Personale docente

CURRICULUM VITAE

Paola Valsecchi

Date and place of birth: 5 August 1960 in Bergamo (BG) Italy.

Current position and address: Associate Professor, University of Parma, Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, Viale delle Scienze 11A, 43124, Parma (Italy); phone: 0521-905671; Fax: 0521-905657; e-mail: paolamaria.valsecchi@unipr.it

Education: Ph.D. in Psychobiology (curriculum: Behavioural Biology), University of Milano, 1986; Master Degree in Natural Sciences (110/110 cum laude), University of Parma, 1984

Position and Employment: 2014-today: Associate Professor at the Department of Neuroscience and presently at the Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability; 2005-2014 Aggregate Professor at the Department of Evolutionary and Functional Biology, University of Parma; 1993-2004 Senior Researcher at the Department of Evolutionary and Functional Biology, University of Parma; 1990-1993 Researcher at the Department of General Biology and Physiology University of Parma.

Main institutional roles:
Present:
from January 2022: President of the Master Degree Course in Ecology and Ethology for Nature Conservation;
from 2013: member of the academic committee for PhD program in Neuroscience;
Past:
2000-2012 member of the academic committee for PhD program in Biology of Behaviour; 2012-2021 deputy president of the Master Degree Course in Ecology and Nature Conservation;
2012-2014 elected member of the Council for the Department of Neuroscience.

Teaching:
Present:
Applied Ethology 6 CFU (from 2000);
Vertebrates Evolution 6 CFU (from 2017);
Zoology 9CFU
Past:
2019- 2023: Animal Biology
2016-2023: Zoology
2009-2010: Nature Conservation;
2004-2009: Management and Welfare of Laboratory Animals;
2000-2002: General Biology;
1994-1998: Zoology.

Editorial activity:
Member of the editorial board of the MPDI Journal Animals

Professional Membership: Italian Society of Ethology (SIE)

Main Grants
Principal Investigator of Local Unit (year, agency, project code, grant amount to P.V.):
2004 MIUR, PRIN, #2004078103_002 € 20.200,00 “Adaptation of dogs to life in rescue shelters: behavior as an indicator of psychological welfare and adaptability”
2006 MIUR, PRIN, #2006071374_003 € 32.100,00 “Effects of social and environmental deprivation on cognitive abilities and welfare of shelter dogs”
2014 IZSVe: € 20.000,00 “Welfare of working dogs”
2017 FFABR grant from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) for Fundamental research activities
2022 MUR-PNRR BANDO DI ATENEO 2022 CUP D91B21005370003 – € 36.000,00 “Evaluation of canine olfaction as a new tool for the early and non-invasive diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease”
2022 MUR PRIN 2022 2022TYX52H D53D23009910006 - € 60.000,00 ‘At the origins of sound symbolism. A comparative investigation’

Visiting Researcher

1988 , 1990 and 1997: Visiting scientist at the Department of Psychology - McMaster University (Canada)
1991: Visiting scientist at the Division of Wildlife and Ecology del CSIRO (Australia) Maggio-Luglio
Agosto 2000: Visiting scientist presso la School of Agriculture (Applied Ethology Center), University of Edinburgh, UK dove ho lavorato con la Prof. Natalie Waran su aspetti di etologia applicata per la ricerca in canile.
2004: Visiting scientist at the Department of Psychology dell’University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill USA
2007 Invited lecture at the Istituto Dalle Molle di Studi sull'Intelligenza Artificiale, Lugano, Svizzera per attività di ricerca con Prof. Luca Gambardella, IDSIA
2017: Visiting scientist at the School of Psychology, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, UK
From 1990 to 1998 supervisor e scientific responsible for a project of scientific cooperation with the Changsha Institute for Agricultural Modernization – Chinese Academy of Sciences - Pechino. The project was funded by ICSC - World Laboratory di Losanna (Switzerland).

Publication July 2025: Author of 87 full papers in peer-reviewed international Journals, including high-impact Journals such as Science, Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, Neuropharmacology, PlosOne, Scientifc Reports; Authors of 2 monographic book in italian; 4 book chapters and coeditor of a scientific book. Contributor of more than 120 communications to national or international scientific meetings.

