Effects of petting before a brief separation from the owner on dog behavior and physiology: a pilot study

Human physical contact is known to be effective in decreasing dogs ’ level of stress, assessed through endocrine, physiological and behavioral parameters. Gentle touching has been found to be beneficial for dogs while experiencing or after having experienced a stressful event. The aim of the current study was to assess if dog behavior and physiology during a brie f separation from the owner were modified by being petted before owner’s departure. Ten dogs, not affected by separation-related problems, were tested twice while separated for three minutes from the owner: before separation, dogs once were petted for 1 minute and once were not petted.
Source: Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research - Category: Veterinary Research Authors: Source Type: research