Animal Behavior for Shelter Veterinarians and Staff

Description

Animal Behavior for Shelter Veterinarians and Staff presents and evaluates the available research and programs that address both animal and human behaviors associated with the intake, management and rehoming of dog and cats.

• Introductions to dog and cat behavior relevant to any animal professional
• Reviews behavioral reasons for the relinquishment of dogs and cats
• Describes intake and assessment protocol, shelter design, training and enrichment programs that reduce stress and enhance behavioral well-being
• Concepts to improve the adoption process and support the human-animal bond post-adoption

Contents

List of contributors
Acknowledgments

Introduction 1

Section 1: Pets in the community

1 Introduction to dog behavior 5
Julie Hecht and Alexandra Horowitz

2 Introduction to cat behavior 31
Stephen Zawistowski

3 Behavior risks for relinquishment 46
Heather Mohan ]Gibbons and Emily Weiss

4 The relationship between physiology and behavior in dogs and cats 63
Valarie V. Tynes, Leslie Sinn, and Colleen S. Koch

5 Behavioral ecology of free ]roaming/community cats 102
Margaret R. Slater

Section 2: Dogs in the shelter

6 Intake and assessment 131
Amy R. Marder

7 Housing, husbandry, and behavior of dogs in animal shelters 145
Lila Miller and Stephen Zawistowski

8 C anine enrichment 160
Alexandra Moesta, Sandra McCune, Lesley Deacon, and Katherine A. Kruger

9 Training and behavior modification for the shelter 172
Pamela J. Reid and Kristen Collins

Section 3: Cats in the shelter

10 Feline intake and assessment 191
Stephanie Janeczko

11 Feline housing 218
Sandra Newbury

12 Environmental and behavioral enrichment for cats 234
Katherine Miller and Katie Watts

13 Training and behavior modification for shelter cats 250
Kelley Bollen

Section 4: From shelter to homes

14 The adoption process: The interface with the human animal 269
Bert Troughton

15 Safety nets and support for pets at risk of entering the sheltering system 286
Emily Weiss

16 Adopter support: Using postadoption programs to maximize adoption success 292
Linda M. Reider

17 Lost and found 358
Linda K. Lord

Appendix 1 Canine body language 366
Appendix 2 Feline body language 371
Appendix 3 Five freedoms for animal welfare 375

Index 376

Authors

Emily Weiss, PhD, CAAB is Vice President of Shelter Research and Development for The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. She has been involved in shelter behavior for over 25 years. She has published numerous peer reviewed manuscripts as well as book chapters, and serves on advisory boards and committees of national shelter programs.

Heather Mohan-Gibbons, MS, RVT, ACAAB is the Director of Research and Applied Behavior for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Her current work focuses on improving the lives of animals and reducing their risks in communities. For the past twenty years, she worked professionally with exotic and domestic animals in veterinary clinics, universities, federal and state governments, animal shelters, and her own animal behavior business. She has lectured extensively on animal behavior and has published several peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters.

Stephen Zawistowski, PhD, CAAB is Science Advisor of The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He is a certified applied animal behaviorist and chaired the Animal Behavior Society’s Board of Professional Certification from 1998-2007. He co-edited Animal Shelter Medicine (with Lila Miller, 2004) and the second edition in 2013.