Evaluation of work stress effects on Rottweilers male dog´s fertility

Abstract

The present work aimed to evaluate the effect of work stress male dogs fertility. Eighteen fertile male Rottweiler dogs, mean aged 4 years old, were randomly allocate into two groups: resting (control) and working (treatment). Treatment consisted of 5 working stages: 1 - adaptation, 2- basic obedience training, 3 - physical conditioning and military training, 4 - camping and 5 - resting. During the experimental period, semen was collected and evaluated twice a week. At the end of each stage, blood collections were performed in order to evaluate plasmatic levels of cortisol. Data were analyzed using the statistical software SAS (a=5%). A significant negative effect of stress was observed on sperm motility (resting=72.63 vs. working=57.62, p<0.001), progressive motility (resting=3.06 vs. working=2.52, p<0.0001), major defects (resting=16.01 vs. working=26.80, p<0.0001) and total defects (resting=29.61 vs. working=40.34, p<0.0001). Furthermore, a significant interaction (P<0.0001) was observed between treatment and working stage periods for the plasmatic levels of cortisol, suggesting that the level of stress may vary according to the type of work. Results indicated that work stress may negatively influence fertility in male dogs.