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Endangered Exotic Pets on Social Media in the Middle East: Presence and Impact
| Contributor(s):: Leonarda B. Spee, Susan J. Hazel, Eleonora Dal Grande, Wayne S.J. Boardman, Anne-Lise Chaber
The popularization of exotic pets on celebrity social media in the Middle East has led to questionable impacts on exotic pet demand and threats to species conservation. The objective of this study was to identify exotic animal species featured on Middle Eastern celebrity social media account...
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Dogs fail to reciprocate the receipt of food from a human in a food-giving task
| Contributor(s):: Jim McGetrick, Lisa Poncet, Marietta Amann, Johannes Schullern- Schrattenhofen, Leona Fux, Mayte Martinez, Friederike Range
Domestic dogs have been shown to reciprocate help received from conspecifics in food-giving tasks. However, it is not yet known whether dogs also reciprocate help received from humans. Here, we investigated whether dogs reciprocate the receipt of food from humans. In an experience phase,...
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The Impacts of a Reading-to-Dog Programme on Attending and Reading of Nine Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
| Contributor(s):: Stefania Uccheddu, Mariangela Albertini, Ludovica Pierantoni, Sara Fantino, Federica Pirrone
Poor knowledge is available on the effectiveness of reading to dogs in educational settings, particularly in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). In this study, we test the hypothesis that reading to a dog improves propensity towards books and motivation to read after the end of the...
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Pets in the Family
| Contributor(s):: Jason Brown
Recent cultural shifts have found more people identifying their pets as members of their family. However, little research has examined how families create this identity that pets have. Using narrative performance theory, this study examined the stories that families tell about their pets and...
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Variance in Stallion Semen Quality among Equestrian Sporting Disciplines and Competition Levels
| Contributor(s):: Megan Wilson, Jess Williams, V. Tamara Montrose, Jane Williams
Most stallions within breeding programmes are expected to breed and compete concurrently. The exercising of stallions with regards to training regimes during the breeding season is a controversial subject. Daily exercise at low intensities is important for the mental and reproductive well-being...
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A Survey of Veterinarian Attitudes Toward Prepubertal Desexing of Dogs and Cats in the Australian Capital Territory
| Contributor(s):: Bronwyn Orr, Bidda Jones
Prepubertal desexing (neutering) has been a legal requirement for all cats and dogs in the Australian Capital Territory since 2001. All cats have to be desexed by 3 months of age, and all dogs are required to be desexed by 6 months of age. The role of veterinary attitudes and behaviors in the...
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A Protocol for the Ethical Assessment of Wild Animal–Visitor Interactions (AVIP) Evaluating Animal Welfare, Education, and Conservation Outcomes
| Contributor(s):: Barbara de Mori, Linda Ferrante, Daniela Florio, Elisabetta Macchi, Ilaria Pollastri, Simona Normando
Due to the popularity of wild animal–visitor interactions (AVIs), there is a need for an ethical assessment of their impact on animal welfare, education, and conservation. The protocol presented in this study is designed to evaluate such interactions on an integrated level, using a...
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Owner and Cat-Related Risk Factors for Feline Overweight or Obesity
| Contributor(s):: Meredith Wall, Nick John Cave, Emilie Vallee
Feline obesity is a highly prevalent disease that poses an urgent and serious challenge. Attempted treatment by weight reduction is often unsuccessful; a new preventative approach that focuses on the role of the owner may be helpful. This study used data collected from an international survey...
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Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus) Vigilance Behaviour Varies between Human-Modified and Natural Environments
| Contributor(s):: Georgina Hume, Elizabeth Brunton, Scott Burnett
Rapid increases in urban land use extent across the globe are creating challenges for many wildlife species. Urban landscapes present a novel environment for many species, yet our understanding of wildlife behavioural adaptations to urban environments is still poor. This study compared the...
