What Are the Five Freedoms (and What do they Mean to You?)

The five freedoms of animal welfare, the one most people miss, and what it means for pet owners.

Photo: Bad Monkey Photography

When you get a new puppy or kitten, no one tells you your new pet has five main welfare needs that need to be met. But maybe they should, because they provide a framework for how we should care for dogs, cats, and other pets. Read on to find out what they are, how many pet owners know them, and why they matter to you.

The Five Freedoms

The Five Freedoms were originally defined by the UK’s Farm Animal Welfare Council in the 1960s, and subsequently updated. They are now understood to apply to the welfare of all animals, not just livestock.

The Five Freedoms are:

• Freedom from hunger and thirst, by ready access to water and a diet to maintain health and vigour. 
• Freedom from discomfort, by providing an appropriate environment. 
• Freedom from pain, injury and disease, by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment. 
• Freedom to express normal behaviour, by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and appropriate company of the animal’s own kind.
• Freedom from fear and distress, by ensuring conditions and treatment, which avoid mental suffering. 

The Five Freedoms define animal welfare and consequently you can find them on the websites of organizations like the ASPCA (with a downloadable poster), the BC SPCA and the RSPCA Queensland.  In the UK, the RSPCA and the PDSA write about how these welfare needs are enshrined in law.

The Five Freedoms tell us our pets have five welfare needs – diet, environment, health, companionship, and behaviour.

Many cats prefer to be solitary, while others enjoy companionship from other felines.. Photo: Anna Luopa / Shutterstock

Knowing About the Five Freedoms

How many pet owners know about these needs? Every year since 2011, the PDSA in the UK has released its PAW report on the welfare of pets. The 2018 report tells us how many people know about these five welfare needs.

The good news is that most people were able to identify four of the five welfare needs when shown a list.

• 87% identified the need to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease.
• 85% identified the need to live in a suitable environment.
• 85% identified the need for a suitable diet
• 67% identified the need to exhibit normal behaviour patterns.

So what did most people miss?

• Only 18% identified the need to be housed with, or apart from, other animals.

Unfortunately these needs are not as well known as they should be. Only 13% of pet owners were able to correctly identify all five of the animal’s needs.

And 29% of people thought that a need for human company was one of the welfare needs.

The Need for Companionship

Of course, for each animal these needs will be met in different ways.

Take the need to be kept together with (or apart from) other animals of the same species.

Guinea pigs need companionship from other guinea pigs and should not be kept alone. Because of this, in Switzerland it is illegal to keep just one guinea pig.

Rabbits are also very sociable, and prefer to live with at least one other rabbit that they are bonded with. (Remember to neuter them so as not to have too many rabbits).

Domestic cats as a species are flexible in their social behaviour. Some cats can live happily with other cats. This is especially likely for cats that have grown up together and/or that were socialized with other cats during the sensitive period for socialization (but there are no guarantees). On the other hand, as solitary hunters cats do not need other cats to survive, and some cats do not like to have to share their home with other cats.

Many dogs enjoy canine companionship. Photo: Bad Monkey Photography

Most pet dogs are sociable and like to have other canine friends. Luckily, if there are no other dogs in the home, it’s possible to arrange dog walks with other friendly dogs or visit doggy daycare or the dog park so your dog still gets to hang out with other canines.

However, if you have the kind of dog who – for whatever reason – does not like to hang out with other dogs, they should be kept separate. (This is especially the case if the dog is a risk to other dogs and will attack them).

So you need to consider the needs of the species as well as those of your individual pet.

Photo: Ase / Shutterstock

The Welfare of Cats, Dogs and Rabbits

The PAW report looks at the welfare of the UK’s dogs and cats in terms of the welfare needs and is engagingly presented if you want to take a look (see the link below).

One of the figures that caught my eye is that 12% of dog owners have never trained their dog, a percentage that has not changed much over the years of the PAW reports.

24% of dogs were left alone for 5 or more hours on weekdays. As a general guideline, it is recommended that dogs should not be left alone for more than 4 hours.

And although 80% of people thought their dog was the right weight, 40% did not know how much the dog weighed or what the body condition score was.

For cats it is even worse, with 65% not knowing how much the cat weighs or the body condition score.

And 77% of cat owners said they would like to change at least one of their cat’s behaviours. The most common were scratching furniture (27%) or carpets (22%). (Scratching is a normal behaviour for cats and it’s up to us to provide good scratching posts). As well, 17% reported the cat waking them up, and 17% said the cat begged for food.

Weight was also an issue for rabbits, with 77% of owners not knowing the rabbit’s weight or body condition score.

And companionship is also a major concern, because 54% of rabbits are kept as solitary animals. The PDSA report says “Living a solitary life will be seriously impacting on the physical health and mental wellbeing of our pet rabbits.”

A solitary life is bad for rabbits. Photo: Ostapenko / Shutterstock

Updating the Five Freedoms

The Five Freedoms have been tremendously helpful in providing a framework to improve animal welfare.

If we don’t provide them for our pets, they will be stressed and unhealthy. It is also important to note that many behaviour problems are, at least to some extent, a result of the animal’s welfare needs not being met.

More recently, a complementary approach to animal welfare called the Five Domains has been proposed by Prof. David Mellor. One of the things about this approach is that it emphasizes the need for positive experiences, not just minimizing negative experiences. You can read more about the Five Domains model here.

Whatever kind of pet we have, it’s important to think about how to provide for good welfare in terms of health, environment, diet, behaviour and companionship.

What do you think is the priority for improving people’s knowledge of what their pets need?

Further Reading

Five fun things to do to make your dog happy today and how to make the world better for dogs.
Five things to do for your cat today and how to make the world better for cats.


