Applied Animal Behaviour Science最新文献

{"title":"Behavioral effects of floor pens as environmental enrichment for laboratory rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus)","authors":"Vitor B. Vilardo ,&nbsp;Mônica S.F. Pinto ,&nbsp;Ana M.P.T. de Carvalho e Silva ,&nbsp;Ricardo T. Santori","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106629","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106629","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Laboratory animals are indispensable for science, particularly in biomedical research. Their welfare must meet their physical, social and physiological needs. Ethological evaluations are crucial for identifying and correcting abnormal behaviors caused by captivity, often through tools like environmental enrichment (EE). This study evaluated the behavioral effects of implementing floor pens as EE for individually caged laboratory rabbits. A single observer analyzed the behavior of 24 male adult rabbits inside the cages (48 ×80 x 60 cm) before the EE application through all-sample observations over two months. After, the test group (<em>n</em> = 15) was introduced to large floor pens (120 ×180 cm; no ceiling) once a week for two months, with 60 s all-sample observations every 10 minutes. The control group (<em>n</em> = 9) was not introduced to the EE. After this period, all animals were observed once again inside the cages, in order to compare behavioral frequencies before and after the EE application using appropriate statistical tests. The test group showed increased inactivity (31.1 <em>vs.</em> 55.4 %; Student's t-test, <em>t</em> = - 9.34, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.001) and a significant decrease in negative behaviors (13.5 <em>vs.</em> &lt;5 %; Wilcoxon test, <em>V</em> = 119, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.001) after the EE ap<em>p</em>lication. Both behavioral categories frequencies aligned more closely to values reported in other related studies. Inside the floor pens, rabbits expressed locomotory, exploratory and positive behaviors for a great portion of time (more than 80 % of total time). These findings highlight the effectiveness of implementing floor pens as EE in reducing negative behaviors, increasing daytime inactivity, and promoting exploration and positive welfare of laboratory rabbits.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106629"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143828971","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of a dog owner caregiving style scale (Lincoln Owner Caregiving Questionnaire, LOCQ) and its relationship with behaviour problems in dogs","authors":"Luciana Santos de Assis ,&nbsp;Barbara Georgetti ,&nbsp;Oliver Burman ,&nbsp;Thomas W. Pike ,&nbsp;Daniel Simon Mills","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106628","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106628","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is increasing recognition that a dog’s relationship with its owner is a form of attachment bond with similarities to the human infant-carer bond. However, it seems less recognised that infant attachment style is typically a response to parental caregiving style, i.e., the style of caregiving by the dog’s owner may play an important role in the development of the attachment style of a dog. We therefore aimed to develop a reliable owner-response-based instrument to assess behaviour directed towards their dogs, focused on different ‘parental’ caregiving styles which give rise to four forms of attachment in the child (Secure, Ambivalent, Avoidant and Disorganised), and compare the relationship between these styles and behaviour problems in dogs. A questionnaire with 40 items (7-point Likert scale) based on the four styles of caregiving was made available online where dog owners were asked to show how much they agreed with each item and report if their dogs had behaviour problems. A total of 982 participants answered the questionnaire and Principal component analysis and other validation methods were conducted. Owners whose dogs were not reported having any behaviour problem were compared with those who reported different behaviour problems in their dogs by Multinomial Generalised Linear Model. Results showed good validity (item reliability, face and content validity, and convergent and discriminant validity) for the new caregiving questionnaire for dog owners (Lincoln Owner Caregiving Questionnaire, LOCQ) which is composed by three Caregiving style dimensions: Ambivalent, Avoidant and Disorganised. Additionally, it was found that having a high score in the Disorganised and/or Avoidant caregiving styles significantly predicted the presence of some problem behaviours in a dog. Specifically, compared to owners of dogs without behaviour problems, owners with high scores for the Disorganised caregiving style predicted dogs with separation related problems or with more than one behaviour problem, owners with high Avoidant caregiving style scores predicted dogs with Fear, and owners with high scores for both Disorganised and Avoidant caregiving styles predicted dogs with Aggressivity problems. Hence, we have developed a reliable tool for evaluating dog owner caregiving style based on Attachment theory and showed its relationship with problem behaviour. Although causal relationships cannot be inferred, these results will be highly valuable when evaluating and developing treatment for behaviour problems in dogs, and to improve the welfare of dogs and their owners.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"287 ","pages":"Article 106628"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143864621","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessment of the behavior and suitability of primitive horse breeds for hippotherapy using the ‘Hippotest’ empirical test scale","authors":"Bogusława Długosz ,&nbsp;Kamila Duda ,&nbsp;Barbara Chrapek ,&nbsp;Pete Holmes ,&nbsp;Edyta A. Bauer","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106622","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106622","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Hippotherapy is a method of physical rehabilitation used to support many different human diseases and conditions with the help of horses. The appropriate selection of a horse as a co-therapist is a key factor in therapy with a patient. Horses of a wide range of different breeds and ages are typically selected for this type of rehabilitation. The study aimed to compare the behavior and reactions of horses of two primitive breeds that are not typically used in Hippotherapy outside of Poland: Hucul (hc) and Polish konik (kn), and determine their mental and physical predispositions to work in hippotherapy using an empirical test scale. Research observations following the Hippotest protocol were conducted on 20 horses, from two different equestrian centers. The research sample consisted of 9 geldings and 11 mares. The mean age of the horses in the sample was ± 7 years old. The horses’ behavior and reactions were observed using the eight trials in the Hippotest protocol. The behavioral assessment results based on the Hippotest’s empirical data were used in the statistical analysis of the Student’s <em>t</em>-test for one sample. Both breeds appeared to show they were suitable for hippotherapy work, while Hucul horses performed better (<em>p</em> &gt; 0.05) than Polish koniks. The one of the test involving, the assessment of lunge movement showed statistical significance (<em>p</em> &gt; 0.04) only for Hucul horses. The obtained results suggest that, regardless of their age, horses of these two primitive breeds show high predispositions to work in hippotherapy in terms of their behavior.