Bibliometric Indicators:
Scopus: citations 3,372, H-Index 37; 16 publication in the last 5 years.
Scopus ID: 6701437339 ORCID ID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0491-9845

Research fields. Rodents: Ontogeny and development of diet selection in rodents; Social transmission of food preferences in rodents; Theoretical aspects of social learning; Neurochemical basis of social learning; Foraging and spatial orientation in rodents; Kin recognition and mate choice in gerbils.
Dogs: Dog Behaviour & Welfare in rescue shelters (Behavioural and physiological adaptation of dogs to the shelter environment; environmental enrichment; temperament test for implementing the adoption process); Human – dog relationships (Study on the development of the attachment between guide dog and blind owner; attachment behaviour of abandoned/adopted dogs). Dog cognition (study on social cognition of dogs in relation to their training, life style and attachment to the owner; cognitive bias); Breed differences (study on behavioral differences among dogs’ breed; analysis of development of temperament in puppies; temperamental differences in adult dogs). Social dynamics of free-ranging dogs (studies on hierarchy, social behavior, reproductive strategies, cooperation and leadership in groups of free ranging dogs). Behavioural and physiological correlates of emotion. Intra and interspecific communication (analysis of facial expression DogFacs).

Pubblications

Full papers only

1. Mainardi M., Valenti G., Valsecchi P., Parmigiani S., Brain P.F., Vescovi P. (1987). Acute effects of low doses of two ACTH preparations on fighting behaviour in male mice. Med.Sci.Res., 15: 649-650.
2. Mainardi M., Mainardi D., Valsecchi P. (1988). Social learning differences between C57BL/6NCr1BR and DBA/2NcR1BR mice. Monit.Zool.Ital. (N.S.) 22: 183-192.
3. Valsecchi P., Mainardi M., Sgoifo A., Taticchi A. (1989). Maternal influences on food preferences in weanling mice (Mus domesticus). Behav. Processes, 19: 155-166.
4. Mainardi M., Poli M., Valsecchi P. (1989) Ontogeny of dietary selection in weanling mice: effects of early experience and mother's milk. Biol.Behav., 14: 185-194.
5. Valsecchi P., Mainardi M., Mainardi D. (1989) On the role of demonstrator on the solution of a problem in the house mouse. Ethol.Eco.Evol., 1: 213-216.
6. Valsecchi P., Galef B.G. (1989) Social influences on the food preferences of house mice (Mus musculus): a comparative analysis of behavioral pocesses. Int. J. Comp. Psych. 2: 245-256.
7. Valsecchi P., Moles A., Mainardi M., Mainardi D. (1991). Food aversion learning in mice (Mus domesticus): difference salience of rice and oats. Boll. Zool., 58: 249-254.
8. Valsecchi P., Bosellini I., Mainardi D., Mainardi M. (1993). Further analysis on a case of social learning in the house mouse (Mus domesticus). Ethol. Ecol. Evol., 5:121-125. doi:10.1080/08927014.1993.9523120
9. Valsecchi P., Moles A., Mainardi M. (1993) Transfer of food preferences in mice (Mus domesticus) at weaning: the role of maternal diet. Boll. Zool., 60: 297-300.
10. Valsecchi P., Moles A., Mainardi M. (1993). Does mother diet affect food selection of weanling wild mice? Anim. Behav. 46, 827-828. doi.org/10.1006/anbe.1993.1264
11. Valsecchi P., Choleris E., Moles A., Guo C., Mainardi M. (1996). Kinship and familiarity as factors affecting social tranfer of food preferences in adult Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus). J. Comp. Psych., 110: 243-251.
12. Valsecchi P., Singleton G.R., Price W. (1996) Can social behaviour influence food preference of wild mice, Mus domesticus, in confined field population? Aust. J. Zool. 44, 493-501.
13. Choleris E., Guo C., Liu H., Mainardi M., Valsecchi P. (1997). The effect of demonstrator age and number on duration of socially-induced food preferences in house mouse (Mus domesticus). Behav. Process. 41, 69-77. doi:10.1016/S0376-6357(97)00029-6
14. Choleris E., Valsecchi P., Wang Y., Ferrari P., Kavaliers M., Mainardi M. (1998) Social learning of a food preference in male and female mongolian gerbils is facilitated by the anxiolitic, Chlordiazepoxide. Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav. 60, 575-584. doi:10.1016/S0091-3057(98)00005-7