References

Farm Animal Welfare Council (2009) Farm Animal Welfare in Great Britain: Past, Present, and Future.
Mellor DJ (2016). Moving beyond the "Five Freedoms" by Updating the "Five Provisions" and Introducing Aligned "Animal Welfare Aims". Animals : an open access journal from MDPI, 6 (10) https://doi.org/10.3390/ani6100059
PDSA (2018) Paw Report. Available for download at https://www.pdsa.org.uk/media/4371/paw-2018-full-web-ready.pdf 

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Do dogs run faster for more treats or better quality treats?

Scientists find out which rewards dogs will run faster for, and the results explain why you need to use good treats in dog training.

Photo: Dora Zett / Shutterstock

Modern dog trainers use positive reinforcement to train dogs, and that reinforcement often takes the form of food (see the ultimate dog training tip to find out why).

When you want a dog to come when you call them, you want to use your best training treats as a reward.

But scientists have paid surprisingly little attention to what dogs consider worth working for – until now.

A recent paper by Dr. Stefanie Riemer et al, published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science, looks at the relative effectiveness of quality and quantity of reinforcement as measured by how fast dogs run to the bowl they can eat it from.

Pet dogs were trained to run along a walkway that was 20 metres long in order to obtain food. The type of food (quantity or quality) was shown by the containers that were visible to the dog from the start position.

The first study compared one piece of dry food to five pieces of dry food. This was signalled to the dog by the presence of one or five blue bowls containing the food.

But dogs did not run any faster for a greater amount of the dry food.

In the second study, the scientists compared a piece of sausage to a piece of dry food. The type of reinforcement available was shown by the food being in a black or a white bowl.

Dogs ran significantly faster to get the piece of sausage than the piece of dry food.

Interestingly, they still ran fast when the reinforcement was changed to dry food instead of sausage, perhaps because it was a novel item. But the scientists note the pet dogs may have had prior life experience of sometimes receiving no or lower value reinforcement, and this could also explain this result.

The next question on many dog trainers’ minds will be about the effects of one versus multiple pieces of sausage. However this was not tested, so remains a question for future research.

Prior to testing preference by running speed, the scientists did a more standard preference test to see how much time dogs spent looking at, sniffing or attempting to lick the different food items when they were inaccessible behind a wire mesh.  These results, contrary to the runway task, showed a preference for both quality and quantity.

This is a small study as only 19 pet dogs completed all parts of the experiment, so more research is needed. But it is really nice to see researchers paying attention to this kind of question.

The results show that the quality of treats makes a difference to dogs. If you want good results in training, it’s important to know what motivates the dog.

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Reference
Riemer, S., Ellis, S. L., Thompson, H., & Burman, O. H. (2018). Reinforcer effectiveness in dogs—The influence of quantity and quality. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 206:87-93. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2018.05.016 

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Can Synthetic Pheromones Help With Aggression in Multi-Cat Households?

Promising results from a pilot study of synthetic cat-appeasing pheromones (Feliway Multicat) for aggression between cats that live together.

Photo: Samarsky / Shutterstock

Cat owners know only too well that cats can be choosy. As solitary hunters, the domestic cat can do just fine alone and does not have to be friends with other members of the species. On the other hand, cats can live in social groups, especially in colonies of female cats and their offspring, when female cats will help care for each other’s young.

Many people have multiple pet cats and they aren’t always friends. It is obvious cats don’t get along if they fight. But there are also more subtle signs of cat aggression, such as when one cat blocks another cat’s access to a resource like the litter box. As well as bouts of aggression, when cats don’t get along they may hold urine for too long, pee outside the box, suffer feline idiopathic cystitis, over-eat or lose weight, or sometimes (if they have outdoors access) one of them may even leave home.

Resolving aggression between cats may involve reintroducing cats, changes to the layout of the home (such as multiple, separated resources), behavioral work such as counter-conditioning, and/or medication.

A study by veterinary behaviourist Dr. Theresa DePorter and colleagues, published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and  Surgery, investigates the effectiveness of a synthetic cat-appeasing pheromone in resolving cases of aggression in multi-cat households.

As the scientists write in the introduction to the paper,

“The wellbeing of millions of cats may be enhanced if cats got along with housemate cats.”

Although this is a pilot study, it is a double-blind randomized controlled trial with a placebo.

Pheromones are semiochemicals, that is, chemicals with meaning. Pheromones are very important to cats and some help maintain social cohesion.

The synthetic cat-appeasing pheromone used in the study is FELIWAY MultiCat which is made by Ceva, who funded the research. In Europe it is called Feliway Friends. It is a synthetic version of the pheromones that are produced by mother cats when the kittens are young, especially during the sensitive period for socialization in kittens, which is 2-7 weeks of age.

The synthetic pheromone is in a diffuser that is plugged into a socket. Therefore the placebo was also a plug-in and looked the same.

Photo: joyfuldesigns / Shutterstock

Forty-five people with 2-5 cats in the home and who reported aggression between cats were enrolled in the study. Three households did not complete the study and so the final sample was 17 households that received Feliway Multicat and 25 that received the placebo.

One week before the start of the treatment, participants attended a 90-minute training session with a board-certified veterinary behaviourist. The session included information and video to teach them how to recognize feline aggression and how to tell the difference between play and aggression. As well, participants were given information on counter-conditioning, advice on what to do if their cats were being aggressive, and told not to use punishment (e.g. spray bottles) or startle their cats. (For more on why you shouldn’t use spray bottles for cats, see this nice post from Julie Hecht).

Participants drew a plan of their house and the scientists decided the best place to plug in the two diffusers (either Feliway Multicat or placebo). The diffusers were used for 28 days during which cat owners filled out a daily diary and a weekly questionnaire about their cats’ behaviour.

Even before the start of the treatment, rates of reported aggression dropped, likely due to the education session. Twelve types of aggressive behaviour between cats were included in the questionnaire.

