Science Writing, (EFE).- A study published this Thursday in Scientific Reports has revealed that dogs bite more frequently (up to 11 percent more) on the hottest and sunniest days, and when the levels of air pollution are more tall.
Previous research has documented that warmer weather and higher levels of air pollution may be associated with increased aggression in humans, rhesus monkeys, rats, and mice.
However, it is not clear if the aggression of dogs towards humans also follows this trend and, following this study, the authors advise that more data and research are needed to confirm this conclusion.
The study was led by Clas Linnman, a researcher at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Neuroimaging Laboratory in Boston, Massachusetts (United States).
To do the research, Linnman and team examined data on dog bites between 2009 and 2018 in eight US cities: Dallas, Houston, Baltimore, Baton Rouge, Chicago, Louisville, Los Angeles, and New York.
According to public data, provided by the animal control authorities, in that period 69,525 dog bites were reported, about three a day for ten years.
Bite rates
The authors examined the relationship between dog bite rates and daily levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), ozone, and temperature, as well as ultraviolet (UV) radiation levels and precipitation.
The study reveals that the incidence of dog bites increased 11 percent on days with higher UV levels, 4 percent on days with higher temperatures, and 3 percent on days with higher ozone levels.
In contrast, the incidence of dog bites decreased slightly (by 1%) on days with higher levels of rainfall.
other factors
The authors point out that the dog bite records did not include information on other factors that can affect the level of dog aggression such as breed, sex, or whether the animal is neutered or spayed.
In addition, they also did not have information about previous interactions between the dog and the bite victim, such as whether the individual was familiar with the dog.
For this reason, although the authors maintain that these results seem to reinforce the association between high temperatures and contamination with aggression by dogs, they insist that more research is needed to confirm and explore this relationship.