15. Galef B.G., Rudolf B., Whiskin E., Choleris E., Mainardi M., Valsecchi P. (1998) Familiarity and relatedness: effects on social learning about foods by norway rats and mongolian gerbils. Anim. Learn. Behav. 26: 448-454.
16. Moles A., Valsecchi P., Cooper S.J. (1999) Opioid modulation of socially-transmitted and spontaneous food preferences in female mice. Behav.Process, 44: 277-285. Doi:10.1016/S0376-6357(98)00031-X,
17. Valsecchi P., Bartolomucci A., Aversano M., Visalberghi E. (2000). Learning to cope with two different food distributions: the performance of house mouse (Mus musculus). J. Comp. Psychol., 114:272-280
18. Choleris E., T. A., Ossenkopp K-P., Prato F. S. Valsecchi P., Kavaliers M. (2000). Sex differences in conditioned taste aversion and in the effects of the exposure to a pulsed magnetic field in deer mice, Peromyscus maniculatus. Physiol. Behav., 71: 237-249
19. Valsecchi P., Razzoli M. and Choleris E. (2002) Influence of kinship and familiarity on social and reproductive behavior of female Mongolian gerbils. Ecology Ethology and Evolution, 14: 239-253. doi:10.1080/08927014.2002.9522743
20. Valsecchi P., Bosellini I., Sabatini F., Mainardi M., Fiorito G. (2002) Behavioral analysis of social effects on the problem solving ability in the house mouse. Ethology , 108:1115-1134
21. Razzoli M., Cushing B.S., Carter C. S., and Valsecchi P. (2003) Hormonal Regulation of Agonistic and Affiliative Behavior in Female Mongolian Gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Hormones & Behaviour, 43: 549-553
22. Razzoli M., Papa R., Valsecchi P., Nonnis Marzano F. (2003). AFLP to assess genetic variation in laboratory gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). J. Heredity, 94: 507-511
23. Mondelli F., Prato Previde E., Levi D., Magistrelli S., Verga M., Valsecchi P. (2004). The bond which never developed: adoption and relinquishment in a rescue shelter. J. Appl. Anim. Welf. Sci., 7 (4), 253-266.
24. Razzoli M., Valsecchi P., Palanza P. (2005). Chronic exposure to low doses bisphenol A interferes with pair-bonding and exploration in female Mongolian gerbils, Brain Resaerch Bulletin, 65, 249-254.
25. Razzoli M., Valsecchi P., Polidori M. & Cinquetti R. 2005 Testis histology in the Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) after vasectomy. Italian J. Zool., 72, 9-14.
26. Prato Previde E., Fallani G., Valsecchi P., 2006: Gender differences in owners interacting with pet dogs: an observational study. Ethology, 112, 64-73.
27. Fallani G., Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2006: Do disrupted early attachments affect the relationship between guide dogs and blind owners? Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 100: 241-257
28. Razzoli M. e Valsecchi P. 2006. Different social bonds produce differential effects on behavior and physiology in Mongolian gerbils. Ethology Ecology and Evolution, 18:289-306
29. Fallani G., Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2007. Behavioral and physiological responses of guide dogs to a situation of emotional distress. Physiology & Behavior,90 (4): 648-655.
30. Prato Previde E., Marshall-Pescini S., Valsecchi P. 2008. Is your choice my choice? The owners’ effect on pet dogs’ (Canis lupus familiaris) performance in a food choice task. Animal Cogn. 11:167-174.
31. Accorsi P A, Carloni E., Valsecchi P., Viggiani R., Gamberoni M., Tamanini C. Seren E. 2008 Cortisol determination in hair and faeces from domestic cats and dogs. General & Comparative Endocrinology, 155: 398-402
32. Marshall-Pescini, S., Valsecchi P., Petak I., Accorsi P.A., Prato Previde E. 2008. Does training make you smarter? The effects of training on dogs’ performance (Canis familiaris) in a problem solving task, Behav. Process., 78: 449-454
33. Normando S., Corain L., Salvadoretti M. Meers L., Valsecchi P. 2009. Effects of an Enhanced Human Interaction Program on shelter dogs’ behaviour analysed using a novel nonparametric test. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 116:211-219.
34. Marshall-Pescini S., Passalacqua C., Barnard S., Valsecchi P., Prato Previde E. 2009 Agility and search and rescue training differently affects pet dogs’ behaviour in socio-cognitive tasks. Behav. Process, 81:416-422
35. Cafazzo S., Valsecchi P., Bonanni R., Natoli E. 2010. Dominance in relation to age, sex and competitive contexts in a group of free-ranging domestic dogs. Behavioral Ecology, 21: 443-455
