Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Measuring stress in cats using hair and nail cortisol levels
By Contreras, Elena T et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2021·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Evaluation of hair and nail cortisol concentrations and associations with behavioral, physical, and environmental indicators of chronic stress in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study looked at how stress affects cats by measuring cortisol levels in their hair and nails. Researchers found that cats with litterbox problems had higher cortisol levels, indicating more stress, while well-groomed cats had lower levels. This suggests that stress can be linked to certain behaviors and physical conditions in cats. Understanding these cortisol levels could help veterinarians better identify and manage chronic stress in our feline friends.
People also search for: cat stress symptoms · why is my cat not using the litter box · how to reduce stress in cats
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Chronic stress is implicated in behavioral and health issues in cats, but methods for recognition, evaluation, and measurement of stress are lacking. Cortisol concentration is typically used as an indicator of stress. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate use of an enzyme immunoassay to quantitate hair and nail cortisol concentrations (HCC and NCC) in cats and evaluate associations between HCC and NCC and behavioral, physical, and environmental correlates of chronic stress in cats. ANIMALS: Forty-eight adult, owned or community cats. METHODS: Cross-sectional study. Nail clippings and hair were collected from cats. Medical history and cat daily lifestyle questionnaires were completed by owners or caretakers. A commercial laboratory performed cortisol extraction and quantification using a validated enzyme immunoassay kit. Correlational and regression analyses were used to evaluate associations between HCC and NCC and behavioral, environmental, and medical factors. RESULTS: Hair and nail cortisol concentrations were significantly associated (r = 0.70; P < .001), but HCCs varied widely within and among cats. Cats with litterbox issues had significantly increased HCC (P = .02) and NCC (P = .001) as compared to cats without litterbox issues. Cats with groomed coats had lower HCCs (P = .02) as compared to cats without groomed coats, whereas cats with dander and mats had higher NCCs (P = .01) as compared to cats without dander and mats. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: The quantification of NCCs might improve identification and evaluation of chronic stress in cats. The variability of HCCs in individual cats warrants caution using this measurement in chronic stress studies.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34704630/