Effects of Postnatal Handling on the Ontogenesis of Canine Behaviour

The results of this research lead us to consider the positive effects of gentle handling on puppy behaviour. In fact, after analyzing various behavioural indicators of stress, it emerges that handled puppies showed less discomfort in a situation of isolation, as attested by the fact that experimental animals yelped later and less (although the latter difference is not statistically significant) than controls. In addition, exploratory activity, which could be considered a behavioural indicator of well-being, was revealed statistically more for handled puppies than for the others. Therefore, we may conclude that tactile stimulation performed daily until the 21st day of life appeared to produce puppies that are more able to cope with stress due to a new situation and to adapt themselves to it in a better way. It is important to point out that these behavioural differences in puppies are even more significant in light of the fact that puppies in both the experimental and control group already received considerable handling by the owners. This leads us to conclude that not only the quantity, but also the type, of manipulations is an important factor.