During the 28-day period of using the plug-ins, aggression decreased in both groups, but it decreased significantly more in the group using Feliway Multicat. During a two-week follow-up, aggressive behaviours remained low in the group that had used Feliway Multicat, but began to go up in the placebo group.

There was no difference between the two groups in terms of affiliate behaviours such as nose-touching, sleeping in the same room, or licking the head or neck of another cat. This category also included affiliative behaviours towards humans, such as whether all cats came to greet the person when they arrived home.

At the end of the study, participants were asked if their cats were getting along better. 84% of the people who had used Feliway Multicat said yes, compared to 64% of those who had the placebo.

47% of the cats in this study were declawed, a much higher proportion than the average in the US (24%). The scientists cite other, unpublished, research that suggests a link between declawing of cats and aggression between cats that live together. Research also shows declawed cats suffer pain and other adverse effects (Martell-Moran et al 2017; you can read more about it in this great post by Dr. Mikel Delgado).

Where I live (BC), declawing of cats is banned, but if you are somewhere this procedure is legal, you should be aware that it has many risks for your cat. The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association calls this surgery “unacceptable.”

But back to the pheromone study. It used owner observations and it is possible people missed some behavioural signs, even though they received training. Participants in the study were given information at the education session, but if owners simply use synthetic pheromones on their own without learning more about cat behaviour they may not see the same results. As well, it would be nice to see a longer follow-up period in future research.

This is the first time Feliway Multicat has been tested in a randomized controlled trial. For more on previous research on other synthetic pheromones for cats, see this list compiled by Dr. Mikel Delgado.

The scientists conclude,

“In this study, treatment with a proprietary cat-appeasing pheromone diffuser for 4 weeks showed a beneficial effect in the management of feline aggression in multi-cat households. During the study, when cat owners were educated by a board-certified veterinary behaviourist about feline behavior, provided instruction on handling aggressive events and discouraged from punishing cats (eg, squirt guns or other startle methods), the level of conflict began to decrease even prior to implementation of the treatment. Pheromones may be useful as a component of a complete behavior-modification program.”

While more research is needed, these are promising results that suggest Feliway Multicat may help as part of the treatment for aggression between cats living in the same home. The study is open access (link below).

If you have more than one cat, how well do your cats get on with each other?

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References
DePorter, T. L., Bledsoe, D. L., Beck, A., & Ollivier, E. (2018). Evaluation of the efficacy of an appeasing pheromone diffuser product vs placebo for management of feline aggression in multi-cat households: a pilot study. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098612X18774437
Martell-Moran, N. K., Solano, M., & Townsend, H. G. (2018). Pain and adverse behavior in declawed cats. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 20(4), 280-288. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098612X17705044

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Companion Animal Psychology News October 2018

The latest news including an evidence-based guide to pets, what it's like growing up with wolves, and anxiety in pets and us.

Some of my favourites from around the web this month

The Psychologist guide to … pets. I love these evidence-based tips on pets put together by Ella Rhodes.

“Fido” or “Freddie”? Why do some pet names become popular? A fun and interesting post from Prof. Hal Herzog, complete with a quiz to test how popular your dogs’ names are.

Do you want to know what the umwelt of a dog is? And what canine science experiments look like? The Scientist Podcast interviews Dr. Alexandra Horowitz. 

“Treating my cat for depression caused me to question the state of anxiety in animals and us.” Can a cat have an existential crisis? by Britt Peterson.

Secrets of getting pee and poop samples from Fear Free. A tricky thing that many pet owners have to do sooner or later… what to do next time you need to take a sample to the vet.

Caring for senior and geriatric cats by Pam Johnson-Bennett.

“What Rodríguez remembers of his time living wild is that it was “glorious”” The story of Marco Rodriguez, abandoned as a child and raised by wolves. Available as a podcast and text version. By Matthew Bremner.

“Most of the students have had enough of nature red in tooth and claw and many lament, "Look where that 'I'm behaving like an animal' excuse got me."” Inmates and art Connecting with animals helps soften them. Dr. Marc Bekoff reflects on 17 years of his Roots and Shoots humane education class at the Boulder County Jail.

What’s wrong with anti-bark collars? Sylvie Martin from Crosspaws Dogs explains.

Do dogs forget their people? Scientists Sarah-Elizabeth Byosiere, Stefano Ghirlanda, Rachelle Yankelevitz, Lynette Hart, Ruth Colwill, Nicholas Dodman and Clive Wynne answer the question at Gizmodo. By Daniel Kolitz.

Support Companion Animal Psychology

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A big thank you to everyone who has supported me so far. It is very much appreciated! And I am also grateful for the lovely notes you have sent.

Animal Book Club

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for October is The Dog: A Natural History by Adam Miklosi. It’s a beautifully-illustrated book about the evolution, anatomy, cognition and behavior of dogs.

For those who want to chat about animal books without the commitment to read and comment on a book every month, I started a new Facebook group called Animal Books. Come and share new releases, interviews with authors and your favourite books (fiction and nonfiction) about companion animals.

I've set up an Amazon page with a list of all the books from the Book Club, as well as some other pet-related items too.

Here at Companion Animal Psychology

I’m thrilled to have a piece about dogs in the special issue of The Psychologist magazine on The Psychologist’s Tree of Life. It’s a fascinating issue from start to finish. Look in particular for pieces on dogs by Dr. Julianne Kaminski and Prof. Clive Wynne, but many non-human species are included.I recommend scrolling down to the bottom of the page and downloading the pdf to read so you can see the beautiful artwork commissioned for the piece from Adam Batchelor.

I spoke to Animal Radio about what pets want from people (scroll down to episode 981).

Overweight and obesity in pets is at very high levels. At Psychology Today, I wrote about a study that reviewed the effects of interventions designed to change owner behaviour. It turns out that for overweight dogs, owner behaviour matters. 

