Investigating the influence of neuter status on paw preference in dogs and cats

Motor lateralization is commonly observed through preferential paw use in dogs and cats. Previous studies have uncovered sex-related differences in paw preference, hypothesising that these differences may be related to sex hormones. The current study aimed to compare neutered and entire individuals to further investigate whether paw preference is influenced by sex hormones. Dog and cat owners were required to fill in a questionnaire with demographic information such as sex and neuter status of their pets. They then carried out two simple paw preference tasks within their homes: a “reaching for food” task and a “reaching for a toy” task. This study revealed an overall preference among the 272 dogs and 137 cats tested to use their right paw in both tasks. However, no significant influence of neuter status upon paw preference was revealed. Nevertheless, post-hoc power analysis revealed a lack of statistical power, suggesting that further investigation using a larger sample size is needed to assess whether neuter status influences paw preference.