Attitudes and Beliefs of a Sample of Australian Dog and Cat Owners towards Pet Confinement.

Animals (Basel). March 2023;13(6):.

Jacquie Rand¹, Zohre Ahmadabadi², Jade Norris³, Michael Franklin⁴

¹ School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343, Australia.; ² Australian Pet Welfare Foundation, Kenmore, QLD 4069, Australia.; ³ Australian Pet Welfare Foundation, Kenmore, QLD 4069, Australia.; ⁴ School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343, Australia.

Abstract

Most cats and dogs entering Australian animal shelters and municipal facilities are classed as strays, typically from low socio-economic areas. Contemporary practices increasingly focus on proactively reducing the number of stray animals, which requires further understanding of factors associated with straying animals, including pet confinement. Australian cat and dog owners (n = 2103) were surveyed to investigate attitudes towards four types of pet confinement and how these were influenced by social norms, demographics and concerns about pet quality of life and potential wildlife predation. Dog owners showed the strongest support for confining dogs to the owners' property whenever unsupervised (98% agreement) and less support for confining dogs inside the house at night (54% agreement), and only 23% believed dogs had a negative impact on wildlife. Cat owners showed the strongest support for confining cats inside the house at night (89% agreement). Cat owners' non-supportive attitudes towards cat confinement were partly because of higher concern for cat quality of life and lower concern about their cats' predation behaviours, compared to non-cat owners. The findings provide valuable information to inform more effective strategies to reduce stray animals which would reduce shelter admissions, euthanasia, costs, nuisance issues, potential wildlife predation and negative mental health impacts of euthanasia on staff. Strategies to reduce strays include assisting low-income pet owners to install effective fencing and programs to increase identification. Informing cat owners about bedtime feeding is recommended to assist with night containment, and providing high-intensity free sterilization of owned and semi-owned cats targeted to areas of high cat impoundments is also recommended.

Keywords

animal shelter; confinement; containment; mental health; pet cat; pet dog; semi-owned cat; sterilization; stray; wildlife;

Article Tools:

Medline

Email to me

Archives Highlights:

Case Series: Computed Tomography Features of Extraskeletal Osteosarcoma in Six Dogs.
Although the presence of intralesional mineralization is not a pathognomonic finding, it was consistently identified in the present case series. Therefore, exOSA should be considered in the differential diagnosis when mineralization occurs in a mass unrelated to osseous structures.

Indications for Radiation Therapy in Veterinary Medicine
This article highlights some of the essential elements for clinical decision making in veterinary radiation oncology, with case examples to give general practitioners a better understanding of what types of cases may be appropriate for radiation therapy.

The Prevalence and Diagnosis of Feline Heartworm Infection
Visualization of supposed worm structures on echocardiography, in conjunction with a positive antigen test result, is as close to a definitive antemortem confirmation of adult heartworm infection as can be achieved.

Recovery of ambulation in small, nonbrachycephalic dogs after conservative management of acute thoracolumbar disk extrusion.
Forty-nine of fifty-one (96%) of deep pain-positive and 10/21 (48%) of deep pain-negative dogs recovered ambulation within the 12-week period. The median time to ambulation was 11 and 25 days for deep pain-positive and -negative dogs, respectively. Reduction in spinal cord compression varied among individuals from minimal to complete and apparently was unrelated to the recovery of ambulation.

The relationship between radiographic disc calcification score and FGF4L2 genotype in dachshunds.
Most dachshunds with 1 FGF4L2 copy have radiographic disc calcification scores that are associated with substantially lower risk of symptomatic disc disease. Radiographic disc calcification scores are similar in dachshunds with 0 and 1 FGF4L2 copies. Given the high allele frequency of FGF4L2, breeding to produce progeny with 1 FGF4L2 copy is expected to be a more achievable short-term goal for dachshund spinal health breeding programs than breeding for 0 copies. It is recommended that both K-n and FGF4L2 genotype status be considered when choosing dachshund breeding stock.