Shelter environments are inherently stressful for dogs due to confinement, reduced freedom, and limited social interaction. Understanding how different housing conditions affect welfare is vital for improving management practices. Corsetti et al. (2023) examined the physiological and behavioral responses of 10 male shelter dogs under four different cage conditions.
The study compared dogs housed: (i) alone in a cage, (ii) alone in an enriched cage, (iii) with conspecifics, and (iv) alone but with regular human interaction. Across 400 hours of observation and faecal cortisol metabolite analysis, the researchers found that dogs housed alone displayed the highest levels of displacement behaviors such as pacing, yawning, and other stress indicators, along with elevated cortisol.
In contrast, housing with conspecifics reduced both behavioral stress markers and physiological stress levels. Notably, this arrangement was more effective at reducing stress than either environmental enrichment or human interaction outside the cage. These findings suggest that companionship with other dogs plays a key role in mitigating stress within shelter environments.
By highlighting the importance of social housing, the study offers practical welfare guidelines for shelters, emphasizing that conspecific companionship is a more effective stress-reducing measure than isolation or human-only approaches.
Source: Corsetti, S., Natoli, E., Palme, R., & Viggiano, E. (2023). Intraspecific Interactions Decrease Stress Affecting Welfare in Shelter Dogs: A Comparison of Four Different Housing Conditions. Animals, 13.
