Stress-Related Behaviors in Companion Dogs Exposed to Common Household Noises, and Owners' Interpretations of Their Dogs' Behaviors

Abstract

Sudden, loud noises are one of the most common triggers for fearful behaviors in dogs, and many companion dogs suffer from noise sensitivity. Existing research focuses on dramatic infrequent sounds (e.g., thunderstorms, fireworks). Anecdotally, and based on reports of undesirable behaviors in response to noises in the home, many common household noises may also be causing fear and anxiety in companion dogs. However, these responses have not yet been studied in home environments. We surveyed 386 dog owners about their dogs' responses to household sounds, and recorded dog behaviors and human reactions from 62 videos and compilations available on an online video sharing platform, featuring dogs reacting to common household noises. Numerous signs of canine fear and anxiety were reported by survey respondents and observed in the videos, in response to both daily, and irregular but “normal,” household noises. Responses were significantly stronger to sounds characterized as high frequency intermittent than to sounds characterized as low frequency continuous. Respondents appeared to underestimate their dogs' fearfulness, and the majority of humans in the videos responded to their dogs' behaviors with amusement; welfare concerns were rarely expressed. While these videos cannot be used to calculate actual prevalence of these issues, our data support that some owners are underestimating fearfulness in their dogs in response to household noises, and responding inappropriately to dogs' expressions of fear and anxiety. Better education is required for dog owners to accurately interpret canine body language, to both safeguard dogs' welfare and minimize development of anxiety-related behavior problems.

Understanding Canine ‘Reactivity’: Species-Specific Behaviour or Human Inconvenience?

“…Here, the 'owners' are deemed, in part, as a contributor in 'causing' a dog to become 'fearful'. Similar notions have been found previously, with research highlighting how dogs can attune themselves to emotions portrayed by their human counterpart (Siniscalachi et al, 2018), and guardians lacking education in either recognizing (Grigg et al, 2021) or managing fear and stress in their dogs (Mariti et al, 2012).…”

“…Such an understanding is unsurprising given consistent research surrounding increased aggressive displays among fearful dogs (Hydbring-Sandberg et al, 2004;Kimo, 2011), in part due to hormonal and stress-responses (Belpedio et al, 2010;Bradshaw, 2011;Carrier et al, 2013). Whilst natural, then, reactive displays are deemed concerning in relation to the human ability to 'understand' and manage such behaviors (Diesel et al, 2008;Grigg et al, 2021;Salman et al, 2000;Wells & Hepper, 2000;Kwan & Bain, 2013;O'Connor et al, 2017;Weng et al, 2006).…”

“…This is further complicated by evidence that lay populations often struggle to recognize subtle signs of stress in their dog companions, and thus fail to respond appropriately (Mariti et al, 2012). For example, Grigg et al (2021) found that normal household noises elicited fear in many dogs, but guardians appeared to ignore or find this amusing. There is also evidence that lay populations may refrain from pathologizing dog behavior, instead preferring to describe their dog as 'excited' and 'curious' (Shabelansky et al, 2016).…”

Former laboratory dogs' psychological and behavioural characteristics

“…Overall, these results suggest that the dogs from the laboratories were reported as being more fearful than the convenience sample of dogs. Previous research has established that most caregivers actually underestimate the fearfulness and anxiety in their dogs (Grigg et al 2021). Therefore, it is possible that the individuals who adopted dogs from laboratories, having an understanding of what their dogs may or may not have experienced in the laboratories, made them more attuned to this fear than the caregivers of the convenience sample of dogs, and that no real differences exist.…”

Do intense weather events influence dogs' and cats' behavior? Analysis of owner reported data in Italy

“…Changes in daily routines can create a condition of distress with consequent modification of the main behavioral patterns (20), worsening all forms of anxiety and exacerbating problems such as urinary marking (21,22), separation anxiety (23) and cognitive dysfunction in elderly subjects (24). Furthermore, subjects who previously suffered from fears or phobias toward loud noises can worsen the symptoms during sudden and violent thunderstorms (25).…”