics or traits for a detection dog-handler to possess?
- Personality:
- Previous experiences/knowledge:
Appendix A.2. Personality Assessment
EXAMPLE ONLY | Strongly Disagree | Moderately Disagree | Neither Agree nor Disagree | Moderately Agree | Strongly Agree |
Worry about things | X |
Personal statements | Strongly DISAGREE | Moderately DISAGREE | Neither agree nor disagree | Moderately AGREE | Strongly AGREE |
Worry about things | |||||
Make friends easily | |||||
Have a vivid imagination | |||||
Trust others | |||||
Complete tasks successfully | |||||
Get angry easily | |||||
Love large parties | |||||
Believe in the importance of art | |||||
Use others for my own ends | |||||
Like to tidy up | |||||
Often feel blue | |||||
Take charge | |||||
Experience my emotions intensely | |||||
Love to help others | |||||
Keep my promises | |||||
Find it difficult to approach others | |||||
Am always busy | |||||
Prefer variety to routine | |||||
Love a good fight | |||||
Work hard | |||||
Go on binges | |||||
Love excitement | |||||
Love to read challenging material | |||||
Believe that I am better than others | |||||
Am always prepared | |||||
Panic easily | |||||
Radiate joy | |||||
Tend to vote for socially liberal political candidates | |||||
Sympathize with the homeless | |||||
Jump into things without thinking | |||||
Fear for the worst | |||||
Feel comfortable around people | |||||
Enjoy fantasy | |||||
Believe that others have good intentions | |||||
Excel in what I do | |||||
Get irritated easily | |||||
Talk to a lot of different people at parties | |||||
See beauty in things that others might not notice | |||||
Cheat to get ahead | |||||
Often forget to put things back in their proper place | |||||
Dislike myself | |||||
Try to lead others | |||||
Feel others’ emotions | |||||
Am concerned about others | |||||
Tell the truth | |||||
Am afraid to draw attention to myself | |||||
Am always on the go | |||||
Prefer to stick with things that I know | |||||
Yell at people | |||||
Do more than what’s expected of me | |||||
Rarely overindulge | |||||
Seek adventure | |||||
Avoid philosophical discussions | |||||
Think highly of myself | |||||
Carry out my plans | |||||
Become overwhelmed by events | |||||
Have a lot of fun | |||||
Believe that there is no absolute right or wrong | |||||
Feel sympathy for those who are worse off than me | |||||
Make rash decisions | |||||
Am afraid of many things | |||||
Avoid contact with others | |||||
Love to daydream | |||||
Trust what people say | |||||
Handle tasks smoothly | |||||
Lose my temper | |||||
Prefer to be alone | |||||
Do not like poetry | |||||
Take advantage of others | |||||
Leave a mess in my room | |||||
Am often down in the dumps | |||||
Take control of things | |||||
Rarely notice my emotions | |||||
Am indifferent to the feelings of others | |||||
Break rules | |||||
Only feel comfortable with friends | |||||
Do a lot in my spare time | |||||
Dislike changes | |||||
Insult people | |||||
Do just enough work to get by | |||||
Easily resist temptations | |||||
Enjoy being reckless | |||||
Have difficulty understanding abstract ideas | |||||
Have a high opinion of myself | |||||
Waste my time | |||||
Feel that I’m unable to deal with things | |||||
Love life | |||||
Tend to vote for socially conservative political candidates | |||||
Am not interested in other people’s problems | |||||
Rush into things | |||||
Get stressed out easily | |||||
Keep others at a distance | |||||
Like to get lost in thought | |||||
Distrust people | |||||
Know how to get things done | |||||
Am not easily annoyed | |||||
Avoid crowds | |||||
Do not enjoy going to art museums | |||||
Obstruct others’ plans | |||||
Leave my belongings around | |||||
Feel comfortable with myself | |||||
Wait for others to lead the way | |||||
Don’t understand people who get emotional | |||||
Take no time for others | |||||
Break my promises | |||||
Am not bothered by difficult social situations | |||||
Like to take it easy | |||||
Am attached to conventional ways | |||||
Get back at others | |||||
Put little time and effort into my work | |||||
Am able to control my cravings | |||||
Act wild and crazy | |||||
Am not interested in theoretical discussions | |||||
Boast about my virtues | |||||
Have difficulty starting tasks | |||||
Remain calm under pressure | |||||
Look at the bright side of life | |||||
Believe that we should be tough on crime | |||||
Try not to think about the needy | |||||
Act without thinking |
Appendix A.3. Personal Information
- (a)
- Age:
- (b)
- Gender: Male Female
- (c)
- Country of residence: Australia New Zealand
- (d)
- Are you a professionally employed dog-handler or a volunteer
- (e)
- Years working as a dog-handler:
- (f)
- What dog breed do you most frequently use for conservation detection work:
- (g)
