Abstract
Dog grooming techniques to maintain the good health and hygiene of dogs are an important component of an education program for veterinary nurses. However, animal welfare issues associated with dog grooming also need to be considered within this context. Therefore, this case study investigates the influence of dog grooming education based on the 3Rs(Replacement, Reduction, Refinement), as taught at the Yamazaki Gakuen University, on the stress level of dogs.
The 21 dogs included in the study were randomly selected from among the dogs used by students for the practice of grooming. Saliva samples were collected from the dogs before and after grooming and the cortisol concentration was measured as a physiological indicator of stress. The results show that the concentrations of salivary cortisol were not significantly different in the samples taken from the dogs before and after grooming. In addition, the histogram of salivary cortisol concentration suggested that the influence of dog grooming practice at the Yamazaki Gakuen University on the stress level of dogs was generally considered to be mild.
These results show the validity of implementing the 3Rs in dog grooming practice. They also support the dog grooming component of the University’s education program for veterinary nurses which is based on the 3Rs. This program includes elements such as individual screening and replacement for visual teaching materials, leading to the reduction of pain repeatedly caused by inexperienced technical tasks as well as the unstable posture of the dog.
