Behavior and cortisol levels of dogs in a public animal shelter, and an exploration of the ability of these measures to predict problem behavior after adoption

Behavior and plasma cortisol levels were examined in puppies and juvenile/a dult dogs admitted to a public animal shelter. A behavioral test was develo ped to assess the responses of the dogs to novel or threatening conditions. Factor analysis of the behavioral responses of 166 dogs on day 3 in the sh elter yielded six factors (locomotor activity, flight, sociability, timidit y, solicitation, and wariness) that accounted for 68% of the total variance . Among those dogs remaining in the shelter for 9 days, plasma cortisol lev els declined from day 2 to 9. Cortisol levels were weakly related to factor scores. In order to explore the relation of measures in the shelter to lat er behavior, questionnaires assessing problem behaviors were mailed to new owners of dogs 2 weeks and 6 months following adoption. Among puppies, wari ness scores were negatively correlated with behavior problems at 2 weeks an d cortisol levels were negatively correlated with behavior problems at 6 mo nths. These results suggest how measures of behavior and endocrine activity obtained in shelters might prove useful for screening dogs for adoption or targeting dogs for behavioral intervention. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.