It has long been known that caring for a dog lowers cortisol, the stress hormone in humans, but new research suggests that dogs may actually pick up on their owners’ stress and be stressed themselves. It turns out that there is something.
The new study, conducted by researchers at Queen’s University Belfast, showed that changes in an owner’s heart rate can predict changes in a dog’s heart rate.
A research team from the School of Biological Sciences set out to investigate whether changes in owners’ stress levels influence dogs’ stress in new environments, such as veterinary settings.
A total of 28 dog owners were fitted with HR monitors and performed either a digital test to induce stress or a guided meditation to reduce stress. The pet’s heart rate was also safely monitored during this period.
Owners reported increased stress levels after completing the digital stress test compared to pre-test stress levels.
Additionally, according to the study design, the group that completed a period of guided meditation tended to have lower reported stress levels.
This study showed that changes in the owner’s heart rate predicted subsequent changes in the dog’s heart rate. The researchers concluded that the results showed that dogs were responding to their owners’ stress levels.
Dr Gareth Arnott, Reader in Animal Behavior and Welfare from the School of Biological Sciences at Queen’s University, says dogs “show emotional contagion, which is a reflection of emotion, and social referencing, such as looking for cues that signal their reactions. He may have the ability.” For owners with innovative settings to suit the situation. ”
Veterinarian Aoife Byrne, who carried out the study, said the study “highlights the importance of incorporating methods to reduce owner stress in veterinary settings, as this also reduces the stress experienced by dogs.” This is because there is a possibility that it can be reduced.”
