Stress, needs, and behaviour: understanding chronic stress in pet domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) from the prism of needs

Abstract

Research suggests that domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) living as pets within urban environments may experience challenges such as sensory overstimulation, limited agency, and hyper-dependence on humans. Such factors have been associated with the development of chronic stress within this population. While stress can be an adaptive response to internal or external challenges, chronic stress can have a negative impact on a dog's health, well-being and strain the human–animal bond. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 5.8 million domestic dogs and cats entered U.S. shelters, of which 607,000 were killed in 2024. Recent research indicates that behavioural issues remain among the most common reasons for relinquishment. Numerous studies identify chronic stress as an important yet often overlooked contributor to the development of problematic behaviours. Given the broad health and behavioural consequences of chronic stress, we argue that frameworks helping caregivers and communities recognize causes of stress and opportunities for mitigation are critically important. Moreover, sharing human environments exposes dogs to many of the same urban stressors, making dogs a particularly informative model for exploring mechanisms, detection, and mitigation of chronic stress relevant to both canine and human well-being. In this review, we briefly summarize current knowledge about the mechanisms and regulation of chronic stress in pet dogs, describe how prolonged dysregulation of stress-response systems affects health and behaviour, and review current physiological and behavioural indicators of chronic stress in dogs, discussing their present limitations. We consider existing evidence for the hypothesis that a sustained inability to satisfy species-specific, breed-specific, and individual needs across physiological, safety, social, and cognitive domains may be a major cause of chronic stress in dogs living in urban environments. Finally, we outline key directions for future research, including possible approaches for developing validated diagnostic and screening methods to measure chronic stress in pet dogs, systematic evaluation of individual needs, and the development of interventions to mitigate chronic stress in companion dogs. This review does not aim to introduce a new animal welfare framework. Rather, it serves as a complementary perspective to existing ones, evaluating evidence for a link between a dog's ability to meet their needs and the development of chronic stress. Although the factors discussed here are not the only determinants of stress and well-being in dogs, this review emphasizes how understanding and meeting a dog's needs may help us understand and reduce chronic stress and related behavioural and health outcomes.