ArticleFrontiers in veterinary science2022
Relationship between engagement with the impossible task, cognitive testing, and cognitive questionnaires in a population of aging dogs.
Article in Frontiers in veterinary science, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Higher burden of neuropsychiatric symptom-like behaviors associated with canine cognitive dysfunction compared to normal aging in the Dog Aging Project.GeroScience · 2026Article
- Transcranial photobiomodulation therapy with 808 nm and 1064 nm can affect different behavior parameters in dogs.Lasers in medical science · 2026Article
- Changes in cognitive performance following repeated exposure to a hand-touch learning task across breed clades of domestic dogs (Canis familiaris).Animal cognition · 2026Article
- Which aspects of the everyday behavior of older dogs correlate with performance on a visuo-spatial memory test and the canine cognitive dysfunction rating scale (CCDR)?Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2026Article
- Comparing standard screening questionnaires of canine behavior for assessment of cognitive dysfunction.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2024Article
- Development and validation of a sleep questionnaire, SNoRE 3.0, to evaluate sleep in companion dogs.Scientific reports · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the engagement of aging dogs with a cognitively challenging and potentially frustrating task (the impossible task). Based on previous observations, we predicted that dogs showing signs of cognitive impairment in other cognitive tests and owner-completed questionnaires would show reduced engagement with the task. Methods: In this task, dogs were shown a piece of food in a clear container that they could not open; time spent interacting with the container and the experimenter was measured. While the impossible task has not been used as a measure of frustration, the parameters of the test design creates a potential frustrate state, making this assessment appropriate. Thirty-two dogs enrolled in a longitudinal aging study participated in the study. Owners were asked to complete two cognitive dysfunction screening questionnaires (Canine Dementia Scale [CADES] and Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Rating Scale [CCDR]) as well a questionnaire assessing general frustration. Dogs participated in multiple measures of cognitive function as well the impossible task. Results: Latency to disengage from the impossible task was faster for dogs with higher total (more impaired) CADES ( Discussion: The high correlation with several cognitive measures and the ease of administration of this test makes it a useful tool in evaluating canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome, however it is unclear if increased frustration or other cognitive processes are contributing to the observed changes.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.