The interrelated effect of sleep and learning in dogs (Canis familiaris); an EEG and behavioural study

Scientific Reports 7: Paper 41873 (2017)

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DOI:  10.1038/srep41873

Anna Kis¹, Sára Szakadát², Márta Gácsi^3,4, Enikő Kovács⁵, Péter Simor⁶, Csenge Török^1,7, Ferenc Gombos⁸, Róbert Bódizs^2,8, József Topál¹

¹Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary

²Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

³MTA-ELTE Comparative Ethology Research Group, Budapest, Hungary

⁴Department of Ethology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary

⁵Department of Ecology Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Szent István University, Budapest, Hungary

⁶Department of Cognitive Science, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Budapest, Hungary

⁷Institute of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary

⁸Department of General Psychology, Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Budapest, Hungary

Abstract

The active role of sleep in memory consolidation is still debated, and due to a large between-species variation, the investigation of a wide range of different animal species (besides humans and laboratory rodents) is necessary. The present study applied a fully non-invasive methodology to study sleep and memory in domestic dogs, a species proven to be a good model of human awake behaviours. Polysomnography recordings performed following a command learning task provide evidence that learning has an effect on dogs’ sleep EEG spectrum. Furthermore, spectral features of the EEG were related to post-sleep performance improvement. Testing an additional group of dogs in the command learning task revealed that sleep or awake activity during the retention interval has both short- and long-term effects. This is the first evidence to show that dogs’ human-analogue social learning skills might be related to sleep-dependent memory consolidation.

Keywords: cognitive neuroscience, consolidation, psychology, sleep