The effect of a pressure vest on the behaviour, salivary cortisol and urine oxytocin of noise phobic dogs in a controlled test

The DEEP vest reduced the lying time of the dogs during the noise interval. During the noise interval total lying time with any vest correlated positively with saliva cortisol, measured after noise interval, indicating that the increased lying time was a sign of a higher stress level in the dogs. Wearing either vests increased the time the dogs spent near their owners during noise interval. Time spent near the owner when wearing the DEEP vest during the recovery interval correlated positively with the urine oxytocin. These results indicate oxytocin might be related to the doǵs tendency to seek owner support and the vests might effect this behaviour positively. We did not find a clear therapeutic effect of using pressure vests in noise phobic dogs. However, our results indicate the pressure vest might reduce the acute stress reaction and speed up the recovery after stress.