The combined use of salivary cortisol concentrations, heart rate, and respiratory rate for the welfare assessment of dogs involved in AAI programs

Abstract

Animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) are increasingly popular throughout the world, with a growing trend. Despite all their potential benefits, there are certain risks to both humans and animals involved in AAI programs that should not be disregarded, such as the burnout of the animals. This study investigated the welfare of dogs during AAIs in Portugal. Three welfare indicators related to stress were assessed in nineteen dogs of nineteen human-dog dyads: salivary cortisol concentration, heart rate (HR), and respiratory rate. These measurements were carried out at two time points: at home and after session. This combined assessment allows for the evaluation of the two main neurohormonal pathways related to stress responses: the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathetic-adrenal-medullary axis. Along with monitoring these indicators, a questionnaire was given to each animal handler immediately before the sample collection, to collect demographic data about his/her dog and to characterize the AAI session they were involved in. Statistically significant differences were found (P < 0.05) among the indicators' mean/median values at home and after an AAI session, with the postsession values being higher. Dogs involved in animal-assisted activities had significantly higher mean HR values after session when compared with the ones involved in animal-assisted therapies (P = 0.015), despite all of them being within the normal range. The dogs subjected to a transport time of longer than fifty minutes also had significantly higher mean HR (P = 0.007) and median respiratory rate (P = 0.0001) after session. Most of the dogs (n = 15) had salivary cortisol concentration values within what is considered to be the normal range (<0.3 μg/dL) with only one dog having an extremely high value (1.101 μg/dL) that was attributed to the entrance protocol in the AAI site and to the characteristics of the session itself. The analysis of the three indicators did not raise severe concern about the welfare of the monitored dogs, but some practices that should be avoided were identified: long transport to the AAI site (≥50 minutes); performing AAI in excessively warm rooms; and entering schools during children's playtime.