Also at Psychology Today, I wrote about a pilot study that investigated whether you should pet your dog before an absence. (Note the study was only with dogs who don’t have separation-related issues). Dr. Marc Bekoff responded to my post and shared some of his data in should you say goodbye to your dog before you leave them?

Here at Companion Animal Psychology, Survey shows changes as dogs age (and how you can help your dog) looks at research on dogs across the lifespan. One of the most interesting findings is about the apparent effects of trauma on canine behaviour.

Five fun things to do to make your dog happy is, well, about fun things to do with your dog

Do dogs and cats get along looks at a survey of people who have both a dog and a cat. It seems the cat’s level of feeling comfortable with the dog is an important factor in their relationship.

And a short petting session improves wellbeing in shelter dogs looks at a study that set out to answer a simple question: Is a 15-minute session with a trained volunteer who will pet the dog (respecting the dog’s wishes) good for dogs?

I've been working very hard on edits to my book and I'll be honest, I'm looking forward to a break soon!

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A Better World for Dogs

It’s hard to believe, but this is the final image from the series about a better world for dogs and a better world for cats. Thank you to all the experts who shared their wonderful ideas!

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A Short Petting Session Improves Wellbeing in Shelter Dogs

For shelter dogs, spending 15 minutes with a volunteer who will pet them when they want is beneficial according to both physiological and behavioural measures.

Photo: ESB Basic / Shutterstock

Dogs in shelters may be deprived of human company. Can a short petting session help them feel better? A study published earlier this year by Dr. Ragen McGowan et. al. and published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science investigated the effects of petting from a stranger and found positive results.

The scientists set out to answer the question, “Does one 15-min petting session make a positive difference for shelter dogs?”

And the answer was yes.

The report concludes,

“As predicted, positive physiological and behavioral changes were evident in shelter dogs even after only a single 15-min petting session with an unfamiliar volunteer. A complete understanding of the human-animal bond from the dog’s perspective is still in its infancy, however this work contributes to the mounting evidence that humans play an important part in the emotional wellbeing of companion animals. As a result of this study it is clear that: “Yes, 15 min can make a difference” for many shelter dogs when that time includes close interaction with a person petting and speaking to them in a calm manner. “

55 shelter dogs took part in the study at a county animal shelter in Maryville, Missouri.

A handler took each dog individually to a small observation room where one of five volunteers – who had never been to the shelter before – was waiting to begin the 15 minute session. The volunteer either sat on a chair or on a blanket on the floor.

Whenever the dog approached the volunteer, they would pet the dog and speak nicely, taking into account the dog’s preferences e.g. if the dog seemed to be presenting particular areas to be petted.

The researchers took measures of salivary cortisol and heart rate, as well as coding the behaviours the dogs engaged in during sessions.

The dogs were divided into three groups based on the results. Highly engaged dogs spent more than three-quarters of the time interacting with the volunteer, moderately engaged dogs spent between half and three-quarters of the time, and indifferent dogs spent less than half the time engaged with the volunteer.

Comparing the end of the session to the beginning, dogs in all three groups had a reduced heart rate. As well, dogs that were highly or moderately engaged with the volunteer had an increase in heart rate variability.

Overall, the dogs spent less time soliciting contact from the volunteer and less time standing up at the end of the session compared to the beginning.

Salivary cortisol samples could only be taken from 32 of the dogs. Results showed no difference in levels before and after the session. However, since cortisol is a measure of arousal rather than stress, this is hard to interpret.

Overall, these results suggest the petting sessions were beneficial for the dogs.

Other research has also shown that shelter dogs like petting. The nice thing about the new study is that it shows just one 15-minute session with a volunteer the dog has never met before can make a difference.

Dogs were only selected for the study if they were healthy and known to be friendly. They had all been at the shelter for at least two weeks so they had had time to settle in.

It’s important to note the dogs were given a choice – if they did not approach the volunteer, they were not petted – and the volunteers were trained in how to pet the dogs.

While more research is needed, the finding that petting from someone the dog had never met before led to behavioural and physiological changes speaks to the value of contact with people for dogs’ emotional wellbeing.

Where does your dog prefer to be petted?

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You might also like: How to pet cats and dogs and great photos are important to dog adoption.

Reference
McGowan, R. T., Bolte, C., Barnett, H. R., Perez-Camargo, G., & Martin, F. (2018). Can you spare 15 min? The measurable positive impact of a 15-min petting session on shelter dog well-being. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 203, 42-54.

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Do Dogs and Cats Get Along? Ask the Cat!

Dogs and cats living together get along most of the time, but it’s the cat’s level of comfort with the dog that is the defining factor, according to research.

Photo: Plastique/Shutterstock

With 94.2 million pet cats and 89.7 million pet dogs in the US, it’s inevitable that some dogs and cats live together. While we don’t know how many households have both a dog and a cat, scientists Jessica Thomson, Dr. Sophie Hall and Prof. Daniel Mills (University of Lincoln) recently published a questionnaire study of how well people think their dog and cat get along.

The results show that in general, dogs and cats living in the same house are friendly towards each other – but it’s the experience of the cat that is most important in mediating this relationship.

Early introduction of the cat to the dog (preferably before the cat is 1 year old) helped them to have a good relationship, whereas the age of the dog at first introduction was not important. (This is different to an earlier study that found early age of introduction for both cats and dogs was beneficial). 

In fact the most important factor in a good canine-feline relationship was the cat being comfortable in the dog’s presence.

It also helped if the dog was happy to share their bed with the cat, although cats were generally not willing to share their bed (perhaps because cat beds are typically not big enough to also accommodate a dog).

Cats generally would not share their food with the dog or take toys to show the dog, but if they did it was a sign of a good relationship.