36. Valsecchi P., Prato Previde E., Accorsi P.A., Fallani G. 2010. Development of attachment bond in guide dogs. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci., 123:43-50.
37. Bonanni R., Valsecchi P., Natoli E. 2010. Pattern of individual participation and cheating in conflicts between groups of free-ranging dogs. Anim. Behav., 79: 957-968.
38. Bonanni R., Cafazzo S., Valsecchi P. Natoli E. 2010. Effect of affiliative and agonistic relationships on leadership behaviour in free-ranging dogs. Anim. Behav., 79: 981-991
39. Marshall-Pescini S., Passalacqua C., Valsecchi P., Prato Previde E. 2010 Comment on: “Differential Sensitivity to Human Communication in Dogs, Wolves, and Human Infants”. Science 329, 142-c DOI: 10.1126/science.1187748
40. Marshall-Pescini S., Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2011 Are dogs (Canis familiaris) misled more by their owners than by strangers in a food choice task? Animal Cognition, 14:137-142
41. Bonanni R., Natoli E., Cafazzo S., and Valsecchi P. 2011. Free-ranging dogs assess the quantity of opponents in intergroup conflicts. Anim. Cogn.14: 103-115
42. Valsecchi P., Barnard S., Stefanini C., Normando S. 2011 Temperament test for re-homed dogs validated through direct behavioral observation in shelter and home environment. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, 6, 161-177, doi: 10.1016/j.jveb.2011.01.002
43. S. Marshall-Pescini, C. Passalacqua, A. Ferrario, P. Valsecchi, E. Prato-Previde. 2011. Social eavesdropping in the domestic dog. Anim. Behav., 81:117-1183 doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.02.029.
44. C. Passalacqua, S. Marshall-Pescini, S. Barnard, G. Lakatos, P. Valsecchi, E. Prato Previde. 2011. Human-directed gazing behaviour in puppies and adult dogs, Canis lupus familiaris. Animal Behaviour, 82:1043-1050. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.07.039.
45. Barnard S., Siracusa C., Reisner I., Valsecchi P., Serpell J.A. 2012 Validity of model devices used to assess canine temperament in behavioral tests. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 138:79– 87. doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2012.02.017.
46. Marshall-Pescini, S, Passalacqua, Miletto-Pedrazzini ME, Valsecchi P, Prato Previde E.2012. Do dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) make counterproductive choices because they are sensitive to human ostensive cues? PLoS One, 7(4), e35437:1-8. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0035437
47. Choleris E., Clipperton-Allen A.E., Phan A., Valsecchi P., Kavaliers M. 2012. Estrogenic involvement in social learning, social recognition and pathogen avoidance. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, 33: 140-159. doi:10.1016/j.yfrne.2012.02.001
48. Cafazzo S. Natoli E., Valsecchi P. 2012. Scent marking behaviour in a pack of free-ranging domestic dogs. Ethology 118: 955-966. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2012.02088.x
49. Choleris E., Cazzin L., Lymer J.M., Amor T.R., Lu R., Kavaliers M., Valsecchi P., 2013. Acute corticosterone sexually dimorphically facilitates social learning and inhibits feeding in mice. Neuropharmacology, 75: 191-200. doi:10.1016/j.neuropharm.2013.07.011
50. Marshall Pescini S., Barnard S., Branson N., Valsecchi P. 2013. The effect of preferential paw usage on dogs’ (Canis familiaris) performance in a manipulative problem solving task. Behav. Proc. 100: 40-43. doi:10.1016/j.beproc.2013.07.017
51. Cafazzo S., Bonanni R., Valsecchi P., Natoli E. 2014. Social Variables Affecting Mate Preferences, Copulation and Reproductive Outcome in a Pack of Free-Ranging Dogs. PlosOne, 9, e98594. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0098594
52. D’Aniello B., Scandurra A., Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2015. Gazing toward humans: a study on water rescue dogs using the impossible task paradigm. Behav. Proc. 110 (2015) 68–73. doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2014.09.022
53. Travain T., Colombo E.S., Heinzl E., Bellucci D., Prato Previde E. Valsecchi P. 2015. Hot dogs: thermography in the assessment of stress in dogs (Canis familiaris) – a pilot study. J. Vet. Behav. 10: 17-23 doi:10.1016/j.jveb.2014.11.003
