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This study explored possible identification of Perpetration-induced Traumatic Stress (PITS) in workers whose occupations required euthanizing nonhuman animals and determining whether event or person-related factors influenced symptoms. The sample included 148 animal workers: veterinarians, veterinary nurses, and research and animal shelter staff. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) assessed traumatic stress. Experimenters constructed additional scales measuring satisfaction with social support, participation in various types of training, and concern over animal death. More than 70% of participants reported affinity toward animals had strongly influenced their occupation selection. Half the sample perceived animal death--particularly euthanasia--as one of the least desirable jobs. Of the sample, 11% reported experiencing moderate levels of traumatic symptoms. The study found lower levels of euthanasia-related stress were associated with increased satisfaction with social support and length of time working with animals. Those who reported high levels of concern about animal death reported higher levels of euthanasia-related stress. The study found occupational context was not associated with different levels of euthanasia-related stress symptoms--even though reasons for administering euthanasia differed significantly between occupations.

Dog obesity is a common nutritional disorder affecting up to 40% of the companion animal (pet) dog population in Australia and other developed nations. A clear understanding of factors determining relevant caregiver (owner) behaviors underpins effective treatment for this disorder. The theory of planned behavior can be used to understand factors contributing to human behavior. This article describes research informed by this theory. The research examined relationships between owners' behavioral beliefs and barriers, normative beliefs and perceptions of control, owners' feeding and exercise behaviors toward their dogs, and the body condition scores (BCSs) of dogs. The study recruited a sample of 182 dog and owner dyads. The researcher independently assessed BCSs. Owners completed a questionnaire measuring relevant feeding and exercise beliefs and behaviors. This revealed significant correlations between many psychological variables and BCSs and between psychological variables and specific owner behaviors: for example, the relationship of low levels of intentions to feed appropriately to ambivalent beliefs toward feeding appropriately and low perceived control. Careful consideration of the specific variables identified will permit the development of more effective interventions.

Various dog management behaviors must be performed by owners to promote both the welfare of dogs and community health, safety, and amenity. While most Australian dog owners are compliant with practices known to characterize responsible dog ownership, even responsible owners sometimes fail to act responsibly. In addition, there remains a minority of owners who, for unknown reasons, do not comply with any recommended practices. The aim of this study was to use the results of an online survey comprising 1016 dog owners to investigate relationships between demographic, attitudinal, dog-owner relationship variables, and responsible dog ownership behaviors. These behaviors included confinement, registration, microchipping, desexing, participation in formal obedience training, and regular socialization practices. Compliance was generally high in this self-selected sample, but it was not unanimous, ranging from 98% for confinement of dogs to 64.3% for attendance at obedience classes. A series of sequential logistic regression analyses revealed that management behaviors could be predicted from attitudinal and dog-owner relationship variables independently of demographic information. The influence of normative expectations was a recurrent predictor of owners' compliance with many of the management behaviors. This has important implications. Educational campaigns to promote specific practices amongst otherwise responsible dog owners are most likely to be effective if these specific attitudes are addressed.

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