Cats and dogs also got along better if the cat lived indoors, perhaps because they got to spend more time together and learn about each other. But it’s important to remember they should not be forced to interact; instead they should be able to choose whether or not to hang out together.

The relationship between dogs and cats was generally not described as close. For example, it was quite rare for them to groom each other.

The scientists say that because cats have not been domesticated for as long as dogs, it is likely harder for them to be comfortable around other animals. But they also point out that dogs can be a real risk for cats, as dogs may try to eat them, whereas cats are unlikely to cause serious harm to a dog.

Although aggression was most often reported from the cat towards the dog, it was likely because the cat felt threatened.

748 people completed the survey. 20.5% of cats and 7.3% of dogs were said to be uncomfortable in the other’s presence at least once a week. 64.9% of cats and 85.8% of dogs were said to be rarely or never uncomfortable in the other’s presence.

The study relied on owners’ reports of their dog’s and cat’s behaviour and did not make any independent observations – something for future research, especially as people are not always very good at recognizing signs of stress in their pets.

The results suggest that if your cat and dog are not friends, you should put extra effort into helping your cat feel comfortable around the dog.

If you have a dog and cat, how well do they get on with each other?

If you love Companion Animal Psychology, you can support me on Ko-fi. Visit my Amazon store for a list of all book club titles and other suggestions.

You might also like:
How to pet cats and dogs
The sensitive period for socialization in puppies and kittens
How can I tell if my dog is afraid?

References
Number of pets in the United States.

Thomson, J. E., Hall, S. S., & Mills, D. S. (2018). Evaluation of the relationship between cats and dogs living in the same home. Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 27, 35-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2018.06.043

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Fellow Creatures: Another New Post

I have a new post at my Psychology Today blog, Fellow Creatures, about a pilot study that upturns some conventional wisdom on dogs.

Should you pet your dog before an absence? looks at a study that compared signs of stress when the dog is petted or ignored before an absence. (It's important to note the study is with dogs that do not have any separation-related issues).

Photo: Pexels/Pixabay

Survey Shows Changes as Dogs Age (and How You Can Help Your Dog)

A study of dogs across the adult lifespan has important lessons for owners of dogs of any age. They range from tooth-brushing, training, and helping dogs cope with traumatic events.

Photo: Bad Monkey Photography

As dogs get older, they undergo changes similar to those that happen to humans as they age. This means dogs may be a good model for human aging, but also that those of us with older dogs could use more information about how to help them age well. The Senior Family Dog Project is looking at cognitive aging in dogs by combining behavioural, genetic and neuroscientific approaches.

A new paper from the team, first-authored by Dr. Lisa Wallis and published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, looks at the demographics of dogs across the lifespan.

Perhaps the most poignant finding is that dogs in the oldest age group (over 12) know fewer commands, take part in either one or no dog training activities, and spend less than 30 minutes a day engaged in play or other activities with the owner. Of course, older dogs may no longer ‘need’ obedience training as they are likely well-adjusted to family life, but these results suggest people could do more to engage senior dogs in fun activities.

It’s not known why the oldest dogs know fewer commands, as it could be the dogs had previously had less training, had less training at the time (causing them to forget commands they previously knew), or memory issues.

Dogs in the oldest age group also had less than 30 minutes a day of off-leash activities, which may reflect changes in their need and interest in exercise.

Older dogs were more likely to be unhealthy, have joint problems, tooth problems, and sensory decline. Loss of hearing and/or vision was significantly greater in dogs over 12 years compared to the 10-12 year age group.

In the youngest age group (1-3 years), 49% of the dogs were described as healthy, falling to only 5% of dogs aged over 12 years.

Overweight and obesity in pet dogs

Being overweight or obese is linked to many health risks for pet dogs, including a shorter life span and a greater risk of diabetes mellitus, urinary incontinence, and osteoarthritis.

In this study, dogs aged 3-6 or 8-10 years were more likely to be rated as unhealthy and/or to have sensory problems if they were overweight or obese. Being underweight was not linked to being unhealthy.

As dogs got older, they were more likely to be overweight.

Do mixed breeds live longer than purebreds?

The oldest age group in the study contained more mixed breeds and fewer purebreds, although it’s important to remember this is cross-sectional data and did not follow dogs through the lifespan. For example this may mean mixed breeds live longer, but it is also possible it reflects sampling issues or trends in breed popularity over time.

Purebred dogs were said to be unhealthy at a younger age than mixed breed dogs, suggesting that (at least for this sample) mixed breed dogs are healthier.

The effects of trauma on canine behaviour

One of the most interesting results of this study relates to the role of trauma in shaping a dog’s behaviour. Dog owners were asked if their dog had ever experienced trauma (which the researchers called "trauma status"). They were also asked if they thought their dog's behaviour had changed following a traumatic event.

Dog owners were more likely to say the dog’s behaviour had been affected by trauma if the dog had experienced one or more traumatic events. This was especially the case if the dog had experienced two or more traumatic events.

Traumatic events included changes in owner, time spent at a shelter, being lost for more than a day, changes in the family (such as the birth of a child or people moving out), and a traumatic injury, long-term disease or surgery. 43% of the dogs had experienced at least one such event.

The scientists write,

“Indeed, two or more of such events experienced in the dog’s lifetime resulted in a significant increase in the likelihood of dogs being allocated a “trauma” status. Moreover, since having a “trauma” status was associated with an increased likelihood of health problems/sensory loss, our study contributes to the growing evidence that chronic stress can have negative effects on health and lifespan in the domestic dog. The stress caused by traumatic events results in compromised welfare, and therefore interventions to prevent or alleviate the consequences of trauma should be implemented to improve quality of life in pet dogs.”

Dogs that had experienced a traumatic event were more likely to be unhealthy.

It’s worth noting that moving house, becoming pregnant or being mated, spending more or less time alone, having a change in the dogs in the household, or being neutered, did not contribute towards this trauma status.

