Cortisol in shelter dog hair shows signs of stress

Date:
April 21, 2022
Source:
Utrecht University
Summary:
Despite the good care, a shelter can be a stressful environment
for dogs.

Researchers investigated if the amount of the hormone cortisol in
hair indicates the levels of stress that dogs experience before,
during and after their stay in the shelter.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Despite the good care, a shelter can be a stressful environment for dogs.

Researchers at Utrecht University investigated if the amount of the
hormone cortisol in hair indicates the levels of stress that dogs
experience before, during and after their stay in the shelter.


========================================================================== There is no difference between the cortisol levels of dogs when they
enter the shelter and the control group of domestic dogs. After six weeks
in the shelter, cortisol levels in the hair appear to have increased by one-third (on average from 16 pg/mg to 21.8 pg/mg). In measurements six
weeks and six months after adoption, cortisol levels lowered, moving in
the direction of the values at admission to the shelter. The results were published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports on 21 April 2022.

Cortisol in hair The stress hormone cortisol accumulates in hair, in
humans but also in animals.

By measuring cortisol levels in hair, researchers can get an idea of the
stress response and recovery over weeks or months -- depending on the
length of the hair examined. This technique has been used extensively
in humans and other species, and some fifteen scientific studies have
been carried out in dogs so far.

"In addition to the cortisol measurements in hair, we also measured
cortisol values in the dogs' urine. This gives a short-term picture
while the hair measurements show the long term," researcher Janneke van
der Laan explains.

To the shelter every day The researchers examined hair of 52 shelter dogs
at four moments: just before admission, after six weeks in the shelter,
six weeks after adoption and six months after adoption. They compared
the cortisol values before admission with those of twenty domestic dogs,
which were similar in terms of breed, age and sex.



==========================================================================
Van der Laan: "We took daily measurements in the shelter for over a
year. After adoption, the new owners -- after clear instructions -- cut
the dogs hair and sent it to us. They were helpful and enthusiastic, and
were very interested in what their dog had experienced before adoption."
More cortisol in small dogs A surprising result is that smaller dogs
generally have higher cortisol levels than larger dogs. "We have also seen
this pattern in previous studies, for example in a study on the resting
pattern of shelter dogs. We don't have a clear hypothesis about why that
is, but it is interesting and is an area of focus for future research." Well-being in shelter All the examined shelter dogs were in the same
shelter. Of course there are significant differences between shelters, not
only within the Netherlands but also internationally. In The Netherlands,
dogs are usually kept individually, while in other countries they are
often kept in groups.

"We know that a shelter is not a stress-free environment for dogs,
even though staff members do their best to achieve the highest possible welfare," Van der Laan says. "Even if you organise a shelter in the best possible way, there are still stress factors, such as crowds of other dogs
and not being able to go outside as often as usual. And most important:
the dog is gone from their old, familiar environment." The shelter in
this study has a pioneering role in improving the welfare of dogs: they
use glass walls instead of bars to reduce noise pollution for the dogs,
for example. "The fact that we measured an increased amount of cortisol
even in this shelter, suggests that this will also be the case in other shelters," Van Der Laan said.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Utrecht_University. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Janneke Elisabeth van der Laan, Claudia Maureen Vinke, Saskia
Stefanie
Arndt. Evaluation of hair cortisol as an indicator of long-term
stress responses in dogs in an animal shelter and after subsequent
adoption.

Scientific Reports, 2022; 12 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-09140-w ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/04/220421130949.htm

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