54. Scandurra A., Prato-Previde E., Valsecchi P., Aria M., D’Aniello B. 2015. Guide dogs as a model for investigating the effect of life experience and training on gazing behaviour. Anim. Cogn. DOI 10.1007/s10071-015-0864-2
55. Travain T., Colombo E.S., Grandi L.C., Heinzl E., Pelosi A., Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2016. How good is this food? A study on dogs' emotional responses to a potentially pleasant event using infrared thermography. Physiology & Behavior 159, 80–87. 10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.03.019
56. Barnard S., Marshall-Pescini S., Passalacqua C., Beghelli V., Capra A., Normando S., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P. 2016. Does Subjective Rating Reflect Behavioural Coding? Personality in 2 Month-Old Dog Puppies: An Open-Field Test and Adjective-Based Questionnaire. PLoS ONE 11(3): e0149831. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0149831
57. Marshall-Pescini S., Frazzi C., Valsecchi P. 2016. The effect of training and breed group on problem-solving behaviours in dogs. Animal Cognition, 19, 571-579 .10.1007/s10071-016-0960-y
58. D’Aniello B., Scandurra A., Alterisio A., Valsecchi P., Prato Previde E. 2016. The importance of gestural communication: a study of human–dog communication using incongruent information. Anim. Cog. DOI 10.1007/s10071-016-1010-5
59. Barnard, S., Marshall-Pescini, S., Pelosi, A., Prato-Previde, E., Valsecchi, P. 2017. Breed, sex, and litter effects in 2-month old puppies' behaviour in a standardised open-field test. Scientific Reports 7(1),1802 Open Access
60. Bonanni R.; Cafazzo S.; Abis A.; Barillari E.; Valsecchi P.; Natoli E. 2017. Age-graded dominance hierarchies and social tolerance in packs of free-ranging dogs. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arx059. pp.1004-1020. BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY, 28 (4).
61. Prato-Previde E., Nicotra V., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P. (2018). Pet dogs’ behavior when the owner and an unfamiliar person attend to a faux rival. PLOS ONE, vol. 13, ISSN: 1932-6203, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194577.
62. Prato-Previde E., NICOTRA, VELIA, Fusar Poli S., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P. (2018). Do dogs exhibit jealous behaviors when their owner attends to their companion dog?. ANIMAL COGNITION, vol. 21, p. 703-713, ISSN: 1435-9448, doi: 10.1007/s10071-018-1204-0
63. Barnard, Shanis, Kennedy, Danielle, Watson, Reuben, Valsecchi, Paola, Arnott, Gareth (2019). Revisiting a Previously Validated Temperament Test in Shelter Dogs, Including an Examination of the Use of Fake Model Dogs to Assess Conspecific Sociability. ANIMALS, vol. 9, ISSN: 2076-2615, doi: 10.3390/ani9100835
64. Barnard S., Passalacqua C., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P., Prato-Previde E. (2019). Effects of breed group and development on dogs’ willingness to follow a human misleading advice. ANIMAL COGNITION, vol. 22, p. 757-768, ISSN: 1435-9448, doi: 10.1007/s10071-019-01272-3
65. NATOLI, EUGENIA MAURIZIA, Cariola, G., Dall’Oglio, G., Valsecchi, P. (2019). Considerations of Ethical Aspects of Control Strategies of Unowned Free-Roaming Dog Populations and the No-Kill Policy in Italy. JOURNAL OF APPLIED ANIMAL ETHICS RESEARCH, vol. 1, p. 216-229, ISSN: 2588-9559, doi: 10.1163/25889567-12340014
66. Burani, Carlotta, Barnard, Shanis, Wells, Deborah, Pelosi, Annalisa, Valsecchi, Paola (2020). Using judgment bias test in pet and shelter dogs (Canis familiaris): Methodological and statistical caveats. PLOS ONE, vol. 15, ISSN: 1932-6203, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0241344
67. Sommese A. Valsecchi P, Pelosi A, Prato Previde E. 2021. Comparing behavioural characteristics of Czechoslovakian Wolfdogs, German shepherds and Labrador retrievers in Italy and the Czech Republic. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 237, 105300, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2021.105300
68. Travain T., Valsecchi P. 2021 Infrared Thermography in the Study of Animals’ Emotional Responses: A Critical Review. Animals, 11, 2510. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11092510.