The Survey

The survey of Hungarian dog owners looked at 1,207 adult dogs across six age groups: 1-3 (early adulthood), 3-6 years, 6-8, 8-10, 10-12, and 12 and above. Depending on the breed/size, dogs become seniors between 6 and 10 years of age, as large dogs tend to have a lower lifespan.

34.5% of the dogs were mixed breed and the remainder were purebreds. The most common breeds in the study were Labrador Retrievers, Hungarian Viszla, Golden Retrievers, Yorkshire Terriers, Dachshunds, German Shepherds, Bichon Havanese, Border Collies and Beagles.

Although the sample is not representative, it does seem likely the results will apply to senior dogs quite broadly.

Overall, the mixed breed and purebred dogs had roughly the same average weight and height (important because size of dog is linked to longevity), but there was greater variation in the purebred group.

65% of dogs were said to be of normal weight, but since this is based on owner's ratings it is possible the rates of overweight and obesity are an underestimate, as found in other studies (Rohlf et al 2010).

It’s also worth noting that, unlike some other research, the neuter status of the dogs was not linked to health.

Implications for Dog Owners

This research has a number of important implications for dog owners.

One is to keep your dog to a healthy weight, because overweight and obesity cause health problems just as they do for humans. This includes adjusting the diet, as senior dogs need fewer calories and a different food composition.

And because health problems are more common in old dogs, it’s important to see your veterinarian to treat the problems and troubleshoot ways to help your dog be more comfortable (such as mobility aids).

Another implication for dogs of all ages is to do what you can to help them cope with stressful or traumatic situations. Changes in family composition cannot be helped, but even if this is a stressful time for the humans, they need to help the dog adjust too, for example by helping the dog prepare for the arrival of a new baby and being kind if the dog seems to be grieving for someone who has passed away. If your dog is fearful, see 8 tips to help fearful dogs feel safe.

To help avoid the dog being lost for more than a day, you can teach a great recall and ensure your dog always has up-to-date identification including a microchip.

If your dog has a traumatic medical issue such as major surgery or injury, make sure you speak to your veterinarian about what can be done to help your dog whilst recovering at home. The book No walks? No worries!: Maintaining wellbeing in dogs on restricted exercise by Sian Ryan and Helen Zulch has some great ideas for dogs who are unable to take walks e.g. because of recent surgery.

Earlier research found a history of lifelong positive reinforcement training protects dogs against cognitive decline as they age. It seems like a good idea to keep up such training as an enrichment activity throughout the dog’s life. If the dog is already perfectly well-behaved, you can always teach tricks or do other activities using positive reinforcement.

Regular tooth-brushing will help to reduce tooth issues that are more often found in senior dogs (and is also good for health).

Finally, continue to involve older dogs in walks, family life and fun activities.

Summary

This is an interesting study that tells us more not just about older dogs but also about the deleterious effects of trauma and stress.

The results show older dogs have less time spent training, less activities with the owner, and less off-leash time. They also show guidance is needed on how to care for senior dogs, as well as on helping dogs to stay a healthy weight.

Research by the team is ongoing, so we can look forward to more findings in due course.

If you happen to have what the Senior Family Dog Project calls a ‘Methusaleh dog’ – one who weighs over 20kg and is aged 16 years or more, or who is under 20kg in weight and 20 years old or more – they would be grateful for a sample of your dog’s DNA for their research. You can read more about it here.

The paper itself is open access if you want to read it in full, and the authors have also put up a blog post about their research. 



Reference
Wallis, L. J., Szabó, D., Erdélyi-Belle, B., & Kubinyi, E. (2018). Demographic change across the lifespan of pet dogs and their impact on health status. Frontiers in veterinary science, 5, 200. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2018.00200
Rohlf, V. I., Toukhsati, S., Coleman, G. J., & Bennett, P. C. (2010). Dog obesity: can dog caregivers'(owners') feeding and exercise intentions and behaviors be predicted from attitudes?. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 13(3), 213-236.  https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2010.483871

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Shock collars, Regulation, and Education on the Alternatives

Shock collars should be banned, according to a survey of the use of electronic collars to train dogs in France.

Photo: SebiTian/Shutterstock

Recently, I reported on a study by veterinary behaviourists in Europe that concluded by calling for a ban on all three types of electronic collar across Europe (remote-controlled, boundary, and bark-activated collars). Another paper by Dr. Sylvia Masson et al, published in the Journal of Veterinary Behaviour, investigates the use of shock collars in France, and some of the results are surprising.

For one thing, they show that even amongst people who use shock collars there is a lot of support for regulating them.

But they also show a sizeable minority – even amongst people who do not use shock collars – that say they are the most effective way to resolve behaviour issues. This shows a need to get the message out that positive reinforcement is an effective way to train dogs (see seven reasons to use reward-based training methods and literature review recommends reward-based training).

The effectiveness, as reported by the electronic collar users, was not particularly high (51.1% of those who used remote-controlled collars, and 25.5% who used bark-activated collars, said it had worked and they could stop using it). As well, users of remote-controlled collars and bark-activated collars reported more abnormal behaviours in their dog than those who did not use them.

The paper concludes,

“based on this survey, it appears that in a real-life setting, ECs’ [electronic collars] ability to modify behaviors is limited. Thus, and as expected, the risks associated with their use are increased. Consequently, EC should not be used in everyday life without regulation. 

However, answers in this questionnaire show that some owners still think that EC can solve behavioral issues better than any other existing method. Considering the high use revealed by our results, a huge communication work toward the public has to be done. In the current survey, 78% of questioned owners ask for a better regulation of ECs. This seems to be a much needed and achievable goal that would restrict the access to devices (e.g. through the internet).”

Most people who used a shock collar did so after trying 2 or fewer alternatives (75%) and without taking professional advice (71.8%). 12.7% of shock collar users did not try any alternative prior to using the collar.

