tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5134993821545562205.post6368316646774921888..comments2024-03-03T13:36:10.569-05:00Comments on The Dog Zombie: Can a father's stressful experiences affect his offspring's stress system?The Dog Zombiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00242246213147009685noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5134993821545562205.post-55689805626190511522014-08-07T15:11:57.095-04:002014-08-07T15:11:57.095-04:00Thanks, Linda! Yes, your hypothesis does make sens...Thanks, Linda! Yes, your hypothesis does make sense (although some studies have shown the opposite in other situations -- more stressed parent -> more stressed offspring). I wish we knew how all this stuff worked!<br /><br />I too hate reading studies in which rodents had to undergo stressful situations. I try not to talk about that in my blog posts as it would be distracting, but definitely feel it.<br /><br />But thanks again and glad you're enjoying the blog. See you soon :)The Dog Zombiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00242246213147009685noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5134993821545562205.post-78744481898719099052014-08-07T11:09:35.988-04:002014-08-07T11:09:35.988-04:00Great post, as always Jessica! This study, and you...Great post, as always Jessica! This study, and your thoughtful review of it, made me think about work that was conducted a number of years ago (I think by Michael Fox.....that is Michael Fox the veterinarian and behaviorist, not Michael Fox the movie star for the youngsters out there.... :) ), suggesting that mildly stressing puppies during the first several weeks of life promoted greater resilience to stressors later in life. The fact that cortisol was lower in the offspring of the stressed fathers (not higher), makes me wonder if perhaps those offspring "felt" less stressed (doesn't cortisol cause all of those uncomfortable physiological reactions to stress - racing heart, sweating, increased respiration, etc,), even though there was no (measurable) change in their behavior. In other words, maybe having a stressed dad leads one to be more prepared for a stressful world by ramping down the HPA axis and not getting the body all geared up for mild stressors that are known (by the dad, anyway) to not be harmful? Still, would hope to find some differences in behavior, as you state. Cool stuff (though, I must include a note that I cringe whenever I have to read any study that was studying stress......good to learn that at least the researchers were paying attention to the level of stress that they were inducing.....). Thanks Jessica - LOVE your blog! (Any your sweet little dog Jenny! :) ). Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com