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Clinical and Immunological Response in Dogs Naturally Infected by L. infantum Treated with a Nutritional Supplement
| Contributor(s):: Pietro Lombardi, Anna Teresa Palatucci, Angela Giovazzino, Vincenzo Mastellone, Giuseppina Ruggiero, Valentina Rubino, Nadia Musco, Rosalia Crupi, Monica Isabella Cutrignelli, Domenico Britti, Giuseppe Vassalotti, Giuseppe Terrazzano, Laura Cortese
The use of nutraceuticals as immunomodulators in the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis has generated interest in the current approaches to treat the disease. In this clinical and immunological study, we investigated whether the administration of a nutritional supplement mediates the...
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Lakes, Mountains and Grizzly Bears; Traveling-with-Beau
| Contributor(s):: Donald F. Smith
In Part 10 in a series of stories reflecting on a 2007 trip to Alaska with his dog, Beau, Beau was safely boarded in a veterinary clinic while Dr. Smith and his wife Doris drove south from Anchorage through the Kenai Peninsula to their ultimate destination at the ocean port of...
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Potential Impact of Construction Noise on Selected Zoo Animals
| Contributor(s):: Richard Jakob-Hoff, Michael Kingan, Chiaki Fenemore, Gian Schmid, John F. Cockrem, Amanda Crackle, Emily Van Bemmel, Rebecca Connor, Kris Descovich
In anticipation of a major construction project in an urban New Zealand zoo, a study was initiated to assess the response to construction noise of selected animal species (elephant, giraffe, emu and alligator) previously observed to be sensitive to this kind of noise. The overall aim was to...
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Diagnosis of Feline Food Sensitivity and Intolerance Using Saliva: 1000 Cases
| Contributor(s):: W. Jean Dodds
This prospective study assessed the efficacy of a novel saliva-based immunoassay of IgA- and IgM-antibodies in predicting feline food sensitivities and intolerances. Clinical samples were obtained from 1000 cats proven or suspected to have food intolerances. Most were of domestic shorthair...
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Communicating canine and human emotions
| Contributor(s):: Juliane Bräuer, Karine Silva, Stefan R. Schweinberger
Kujala (2017) reviews a topic of major relevance for the understanding of the special dog-human relationship: canine emotions (as seen through human social cognition). This commentary draws attention to the communication of emotions within such a particular social context. It highlights...
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Irish Equine Industry Stakeholder Perspectives of Objective Technology for Biomechanical Analyses in the Field
| Contributor(s):: Sonja Egan, Pieter Brama, Denise McGrath
Wearable sensing technologies are increasingly used in human and equine gait research to improve ecological validity of research findings. It is unclear how these tools have penetrated the equine industry or what perspectives industry stakeholders’ hold in relation to these relatively new...
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Covenant Creatures
As a religious and charitable organization based in Thurston County, Washington, Covenant Creatures will provide a broad base of services and assistance that include but are not limited to - material and educational assistance for: Street pets and their owners, the working poor, the...
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Captive Wildlife at a Crossroads – Sanctuaries, Accreditation, and Humane-Washing
| Contributor(s):: Delcianna J. Winders
We are living through a pivotal moment for captive wild animals in the United States, with increased attention to their wellbeing and major changes by businesses as a result. At the same time, a desire to get up close with wild animals persists and may even be on the rise. These two concurrent...
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Automatic Classification of Cat Vocalizations Emitted in Different Contexts
| Contributor(s):: Stavros Ntalampiras, Luca Andrea Ludovico, Giorgio Presti, Emanuela Prato Previde, Monica Battini, Simona Cannas, Clara Palestrini, Silvana Mattiello
Cats employ vocalizations for communicating information, thus their sounds can carry a wide range of meanings. Concerning vocalization, an aspect of increasing relevance directly connected with the welfare of such animals is its emotional interpretation and the recognition of the production...
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Dogs consciously experience emotions: The question is, which?.
| Contributor(s):: Ralph Adolphs
I discuss three themes related to Kujala’s target article. First, the wealth of emerging data on cognitive studies in dogs will surely show that dogs have a very rich repertoire of cognitive processes, for most of which we find homologues in humans. Second, understanding the internal...
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Dogs for GRETA
Dogs for GRETA trains psychiatric service dogs for survivors of sexual assault diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Our mission is to provide support and advocacy for these survivors. Psychiatric service dogs are trained to support their handler by performing tasks directly...