The most common alternatives that were tried before using the shock collar were “group training in a club” and looking on the internet. The next most common alternatives included books, advice from a veterinarian, a private trainer, and ‘none’.

People’s use of shock collars was associated with having a bigger dog (more than 40kg), the dog not being spayed or neutered, and the dog being used for protection or hunting. It is not known if the dog's sexual status is linked to behaviour issues, and/or to the owner's different treatment of the dog. The authors note that some disciplines may use electronic collars by tradition, as those who did agility or obedience training were less likely to use them.

“Based on this survey, it appears that in a real-life setting, electronic collars' ability to modify behaviors is limited"

Electronic collars were more likely to be used on dogs less than 2 years old. As well, users of electronic collars were more likely to say their dog showed excitement and aggression.

There are some interesting differences between those who did not use electronic collars and those who did. People who did not use them were less likely to have tried group training in a club, and more likely to have read dog training books or used the internet.

95.2% of those who did not use electronic collars and 77.9% of those who did thought their use should be regulated. 60% of non-users and 14% of users thought there should be an outright ban on electronic collars.

According to the electronic collar users’ ratings, although a majority (58%) said they would recommend them, in fact they were not particularly effective. The bark-activated collars, which were more often used on small dogs (weighing less than 10kg), were the least effective and had the highest rate of reported injuries (burns from the collar) at almost 11%.

But boundary collars and remote-controlled collars also were not reported to work as well as might be expected. This suggests real-life training use is not as effective as when the collars are used by trained professionals in controlled settings.

Not surprisingly, the main reason people gave for using bark-activated collars was due to barking. Boundary fences were typically used because of lack of a physical fence, but an American study found dogs escape from electronic fences at a much higher rate than from a physical fence.

The most common reason given for using a remote-controlled shock collar was for recall (coming when called). However, it’s worth noting that an experimental study using professional trainers found that positive reinforcement is just as effective as shock collars for teaching recall, but that there are risks with the use of shock collars.

The survey asked 1251 dog owners in France about their use of electronic collars. It’s important to note this is not a representative sample, so the results may not reflect the beliefs of French people as a whole. In particular, those who completed the survey were more likely than the general population to have a pedigree rather than a mixed-breed dog, and more likely to have a dog that weighs more than 10kg.

The use of shock collars in this study is much higher (26%) than found by Blackwell et al in their study of shock collar use in the UK (3.3%). Since neither is a nationally representative sample we can’t draw conclusions about the relative use of electronic collars in each country (but note that the British government recently announced a ban on two of the three types of shock collars in England).

The paper concludes that bark-activated collars and remote-controlled shock collars should be banned. In this study, few people used boundary fences, but the authors note they could also be banned as physical fences and reward-based training methods are a good alternative.

This is an interesting study that shows substantial support for the regulation of shock collars in France. At the same time, it shows there is much work to be done to teach people how to effectively train dogs and deal with behaviour problems using reward-based methods.

For the full set of results, see the paper (link below). If you’re interested in the wider research on dog training methods, my dog training research resources page has a list of articles along with places where you can read about them.

Stay up to date and subscribe to Companion Animal Psychology.


Reference
Masson, S., Nigron, I., & Gaultier, E. (2018). Questionnaire Survey on The Use Of Different E-Collar Types in France in Everyday Life With A View To Providing Recommendations for Possible Future Regulations. Journal of Veterinary Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2018.05.004

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Can an "Ease of Care" Labeling Scheme Help Exotic Pets?

Could a standardized grading scheme that rates pets from “easy” to “extreme” improve the welfare of exotic pets?

A leopard gecko. Photo: Gaschwald / Shutterstock

Exotic pets face many welfare issues, according to a new paper in the Journal of Veterinary Behavior by Clifford Warwick et al. The paper suggests a standardized scheme for rating the difficulty of caring for exotic pets that it is hoped will make people think twice about keeping pets with hard-to-meet environmental needs.

What is an exotic pet?

Exotic pets are unusual pets. Essentially they are animals that are not native to a particular area, and are not domesticated (or only semi-domesticated).

Another definition of an exotic pet is anything that is not a cat or dog. That’s the approach taken by the Calgary Humane Society, for example.

Whichever definition we choose, it means there are many exotic pets in North America. For example, most of the fish that are kept as pets are not native to Canada or the USA, which means they are exotic species.

The same applies to small animals kept as pets, such as hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, hedgehogs, ferrets, and chinchillas. Common birds that are kept as exotic pets include canaries, lovebirds, and parrots. Ownership of reptiles is believed to be increasing, and common reptile and amphibian pets include lizards, frogs and snakes.

It is not clear how many households keep exotic animals as pets. In the United States in 2016 there were estimated to be 9.4 million reptiles kept as pets, 158 million fish, 20.3 million birds and 14 million small animals (according to the American Pet Products Association).

Although exact numbers are not known, globally it is estimated that for some types of exotic pet, up to 44% are animals that have been captured and taken from the wild. Some of them are then sold as ‘captive bred’.

What are the concerning issues with exotic pets?

The report identifies three main issues with the keeping of exotic pets.

In terms of animal welfare, the report says “many animals suffer at all points in the chain from point of capture/breeding to sales/housing.”

There are big issues to do with conservation, since many species are taken from the wild. Not only does this deplete the habitat of that species, it may have knock-on effects on other species in the area, since species are inter-connected in many ways. In addition, if exotic pets are released into the wild, they can become invasive.

Finally, there are public health issues due to the risks of infection from these pets (many of which carry salmonella, for example) and the risk of bites or scratches given they are not domesticated.

