Improving canine welfare in commercial breeding (CB) operations: Evaluating rehoming candidates

Stella, Judith L.; Shreyer, Traci; Ha, James C.; Croney, Candace

doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2019.104861

Cited by 19 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…As the cone represented a novel, motionless object to which this population of dogs had never been exposed, these findings may suggest that the dogs in our sample may not have been adequately exposed to enough novel objects during their lives in the kennels to have been unafraid of the traffic cone. This finding has welfare implications as dogs that struggle to cope when presented with a motionless object, such as a plastic cone, are also likely to struggle when exposed to an unfamiliar household once re-homed, thus potentially resulting in a stressful transition [ 11 ]. It could be argued that the presentation of a novel object is, by design, fear-inducing and that any dog may react fearfully to such an exposure, even if well-socialized, so conclusions about lack of socialization should be drawn with caution.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The first stimulus–response test conducted was a three-step stranger approach in which the tester: (1) opened the pen door with a sideways orientation and without making direct eye contact with the focal dog, (2) offered a treat to the dog directly from her hand, always maintaining a sideways orientation, and (3) offered a second treat from one hand while reaching to gently touch the dog with the other hand. Finally, the tester stepped back from the pen and closed the gate (adapted from [ 11 ]). The second response test consisted of placing a plastic orange traffic cone into the pen with the dog and locking the pen gate.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous research on the welfare of dogs presumably from CBKs conducted using data originating from dog owner reports [ 9 ] has lacked empirical evidence from direct observations. However, with advances in the development of dog welfare assessment tools and increased direct access to commercial dog breeding premises [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ], researchers are beginning to better understand the behavior and health status of this population and how to assess their overall welfare in a more holistic way. It is important for researchers, breeding facility operators, and inspectors to have access to highly functional, validated, and easy to use tools designed to measure canine welfare in the field.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is critical because dogs that present major behavioral problems once rehomed may be at high risk of abandonment, surrender to a shelter or euthanasia [ 6 ]. Stella and colleagues [ 11 ] suggest that the assumption that all retired dogs from CBK are equally good candidates for rehoming might significantly compromise the safety and welfare of those more fearful individuals. The authors advised that, for these dogs, there should be a greater degree of socialization in place to help prepare them for such transitions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Socialization in Commercial Breeding Kennels: The Use of Novel Stimuli to Measure Social and Non-Social Fear in Dogs

Pritchett

Barnard

Croney

2021

Animals

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Understanding the behavioral welfare of dogs in commercial breeding kennels (CBKs) is important for improving breeders’ management practices as well as dog welfare. In the current study, breeding dogs from CBKs were exposed to novel stimuli to evaluate their behavioral responses, with emphasis on indicators of fear. Subjects were presented with a standard stranger-approach test, a traffic cone, and a realistic dog statue. Sixty dogs were exposed to the three stimuli and behavioral responses were scored using an ethogram developed for this study. Dogs spent significantly more time investigating the environment, staying further away from the stimulus, and they took longer to approach and investigate when presented with the cone than with the dog statue or stranger (p < 0.01). These findings suggest that the cone elicited more fear-related behaviors than the dog statue and stranger. Given these results, in addition to socializing their dogs to unfamiliar people and other dogs within their kennels, commercial breeders should be encouraged to increase the exposure of their dogs to more diverse novel stimuli to reduce non-social fear and support the welfare of dogs while they reside in the kennel and when they transition to new homes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Socialization in Commercial Breeding Kennels: The Use of Novel Stimuli to Measure Social and Non-Social Fear in Dogs

Pritchett

Barnard

Croney

2021

Animals

Self Cite

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“…The FitBark 2 dog activity monitor (referred to herein as Fitbark; FitBark Inc., Kansas City, MO, USA) which is a 3-axis accelerometer, is affordable, user-friendly, and easily accessible. However, to our knowledge, although they have been used to monitor dog activity in published studies [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ], no peer-reviewed studies have externally evaluated FitBark criterion validity. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate FitBark criterion validity by correlating FitBark activity data to dog physical activity, measured via step count.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of the FitBark Activity Monitor for Measuring Physical Activity in Dogs

Colpoys

DeCock

2021

Animals

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Accelerometers track changes in physical activity which can indicate health and welfare concerns in dogs. The FitBark 2 (FitBark) is an accelerometer for use with dogs; however, no studies have externally validated this tool. The objective of this study was to evaluate FitBark criterion validity by correlating FitBark activity data to dog step count. Dogs (n = 26) were fitted with a collar-mounted FitBark and individually recorded for 30 min using a three-phase approach: (1) off-leash room explore; (2) human–dog interaction; and (3) on-leash walk. Video analysis was used to count the number of times the front right paw touched the ground (step count). Dog step count and FitBark activity were moderately correlated across all phases (r = 0.65, p < 0.001). High correlations between step count and FitBark activity were observed during phases 1 (r = 0.795, p < 0.001) and 2 (r = 0.758, p < 0.001), and a low correlation was observed during phase 3 (r = 0.498, p < 0.001). In conclusion, the FitBark is a valid tool for tracking physical activity in off-leash dogs; however, more work should be done to identify the best method of tracking on-leash activity.

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A dog's life: Early life histories influence methylation of glucocorticoid (NR3C1) and oxytocin (OXTR) receptor genes, cortisol levels, and attachment styles

Awalt,

Boghean,

Klinkebiel

et al. 2024

Developmental Psychobiology

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Early life deprivation and stress can contribute to life‐long, problematic consequences, including epigenetic variations related to behavior and health. Domestic dogs share human environments and social–cognitive traits, making them a promising comparative model to examine developmental plasticity. We examined 47 owner–dog dyads, including dogs rescued from abusive or neglectful environments, and matched control dogs for changes in DNA methylation of glucocorticoid (NR3C1) and oxytocin (OXTR) receptor genes previously shown to be affected by early life stress in other species including humans. We used an attachment paradigm, which included a separation event to examine cortisol levels and owner–dog attachment styles. Overall, dogs with adverse histories had different NR3C1 methylation patterns as a function of age and less OXTR methylation than comparison dogs. Dogs with adverse histories did not differ in their cortisol change from baseline to poststressor from comparison dogs, but the change in cortisol was associated with NR3C1 methylation. In addition, dogs with a history of early life stress had more insecure attachment styles; for every unit increase of OXTR methylation, the odds increased for insecure attachment style. This study demonstrates that adverse life histories lead to methylation differences, resulting in the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis's dysregulation and differences in behavioral phenotypes.

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Improving canine welfare in commercial breeding (CB) operations: Evaluating rehoming candidates

Cited by 19 publications

References 33 publications

Socialization in Commercial Breeding Kennels: The Use of Novel Stimuli to Measure Social and Non-Social Fear in Dogs

Socialization in Commercial Breeding Kennels: The Use of Novel Stimuli to Measure Social and Non-Social Fear in Dogs

Evaluation of the FitBark Activity Monitor for Measuring Physical Activity in Dogs

A dog's life: Early life histories influence methylation of glucocorticoid (NR3C1) and oxytocin (OXTR) receptor genes, cortisol levels, and attachment styles

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