69. Burani C., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P. 2022. A promising novel judgement bias test to evaluate affective states in dogs (Canis familiaris). Animal Cognition , doi.org/10.1007/s10071-021-01596-z
70. Bertoni, V.; Spiezio, C.; Regaiolli, B.; Cozzi, A.; Valsecchi, P.; Normando, S. Group Reunion in Zoo European Wildcats Using Cat Appeasing Pheromone (CAP) and Gradual Release of the Animals in the Exhibit—A Case Study. Animals 2022, 12, 1302. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/ani12101302
71. Pedretti, G., Canori, C., Marshall-Pescini, S., Pelosi A., Valsecchi P: 2022 Audience effect on domestic dogs’ behavioural displays and facial expressions. Sci Rep 12, 9747 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-13566-7
72. Pedretti, G., Canori, C., Marshall-Pescini, S., Pavan, G., Valsecchi, P. 2023. Behavioural Analysis of Dogs’ Response to Threatening and Neutral Conspecific Video Stimuli. Applied Sciences, 13(16), 9254
73. Prato-Previde, E., Pedretti, G., Terruzzi, E., Valsecchi, P. 2023. When the owner does not know: comparing puppies and adult dogs’ showing behavior. Animal Cognition, 26(3), pp. 985–996
74. Pedretti, G., Canori, C., Biffi, E., Marshall-Pescini, S., Valsecchi, P. 2023. Appeasement function of displacement behaviours? Dogs’ behavioural displays exhibited towards threatening and neutral humans. Animal Cognition, 26(3), pp. 943–952
75. Travain, T., Lazebnik, T., Zamansky, A.,Valsecchi, P., Natoli, E.. 2024. Environmental enrichments and data-driven welfare indicators for sheltered dogs using telemetric physiological measures and signal processing Scientific Reports, 14(1), 3346
76. Travain T, Fior E, Bigotti G, Fedele PL, Lapini L, Filonzi L, Valsecchi P, Nonnis Marzano F. 2024 First occurrence of a reproductive group of golden jackal (Canis aureus moreoticus) in a densely populated area south of the Po River (Italy). Mammal Research https://doi.org/10.1007/s13364-024-00745-2
77. Berardo C, Holland R, Schaffer A Lopez Caicoya A, Liebal K, Valsecchi P, Amici F. 2024 Optical illusion in different ungulate species. Animal Cognition 27:40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-024-01878-2
78. Pedretti, G., Canori, C., Costantini E., Palme R. Valsecchi P., Marshall-Pescini, S., 2024. Intra and interspecific audience effect on domestic dogs’behavioural displays and facial expressions. Scientific Reports | (2024) 14:9546 | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-58757-6
79. Canori, C., Travain, T., Pedretti, G., Fontani, R., & Valsecchi, P. (2025). If you blink at me, I’ll blink back. Domestic dogs’ feedback to conspecific visual cues. Royal Society Open Science, 12(2), 241703.
80. Travain, T., Filonzi, L., Ferrari, C., Fogu, L., Ardenghi, A., Persico, D., Valsecchi P. & Marzano, F. N. (2025). A morphological and molecular approach confirms Italian wolf Canis lupus italicus predation on alien invasive species in the Po Plain and supports its role in providing ecosystem services. Journal of Vertebrate Biology, 74(25003), 25003-1.
81. Canori C, Biffi E, Gaggia L, Iuliano B, Valsecchi P. 2025 Do looks matter? Investigating facial expressions and intraspecific communication across different dog morphotypes. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 106720
82. Canori C.; Pedretti G.; Travain T.; Annoni C.; Sabbadini L.; Valsecchi P 2026. Can you read my poker-face? Adapting the still-face paradigm to explore dog’s interspecific communication. ANIMAL COGNITION: [10.1007/s10071-026-02059-z]
83. Martvel G.; Pedretti G.; Lazebnik T.; Zamansky A.; Ouchi Y.; Monteiro T.; Farhat N.; Shimshoni I.; Michaeli Y.; Valsecchi P.; Hall N.; Marshall-Pescini S.; Grinstein D. 2025. Does the tail show when the nose knows? Artificial intelligence outperforms human experts at predicting detection dogs finding their target through tail kinematics. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE, 10.1098/rsos.250399
84. Canori C, Biffi E, Travain T., Valsecchi P. 2026 Blinking together: the modulation of eye-blinking in dog-human social contexts" Royal Society Open Science in press
85. Biffi E., Pedretti G., Lazebnik, T., Normando S., Loconsole M. Valsecchi P. 2026 Hearing shapes: the Bouba-Kiki effect in adult domestic dogs. Proceeding B Royal Society, in press.