Welfare issues with exotic pets

The fact that many exotic pets are simply caught in the wild and then sold as pets is obviously a big concern. The report estimates that around the world there are more than 13 million species that are kept as pets. They say that a quick search of online pet sales in the US and UK found 550 species of reptile and more than 170 species of amphibian for sale. (You can read about animals being smuggled into Canada for the pet trade here).

For some species, even scientists do not know the needs of the animal, making it impossible to provide good welfare in captivity.

Another issue is that many species are described as easy to keep or suitable for beginners when this is not really the case. As well, some items for pets (such as tanks to keep them in) are sold as if they are suitable for particular species, when in fact they are too small to provide good welfare.

Poor information online and in other sources is another factor that makes it hard to care for these pets.

The scientists write,

“The prospects for exotic species in domestic environments without the relative benefits of professional management and facilities are highly concerning, and several studies demonstrate that poor husbandry is commonplace even for commonly traded and kept species.”

A real turtle vs a soft toy turtle

The paper illustrates some of the issues with exotic pets by comparing a pet turtle to a soft toy turtle.

The toy turtle has to meet certain standards so that it is not a hazard to children who play with it. For example, the eyes must be stitched in properly so they cannot be removed and swallowed, and it is made of washable, fire-resistant material. It does not have sharp edges that could injure a child. It has a label that conveys information about how it meets standards.

In contrast, the real live pet turtle does not come with any guarantees or standards. The person who buys it does not know how it was sourced (captive-bred or wild-caught). They are not necessarily given information on how to care for it, and for some turtles this information may not even be known to scientists. It is not washable and is a hazard in a number of ways, such as bacteria on it, its poop, and the ability to scratch and bite. The scientists say consumers' lack of knowledge of these issues raises questions about their ability to have "informed consent" when purchasing an exotic pet.

The proposed scheme for describing exotic pets

The paper says some European countries and parts of Canada have adopted or are considering the idea of a “positive list”, a list of the species that are appropriate to be kept as pets. The idea is that this would reduce the trade and keeping of species that are not on the list. Positive lists don't need updating as often as negative lists.

The paper suggests that a scheme called EMODE be used to describe exotic pets. EMODE groups animals as “easy”, “moderate”, “difficult” or “extreme” and is designed to be easy for ordinary people to understand.

EMODE assigns points to each animal according to the class it is in (e.g. amphibians, cats and dogs, fish), and according to yes/no answers to six questions. Five of the questions relate to the animal, while the sixth asks whether anyone in the household is immunocompromised (including children under 5 and seniors). EMODE is described as a standardized system for assessing the difficulty of keeping each animal.

Some of the authors of the paper were involved in the development of EMODE, althouh they do not receive any financial benefit from it as it is free to use.

EMODE is based on animal welfare (the Five Freedoms) and public health (the risk of disease/injury and the availability of professional advice on how to mitigate those risks) (Warwick et al 2014).

EMODE does not take into account whether or not an animal could potentially be an invasive species or what its conservation status is; it focusses only on pet-keeping.

Certain classes of animals are never considered “easy”, including birds and reptiles.

The “easy” category includes some (not all) invertebrates, fishes, domesticated animals and dogs and cats. The label “easy” does not mean no work is needed to care for the animal, as some responsibility is always required.

As examples from Warwick et al's earlier (2014) paper, goldfish are rated “easy” to “moderate”, budgerigars are considered “difficult” and African Grey Parrots “extreme”. Small mixed-breed dogs are considered “easy” to “moderate”, while a German Shepherd is considered “moderate” to “difficult”.

Summary and conclusion

The paper highlights many shocking issues with the welfare of exotic pets, from trade in wild-caught animals that may be endangered, to lack of knowledge of how to care for these animals, to poor information being available to the general public.

The EMODE scheme sounds like a good way to describe exotic pets that takes account of both animal welfare and the risks to the public of infection or injury due to the pet. The scheme would allow people to seek out pets that are suitable for their level of experience and expertise. And it could help with selecting animals for positive lists that can be kept as pets.

Although the scheme says it is standardized, this seems to underestimate the difficulty of assessing the quality of information on particular pets, or the risks of zoonoses/injuries. Nonetheless for common pets this is probably relatively easy to assess.

I am not sure how helpful the toy turtle vs pet turtle comparison is since people have different expectations of toys and pets.

The German Shepherd is an interesting example. If a German Shepherd is rated as moderate to difficult - basically 2 and 3 on a 4-point scale - then, to me, extreme (i.e. 4) does not seem adequate to describe some of the animals that basically should not be kept as a pet. It overlaps with a spider monkey which, according to Warwick et al 2014, is rated as difficult to extreme. It is illegal to keep spider monkeys as pets here in BC.

It remains to be seen whether prospective pet owners would use such a scheme. People who want to acquire certain kinds of pets, like reptiles, may not be put off by the fact none of them are considered "easy" pets. To be effective, the scheme would also need to be accompanied by good quality information about how to care for these animals.

The paper is open access so you can read it in full (reference below).

What do you think would improve the welfare of exotic pets?

P.S. The leopard gecko that illustrates this story is often marketed as a suitable beginner pet, but lizards have complex needs, including an environment with gradients of heat and ultraviolet light, as well as hiding places and branches and rocks for climbing. Read the RSPCA’s advice on how to care for leopard geckos. The RSPCA also has helpful care guides for other common exotic pets.


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References
Warwick, C., Steedman, C., Jessop, M., Arena, P., Pilny, A., & Nicholas, E. (2018). Exotic pet suitability: understanding some problems and utilizing a labeling system to aid animal welfare, environment, and consumer protection. Journal of Veterinary Behavior.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2018.03.015
Warwick, C., Steedman, C., Jessop, M., Toland, E., & Lindley, S. (2014). Assigning degrees of ease or difficulty for pet animal maintenance: the EMODE system concept. Journal of agricultural and environmental ethics, 27(1), 87-101. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10806-013-9455-x (also open access)

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