Brain weight predicts yawn duration across domesticated dog breeds

Abstract

Previous research shows that yawning enhances intracranial circulation and regulates brain temperature. Consistent with these functional outcomes, yawn duration correlates positively with interspecies variation in brain weight across mammals, with robust relationships documented at both the taxonomic rank of class and the more restricted scale of family (e.g., Felidae). This study provides the first investigation into whether differences in brain weight within a single species, domesticated dogs Canis lupus familiaris, can predict intraspecific variation in yawn duration. Measures of yawn duration were obtained from public videos available online and then paired with previously published brain and body weight data of different dog breeds. The final sample consisted of 272 yawns from 198 dogs across 23 breeds. Consistent with recent studies, we find robust correlations between yawn duration and brain weight across breeds. Moreover, these correlations remain significant after controlling for differences in body weight across breeds. These findings replicate and extend upon past work in this area and provide further support that yawns evolved to serve an important and large-scale neurophysiologic function.