Dog Talk Project participants are required to register only because we need a registered user name that allows our data base to keep each person's surveys together. In other words, we need to know that user "JaneDoe" has registered her four dogs in the "About Dogs" surveys, so that we can keep her survey answers for each of her dogs linked with her answers in other surveys. For example, if Jane completes our Nutrition survey for her dog Albert, we can link Albert's data with the new survey and know that he is a 3-year-old Border Collie who is active in Agility, without having to ask Jane to put that information into the survey a second time. It also allows Dog Talk members to come back in at any time to take new surveys, without having to tell us all about their dogs again, as that information is stored and will be automatically matched with them when they log on.
 

No, we will not release or sell your email without your consent.  You can read more about our privacy policy here.

You can go back into Dog Talk and retake surveys as much as you like. Some members have done this when there have been changes to their status or to some of the information about their dogs.  When we download our data, our statistics program will check for duplicates and we keep the latest (most recent) data that you provided for a given survey (and dog, if applicable) and will delete previous data for the same survey or dog. 

New Dog Talk data are collected every 7 to 10 days, depending on current traffic to the site.  Once new data are formatted and loaded into the Dog Talk Project database, updated statistics are generated and posted within one to two work days onto the Dog Talk Project website. 

The Dog Talk Project has three to four new surveys under development at any given time. Prior to posting on the Dog Talk Project website, each survey undergoes extensive review by companion animal experts and several rounds of testing with Dog Talk Project beta-testers to ensure clear and accurate data collection. Some surveys are available indefinitely (About You, About Your Dogs), while others have a limited availability.  New surveys are posted approximately every two to three months. Members may opt to be notified via email when new surveys are posted (to change your settings, go to the "My Account" page after logging in).

Survey information is downloaded to a spreadsheet file. Researchers at AutumnGold Consulting then transfer data to a statistics program where the data are formatted, coded and analyzed using a variety of descriptive statistics, measures of association, and other statistical tests. 

You sure can!  We are very happy to have Dog Talk members submit ideas for survey topics and questions. We divide our topics into the general categories of Daily Life, Social Life, Behavior/Training, Health, Dog-Related Activities and Sports, and Nutrition/Feeding, so please restrict your suggestions to one of those categories. Send your ideas to us via email (admin@dogtalkproject.com) and we will respond and let you know when to expect to see your topic and questions in a survey!