Pet stress patch clues you in on Fido's emotional health

Let's face it, being a pet in the modern era is pretty tough -- our furry friends live under constant surveillance and face crippling self-esteem issues brought on by a society hell-bent on upgrading them, and even replacing them outright with videogames and robots. Adding to the list of products designed to relieve Fluffy from these terrible burdens, Japanese outfit Medical Life Care Giken claims to have invented a patch to measure the stress level of cats and dogs. Based on studies linking sweat production to stress, the pin-sized patch goes on your pet's paw and changes color based on how much sweat it detects, allowing you to schedule doggie-therapy sessions accordingly. While we're not certain why it took a multi-year partnership with researchers at Toyama University to develop a sweat-powered animal mood ring, we only hope that Giken is hard at work on the fish and turtle versions of this patch -- it's been looking mighty tense in that tank.

[Via MedLaunches]

[Crazylink @ Apr 30th 2007 10:01PM]

I thought that dogs don't have sweat glands...

[Ben @ Apr 30th 2007 10:36PM]

"Warm-blooded animals have different ways of sweating. Dogs, cats and mice have sweat glands on their feet. Dogs pant when they are hot because their sweat glands are not sufficient to cool down their bodies."
Well I learned something today...


source:
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/pets_great_small/117220

[John Doe @ Apr 30th 2007 10:48PM]

Too bad you should have learned that in grade school but meh....whatever.

[Ben @ Apr 30th 2007 11:05PM]

Oh sorry I didn't take any classes about dogs sweating...and my biology teacher was horrible. I simply thought, as Crazylink did, that dogs did not have sweat glands, and I was unaware that they had them on the bottom of their feet. Get off your high horse a**hole.

[Rev. Aaron @ Apr 30th 2007 11:00PM]

Umm... who needs this? Why not just take your dog to the your local Scientologists and have them hook him up to the E-Meter and see how stressed he is, and if need be, give him a bit of auditing? I mean, what do this bunch of psychs know- Ron already gave the world the tech for this!

I don't know if it is or ever was common practice, but yes, Scientologists have audited dogs (and other pets ) before, both on and off the E-Meter. That said, the E-Meter, or any GSR meter, does detect 'stress' to a point- not sure how well it'd work on a dog though, without having a customized device that reads dog sweat levels. Same mechanism as this uses I imagine.

[Paul @ May 1st 2007 12:18AM]

@Rev. Aaron

I hope to god this comment is a joke.

[Rev. Aaron @ May 1st 2007 10:19AM]

@Paul:

Nope, it isn't a joke. The first paragraph is- I'm not in Scn myself, but I have read accounts of Scientologists auditing dogs. There is an LRH reference on it I believe as well- which means L. Ron Hubbard talked about it. Totally serious, but like I said, I don't know (and frankly I don't think that) it is common practice in the C of S. But it's been done.

[mattclarkie @ May 1st 2007 4:41AM]

I was always taught that the reason dogs pant is because their sweat glands are on their tongue, and therefore they have to stick it out to evaporate away the heat.

So if your dog steps in a puddle the patch rings the Dogs Trust and your dog is taken from you as it lives in a stressful environment. Not my Cassy your don't.

[leep @ May 1st 2007 11:29AM]

I guess I got to say it...

Someone's strangling the dog!!! SOMEONE CALL PETA!!! PROTEST! PROTEST! PROTEST!

[People Animals Love @ May 2nd 2007 4:14PM]

I want a contact person for that company. Our volunteers' dogs spend hours visiting sick, injured, dying, or lonely seniors, children, soldiers, and others.

The pet owner/handlers could sure use gauges such as this. (www.peopleanimalslove.com)

[sarahvti @ May 25th 2007 12:41PM]

please help my dog is 11 years old and is in good health but lately he is looking very down and acting very strange since he was a puppy he knew if he was desperate for the loo whislt we was out to go on th tiles in the kitchen recently he has started going for a pooh in our living room in the same spot at least 3 times a week whilst we are only out for three hours he gets walked for a hour in the morning and goes to the toilet whist out but we then come home to find he has been again in the living room in the same spot and its relly not like him to do this. we even put surgical spirt down so he would not return there to do it but he has. do you think its stress or plan and simple being naughty.