Aim of the study: To determine the effect of acute and chronic cold water swimming stress on male and female Wistar albino rats. Materials and methods: This study was done in department of Physiology, MMCH and RI, Kanchipuram. 36 Wistar albino rats of both sexes were divided into six groups with six animals in each group. Group I and II control group male and female, group III and IV acute cold stress male and female, group V and VI chronic cold stress male and female respectively. Stress animals were subjected to cold stress by placing animals at 10__ampersandsignnbsp;C until it sinks. After some interval animals were subjected to behavioral assessment by using standardized models as Elevated Plus Maze (EPM) and Open Field Maze (OPM). Results: Statistical analysis of behavioral assessment showed significant changes in both acute and chronic cold stressed animals. In open field data showed significant increase in immobilization time (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) accompanied with significant decrease in no. of rearing (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) grooming (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) and ambulation behavior both in peripheral (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) and central squares in both male and female rats of all groups, In elevated plus maze there was a significant increase in transfer latency duration (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) with closed arm duration (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) significant decrease in open arm duration (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05 ) and number of times arms crossed (P__ampersandsignlt; 0.05) in both male and female rats, but comparatively the female rats showed high significance of behavioral changes when compared to male rats. Simultaneously the group subjected to chronic cold stress showed more stressor level than acute group. Conclusion: This study concluded that female rats exposed to chronic stress showed high stressor effect than acute and male rats on behavioral changes.