Human stress affects the pet

The bond between man and his pet is very close. The smell of stress in humans affects the emotional state of dogs and can push them to make choices considered more "pessimistic", according to a new study. Researchers from the University of Bristol (UK) argue that the result of this study is important for dogs in shelters and for quadrupeds trained to become companion dogs. A pessimistic response reflects a negative emotional state and may be a way for the dog to conserve energy and avoid becoming disappointed, according to the researchers. The study concluded that the smell of stress, emitted by people through sweat and breathing, can change the behavior of man's best friend. Nicola Rooney, lecturer in conservation and wildlife at the University of Bristol's Veterinary School, is the co-ordinator of the new study. "Understanding how human stress affects dogs' well-being is important for shelter dogs and those being trained as companion or companion dogs. Dog trainers often say that stress comes down to the leash, but we we showed that it can also be transmitted through the air," he declared. The researchers used a test on the optimistic or pessimistic state of animals, which is based on the fact that optimistic or pessimistic choices of people indicate the presence of positive or negative emotions, respectively. In the study, 18 dogs were taught that when a food bowl is placed in a certain location, it contains a reward, but when it is placed in another location, it is empty. Once the dogs learned this difference, they approached the location of the reward more quickly. The researchers then tested how quickly the dogs approached a third bowl, placed in a location between the two. Fast movement to this third bowl reflects the animal's optimism that it also believes there is food in this bowl - a positive emotional state - while slow movement to the third bowl indicates pessimism and a negative emotional state, according to the researchers. The tests were repeated and the dogs were exposed to the smell of the sweat and breath of people who were relaxed or stressed, or they were simply not exposed to any smell. According to the results, the smell of the stressed people made the dogs move more slowly towards the third bowl, which they did not know whether or not it would contain a reward. The opposite effect was obtained after the animals were exposed to the smell of relaxed people. The findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, suggest that the smell of stress increased the dog's expectation that there would not be a reward in the third bowl. This pessimistic response reflects a negative emotional state and may be a way for the dog to conserve energy and avoid the disappointment of finding the bowl empty, the researchers believe. The researchers also found that the animals continued to improve their learning about the presence or absence of the reward and that they learned faster when exposed to the stress odor.