Romaniuk Aynsley C, Barnard Shanis, Shreyer Traci, Croney Candace
Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 725 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47906, USA.
Center for Animal Welfare Science, Departments of Comparative Pathobiology and Animal Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA.
Sci Rep. 2025 Jan 22;15(1):2820. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-85936-w.
It is well established that maternal factors can affect the abilities of offspring to cope with stressors and can influence their overall welfare states. However, maternal effects have not been extensively explored in US commercial breeding kennels (CBKs). Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify if fear and stress in dams affected puppy welfare metrics in CBKs. Bitches (n = 90) were tested at 6 weeks prepartum (6 W Pre), and again with their puppies (n = 390) at 4 (4 W Post) and 8 weeks (8 W Post) postpartum. Dams and puppies underwent stranger approach and isolation tests, and their feces were collected to measure fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) and secretory immunoglobulin A concentrations. Further, dams' hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) were analyzed at the previously mentioned time points and at 1 week prepartum. Finally, birth and weekly weights were collected from puppies, and litter health metrics were recorded. Data were analyzed using mixed-effects and simple linear regression models. There were significant positive associations between dams' exploration and stationary durations and puppies' durations of the same respective behaviors during the isolation tests (exploration: [Formula: see text] = 9.472, p = 0.002; stationary: [Formula: see text] = 5.226, p = 0.022), 8 W Post dam FGMs and 8 W Post puppy FGMs (estimate: 0.0003, SE = 0.0001, p = 0.002), and 4 W Post dam HCCs and 4 W Post litter FGMs (estimate: 0.052, SE = 0.025, p = 0.053). Significant negative associations between 6 W Pre dam HCCs and 8 W Post puppy FGMs (estimate: -0.021, SE = 0.007, p = 0.007), puppies' birth weights ([Formula: see text] = 3.908, p = 0.048), and puppies' average weekly weight gains ([Formula: see text] = 0.111, p = 0.739) were also found. These findings suggest that indicators of dam fear and stress may be associated with potential indicators of puppies' welfare states in CBKs. Findings provide new knowledge on fear and stress-related factors that may be used to support the welfare of dams and puppies in CBKs and other populations.
众所周知，母体因素会影响后代应对压力源的能力，并能影响它们的整体健康状况。然而，在美国商业繁殖犬舍（CBKs）中，母体效应尚未得到广泛研究。因此，本研究的目的是确定母犬的恐惧和压力是否会影响CBKs中幼犬的健康指标。在产前6周（产前6周）对母犬（n = 90）进行测试，并在产后4周（产后4周）和8周（产后8周）再次与其幼犬（n = 390）一起进行测试。对母犬和幼犬进行陌生人接近和隔离测试，并收集它们的粪便以测量粪便糖皮质激素代谢物（FGM）和分泌型免疫球蛋白A浓度。此外，在上述时间点以及产前1周分析母犬的毛发皮质醇浓度（HCC）。最后，收集幼犬的出生体重和每周体重，并记录窝内健康指标。使用混合效应和简单线性回归模型对数据进行分析。在隔离测试期间，母犬的探索和静止持续时间与幼犬相同行为的持续时间之间存在显著的正相关（探索：[公式：见正文] = 9.472，p = 0.002；静止：[公式：见正文] = 5.226，p = 0.022），产后8周母犬的FGM与产后8周幼犬的FGM（估计值：0.0003，标准误 = 0.0001，p = 0.002），以及产后4周母犬的HCC与产后4周窝内FGM（估计值：0.052，标准误 = 0.025，p = 0.053）。还发现产前6周母犬的HCC与产后8周幼犬的FGM（估计值：-0.021，标准误 = 0.007，p = 0.007）、幼犬的出生体重（[公式：见正文] = 3.908，p = 0.048）以及幼犬的平均每周体重增加（[公式：见正文] = 0.111，p = 0.739）之间存在显著的负相关。这些发现表明，母犬恐惧和压力的指标可能与CBKs中幼犬健康状况的潜在指标相关。研究结果提供了关于恐惧和压力相关因素的新知识，可用于支持CBKs和其他群体中母犬和幼犬的健康。
