FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CPT—Comprehensive Pet Therapy, Inc.
6600 Roswell Road Suite D
Atlanta, GA
(404)236-2150
www.cpt-training.com
Atlanta, GA (June, 2014) CPT—Comprehensive Pet Therapy is pleased to share their experience at Wolf Park in Battleground, Indiana. Professor Clive Wynne, the Wolf Park Director of Research invited the project leaders of the Emory-CPT Neuroscience Team to visit the park. CPT President Mark Spivak, Prof. Gregory Berns, and Dr. Peter Cook gladly accepted the invitation to the park which is dedicated to wolf behavioral research, education, and conservation. The park’s main objective is to improve the public’s understanding of wolves and why they have certain behavioral habits.
Dr. Wynne is a member of the Wolf Park Board of Directors. He began researching dog and wolf behavior and cognition at the University of Florida. He is currently a Professor of Psychology at Arizona State University.
Pat Goodman is a guided tour of the Wolf Park and Senior Wolf Handler of the facility. While the team visited Wolf Park, he was able to answer numerous questions from the team. The team was allowed to interact with many of the wolves and foxes at Wolf Park.
Dr. Wynne, his post-doctorial assistants, and PhD students met with the team after their tour of the park. The PhD students, from Arizona State and the University of Florida brainstormed research ideas with the team and Dr. Wynne. They also discussed the possibility of future collaborative behavioral research.
One purpose of the research is to learn if behavior is natural or environmentally determined. Questions to be answered include:
· Is the wolf naturally a predatory animal or is the behavior environmentally influenced?
· Is the wolf’s wariness of man natural or environmentally influenced?
· Does captivity influence behavior?
· How much does captivity modify behavior?
· Is it possible to domesticate the wolf?
· Can the wolf’s natural tendencies be changed?
While the research is still being conducted, some information has been forthcoming. The team learned that with selective breeding and captive environment, the captive wolves act more like domestic dogs than wolves—after several generations. Another important factor is that the environment seems to be a major factor to animal behavior. At this time, it appears captivity modifies the predatory behavior of the wolf. A third factor is that wolves raised in captivity are less suspicious of humans, especially if handled from puppyhood.
CPT offers dog and cat training. Visit CPT on the web at www.cpt-training.com or call 404-236-2150.
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