The dog is known as man’s best friend . It is an animal domesticated for many years to make it a faithful and enthusiastic companion that, when it manages to create that bond with its owner, it is very difficult for it to break it or decide to separate from its human. However, dogs remain animals and as such respond primarily to the dominance and hierarchy of the pack . They have marked behaviors and specific responses to certain stimuli. Dogs can be friendly, but they can also show their teeth or lash out. Now, a new program aims to use the possibilities offered by technology and virtual reality to teach the population to recognize these behaviors.
A project led by the Virtual Engineering Center (VEC) of the University of Liverpool has developed a virtual dog that mimics the behaviors of a dog in the moments before an attack as a tool to educate people and prevent dog bites . Collaborating with the animal welfare charity Dogs Trust and animal behavior researchers at the University of Liverpool, the VEC is testing a new concept of interactive virtual reality experience that brings people closer to aggressive dogs so that they recognize the signs indicate an attack within a secure environment. The team hopes that their experience will help children and adults to identify certain behaviors specific to dogs that can lead to a potential attack or other type of incident if not treated appropriately.
During 2013, in the UK alone, hospitals admitted about 6,740 people with dog bites or injuries. Research by the University of Liverpool suggests that the number of dog bite injuries is significantly higher than estimated from hospital records. Dogs Trust intends to use the new options offered by digital tools so that the population is able to identify the range of stress and threat that a dog usually exhibits before an attack such as licking its lips, showing its teeth, lowering its head and body, growl or lift the front legs . A team of animal behavior specialists and psychologists from the University of Liverpool conducted extensive research to ensure that the body language and details displayed in the virtual environment were realistic and true to life .
The use of this new technology as a tool to teach and educate the population has enormous potential and many possible applications. In the virtual world, as the user approaches the dog, his behavior and body language gradually change, following what is indicated in the ‘Canine Aggression Scale’ , and allowing the user to recognize these signals without any risk. Iain Cant, leader of the research , pointed out the enormous possibilities of the project and that his next objective would be “to increase the details with the immersive environment and get the virtual dog to interact with the actions of the user”.
Source: University of Liverpool’s Virtual Engineering Center (VEC).