- What target species do you handle/train the most dogs to detect:
- (h)
- How emotionally attached are you to the dogs you’re currently handling (please click one below):
- NOT EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED
- MILDLY EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED
- MODERATELY EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED
- VERY EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED
- (i)
- Do you believe your stress levels influence your dog’s behaviour? YES NO
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Country | Native | Total | Pest | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
Australia | Bell’s turtle (Myuchelys bellii) | 1 | Electric ants (Wasmannia auropunctata) | 1 |
Black-tailed antechinus (Antechinus arktos) | 1 | Feral cat (Felis catus) | 7 | |
Eastern bristlebird (Dasyornis brachypterus) | 1 | Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium) | 1 | |
Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) | 2 | Fire ants (Solenopsis geminate) | 1 | |
Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) | 10 | Fox (Vulpes vulpes) | 6 | |
Pygmy Blue-tongue lizard (Tiliqua adelaidensis) | 1 | Hawkweed (Hieracium spp.) | 1 | |
Northern and Tiger quolls (Dasyurus hallucatus and D. maculatus) | 8 | Introduced rodents (e.g., Rattus rattus) | 2 | |
New Zealand | Blue duck (Hymenolaimus malacorhynchos) | 2 | Feral cat (Felis catus) | 1 |
Brown teal (Anas chlorotis) | 1 | Introduced rodents (e.g., Rattus rattus) | 1 | |
Kakapo (Strigops habroptila) | 2 | |||
Kea (Nestor notabilis) | 1 | |||
Kiwi (Apteryx sp.) | 1 | |||
South Island Takahe (Porphyrio hochstetteri) | 1 |
Rank | Skill | Mean Score | SD |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Ability to read dog body language | 4.7 | 0.5 |
Ability to trust in a dog’s indications | 4.7 | 0.5 | |
2 | Strong work ethic | 4.6 | 0.6 |
3 | Knowledgeable on dog behaviour | 4.5 | 0.6 |
4 | Skilled in dog handling | 4.4 | 0.8 |
Ability to read wind direction | 4.4 | 0.7 | |
5 | Navigational skills | 4.3 | 0.8 |
Sound knowledge of target species | 4.3 | 0.8 | |
6 | High level of physical fitness/stamina | 4.0 | 0.9 |
7 | Practical ecological experience | 3.9 | 1.0 |
8 | Team player | 3.7 | 1.1 |
9 | Knowledgeable of canine olfactory physiology | 3.6 | 0.9 |
Experienced in dog training | 3.6 | 1.0 | |
10 | Theoretical background in ecology | 3.5 | 1.0 |
Strong leader | 3.5 | 1.0 | |
11 | Skilled in report writing | 3.0 | 1.0 |
Domain | Mean | SD | Range |
---|---|---|---|
Extraversion | 57.6 | 25.7 | 13–99 |
Friendliness | 58.1 | 27.3 | 7–98 |
Gregariousness | 44.9 | 29.2 | 2–99 |
Assertiveness | 49.4 | 25.8 | 4–95 |
Activity Level | 71.9 | 18.6 | 36–99 |
Excitement seeking | 51.0 | 25.1 | 12–95 |
Cheerfulness | 56.5 | 22.6 | 5–88 |
Agreeableness | 67.5 | 24.0 | 13–99 |
Trust | 62.9 | 21.7 | 8–95 |
Morality | 63.2 | 23.3 | 4–89 |
Altruism | 55.7 | 25.4 | 13–95 |
Co-operation | 61.3 | 23.9 | 7–89 |
Modesty | 68.4 | 26.5 | 16–99 |
Sympathy | 55.9 | 26.2 | 2–99 |
Conscientiousness | 57.7 | 25.3 | 2–96 |
Self-efficacy | 48.6 | 24.4 | 1–97 |
Orderliness | 46.9 | 22.5 | 16–90 |
Dutifulness | 53.3 | 23.1 | 5–95 |
Achievement-striving | 62.3 | 24.8 | 2–91 |
Self-discipline | 59.4 | 27.6 | 6–99 |
Cautiousness | 60.9 | 24.5 | 18–97 |
Neuroticism | 34.9 | 27.7 | 1–82 |
Anxiety | 36.6 | 29.0 | 1–97 |
Anger | 31.5 | 27.4 | 1–76 |
Depression | 34.7 | 25.0 | 3–77 |
Self-consciousness | 44.9 | 23.3 | 1–90 |
Immoderation | 43.8 | 24.4 | 1–85 |
Vulnerability | 43.1 | 28.7 | 1–99 |
Openness | 52.1 | 27.51 | 2–95 |
Imagination | 42.1 | 27.4 | 1–83 |
Artistic interests | 49.7 | 27.0 | 1–89 |
Emotionality | 41.7 | 30.5 | 1–97 |
Adventurousness | 66.4 | 24.7 | 15–99 |
Intellect | 47.5 | 28.9 | 1–91 |
Liberalism | 62.0 | 17.5 | 25–89 |
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Share and Cite
Jamieson, L.T.J.; Baxter, G.S.; Murray, P.J. Who’s a Good Handler? Important Skills and Personality Profiles of Wildlife Detection Dog Handlers. Animals 2018, 8, 222. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8120222
Jamieson LTJ, Baxter GS, Murray PJ. Who’s a Good Handler? Important Skills and Personality Profiles of Wildlife Detection Dog Handlers. Animals. 2018; 8(12):222. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8120222
Chicago/Turabian StyleJamieson, La Toya J., Greg S. Baxter, and Peter J. Murray. 2018. "Who’s a Good Handler? Important Skills and Personality Profiles of Wildlife Detection Dog Handlers" Animals 8, no. 12: 222. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8120222
APA StyleJamieson, L. T. J., Baxter, G. S., & Murray, P. J. (2018). Who’s a Good Handler? Important Skills and Personality Profiles of Wildlife Detection Dog Handlers. Animals, 8(12), 222. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8120222