The Effect of Early Neurological Stimulation on Puppy Welfare in Commercial Breeding Kennels

Abstract

Throughout their lives, dogs may experience various stressful events. Early neurological stimulation (ENS), which was shown to alter stress responses beneficially in some animals, has not been fully explored in dogs. Seventy-six small-breed puppies from one commercial breeding kennel were divided into three treatment groups: ENS, held, and control. Puppies in the ENS group received 30 s of handling exercises for 21 days after birth; puppies in the held group were simply held for the same amount of time. Puppies in the control group were managed as per normal breeder practices (i.e., routine husbandry and physical health checks). Physical health was assessed weekly, and puppies were generally healthy and clean. Behavioral responses to stranger approach and isolation tests were evaluated pre- and post-ground-transportation to a distributor. Puppies were more affiliative toward a stranger post-isolation than pre-isolation (p < 0.001), and post-transport than pre-transport (p < 0.001). At the distributor, puppies in the isolation test spent less time in exploratory locomotion (p < 0.001) and vocalized more than at the breeder’s kennel (p = 0.011). Treatment did not affect these results. Overall, the results suggest that the type of ENS used in this study may not provide the purported benefits to puppies’ stress responses in commercial breeding populations.

Keywords: ENS; breeding dogs; canine welfare; early gentling; ground transportation; puppy development.

Figure 1

Bio Sensor ENS exercises: (a) tactile stimulation—the puppy’s toes were tickled gently with a Q-tip; (b) head held erect—the puppy was held so the head is directly above the tail; (c) head pointed down—the puppy was held so the tail is above the head; (d) supine position—the puppy was held on its back; and (e) thermal stimulation—the puppy was placed on a cool, damp washcloth.

Figure 2

Held treatment—the puppy was held in a sternal position.

Figure 3

Percentage of puppies in each treatment group (ENS, held, and control) showing each physical health problem measured across the first eight weeks of life prior to the application of stressors.

Figure 4

Mean weight for (A) female and (B) male puppies in each treatment group over the first eight weeks at the breeder’s kennel, prior to application of stressors. Error bars represent the standard errors of the means.

Figure 5

Summed scores for puppies tested with the PuppyFIDO tests pre- and post-isolation (isolation time) and transport to the distributor (transport time). Higher scores represent more affiliative behaviors in response to a stranger approaching.

Figure 6

Summed scores for puppies from the PuppyFIDO test showing differences between the three treatment groups (control, held, and ENS) for puppies with cropped ears (Yes) and uncropped puppies (No). Higher scores represent more affiliative behaviors in response to stranger’s approach.