Pet parents, if you are stressed, chances are your dog will reflect the emotion

WASHINGTON DC [USA]: Do you remember in 'Friends', when Phoebe asks Joey the happiest dog in the world to cheer him up? However, Joey ends up having the dog all depressed? Well, now we have an explanation. According to the researchers, dogs tend to reflect the stress level of their human being.

The results suggest that stress levels in dogs are influenced by the people they live with.

As part of a study, the researchers examined how lifestyle factors and the people they live with influence the level of stress in dogs.

Previous work has shown that individuals of the same species can reflect their respective emotional states. For example, there is a correlation between long-term stress in children and their mothers.

The study, recently published in the Journal of Scientific, reports that scientists wondered if similar levels of stress over long periods of time could also occur between species, for example between the domestic dog and the dog. man.

The researchers determined the stress level over several months by measuring the concentration of a stress hormone, cortisol, in a few inches of the dog's hair and its owner.

"We found that long-term cortisol levels in the dog and its owner were synchronized, so owners with high levels of cortisol had dogs with high levels of cortisol, while owners with low levels cortisol had low levels, "said Ann. Sofie Sundman, lead author of the study.

The study examined 25 border collies and 33 Shetland Sheepdogs, all belonging to women. Owners and dogs provided hair samples twice, spaced a few months apart.

Since physical activity can increase cortisol levels, the researcher also wanted to compare pet dogs with dogs competing in obedience or agility. The physical activity levels of the dogs were therefore recorded for a week with the help of an activity collar.

The study revealed that the level of stress of competing dogs seems to be more related to that of the owner.

Scientists badume that this can be badociated with a higher degree of active interaction between the owner and the dog when they train and compete together.