A new study from researchers at Chiang Mai University in Thailand reaffirmed what many dog owners already suspected: Spending just 15 minutes with a dog can significantly reduce a person’s stress.
"Even brief interactions with dogs can significantly reduce stress levels among university undergraduate students," wrote lead author Jaruwan Khonmee.
To conduct their study, which was published in the journal PLOS One, the researchers tested the blood pressure, pulse, and saliva of 122 students currently attending the university. Then, after 15 minutes of playing, petting, and hugging one of six dogs, the students were tested again.
“Compared to immediately before, students' self-reported stress levels decreased by 33.5% after interacting with the dog,” the researchers reported, adding that their pulse rate and cortisol levels had also improved.
The researchers also noted that the dogs — all of which were non-certified — participated in the study without their owners present to reduce the risk of distracting their test subjects.
Remarkably, the researchers found evidence that the “play dates” benefited the dogs as well as the humans, observing that all six dogs — five Chihuahuas and one Shetland sheepdog — still had lower cortisol levels in their fecal matter a week after they had spent time with the students.
“Overall, these findings contribute to our understanding of the beneficial impact of human-dog interactions on human stress levels and highlight the importance of addressing stress in both humans and animals during targeted interventions,” the researchers concluded.
Header image via Samson Katt / Pexels
A version of this article originally appeared in the 2025 Dogs Edition of the Goodnewspaper.