Book chapter

1. Singleton G.R., Valsecchi P. 1994 The possible role of social influences of food selection in the formation and control of mouse plagues. In: B.G. Galef, M. Mainardi & P. Valsecchi (Eds), Behavioural Aspects of Feeding. Basic and Applied Research on Mammals, Harwood Academic Publ., Chur, pp. 315-326.
2. Valsecchi P., Moles A., Mainardi D., Mainardi M. 1994. Individual and social experiences in the establishment of food preferences in mice (Mus domesticus).In: B.G. Galef, M. Mainardi & P. Valsecchi (Eds), Behavioural Aspects of Feeding. Basic and Applied Research on Mammals, Harwood Academic Publ., Chur, pp. 103-124.
3. Valsecchi P., Bosellini I., Mainardi D., Mainardi M. 1994 A study of social, genetic, and environmental determinants of cultural transmission in the house mouse (Mus domesticus). In: R.A. Gardner, B.T. Gardner, A.B. Chiarelli & F.X. Plooij (Eds), The Ethological Roots of Culture, NATO ASI series, Kluwer Academic Publ., Dordrecht, pp. 143-154.
4. Prato Previde E., Valsecchi P. 2014. The Immaterial Cord: The Dog–Human Attachment Bond in: Kaminski & Marshall-Pescini eds. ‘The Social Dog: Behaviour and Cognition’. pp165-189. Academic Press (Elsevier).

Book

1. Paola Valsecchi, 2020. Attenti ai cani. Una storia di 40.000 anni. Edizioni il Mulino, Bologna
2. Paola Valsecchi, 2022. Non dire gatto. Una storia naturale e non. Edizioni il Mulino, Bologna
3. Paola Valsecchi, 2026. Perché lo fai. Abitudini, astuzie e strategie non umane. In uscita ottobre 2026. Edizioni il Mulino, Bologna