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106622"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143808785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"IMTFF-Networks: A deep learning model for cattle behavior classification integrating multimodal time-frequency features","authors":"Xinglin Ni ,&nbsp;Zhenjie Hou ,&nbsp;En Lin ,&nbsp;Xing Li ,&nbsp;Jiuzhen Liang ,&nbsp;Xinwen Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106627","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106627","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In modern livestock farming, understanding cattle behavior patterns is crucial for improving their health and production efficiency. For example, behaviors such as rumination (chewing food) and eating not only affect their health but also directly influence farm economic efficiency and food safety. However, these behaviors exhibit complex dynamic characteristics, showing significant nonlinearity and temporal dependence, which presents challenges in representing behavioral features for accurately capturing long-term dependencies and nonlinear relationships, thereby limiting classification accuracy. To address these challenges, we propose a deep learning model for cattle behavior classification Integrating Multimodal Time-Frequency Features (IMTFF-Networks). Compared to traditional deep learning models such as Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) or Temporal Convolutional Networks (TCN), IMTFF-Networks can simultaneously capture both time-domain and frequency-domain features, overcoming the limitations of relying solely on time-domain or frequency-domain features when processing complex behavior patterns. IMTFF-Networks comprises modules for multimodal time-frequency fusion of sensor signals and multi-scale time-frequency feature analysis. The multimodal time-frequency fusion module integrates time-frequency features through Feature Mode Decomposition (FMD) and frequency domain processing, comprehensively capturing the dynamic characteristics of behavioral signals, such as frequency components and temporal patterns, thereby enhancing the accuracy and robustness of behavior recognition. The multi-scale time-frequency feature analysis module employs multi-scale temporal processing and attention mechanisms to capture long-term dependencies and complex nonlinear relationships among features across different time scales. The experiments were conducted using 3460 hours of behavioral data from 18 Limousin crossbred steer, encompassing rumination, eating, and other behavioral categories. The results demonstrate that IMTFF-Networks significantly outperforms methods relying solely on single time-domain or frequency-domain features in cattle behavior classification tasks. Specifically, IMTFF-Networks achieved an accuracy of 86.42 %, a balanced accuracy of 84.78 %, precision of 87.53 %, recall of 86.42 %, and F1 score of 86.64 % on the test set. This study not only validates the effectiveness of IMTFF-Networks in processing complex temporal data but also provides important references for future research in animal behavior monitoring.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106627"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143791366","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparison of behavioural indicators of acute pain and stress during and after three methods of handling and restraint for pre-weaned beef calves","authors":"Lindsey Arkangel,&nbsp;M. Claire Windeyer,&nbsp;Christy Goldhawk,&nbsp;Edmond Pajor","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106623","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106623","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Pre-weaned beef calves in western Canada are processed at approximately 6–12 weeks of age, when they are individually handled and restrained to conduct various husbandry procedures. Best practice recommendations for safeguarding animal welfare during husbandry procedures suggest using calm, quiet handling techniques and proper restraint, but little is known about methods of “proper restraint”. The most common methods for handling and restraining calves in western Canada are roping and wrestling (RW), roping and Nord fork (RNF), and using a tilt table (TT). Thus, the objective was to compare the effects of these 3 methods on behavioural indicators of pain and stress responses under industry relevant conditions. A total of 117 beef bull calves were assigned to 3 groups (RW, RNF, or TT), consisting of 39 bull calves each (30 processed calves, 9 control calves). Control calves were handled and restrained according to their assigned group but did not undergo any processing procedures. Processing included ear tagging, vaccinations, growth implant in the ear, surgical castration, record keeping, and oral analgesic administration. Video recordings were used to quantify duration of handling and restraint, and behaviours associated with active stress or pain responses. Duration of handling and restraint was longest for TT calves. Handling difficulty was not related to handling method. Vocalization rate was highest for RNF calves during processing by approximately 6–10 counts/min over TT and RW, respectively (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05) and struggling rate was higher for TT calves by approximately 2–3 counts per minute vs RW and RNF, respectively (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Upon release, RNF calves had a higher occurrence of running upon release compared to the other groups (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). After processing, foot stomping rate differed among groups and was highest for RNF calves, followed by RW calves, then TT calves (RNF: 1.9 [2.3]; RW: 1.0 [0.9]; TT: 0.5 [0.5]; <em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). No injuries were observed in any calves. Comparison of multiple behavioural indicators of active coping with pain and stress between the handling methods did not indicate any individual method was clearly preferable or detrimental method for animal welfare. The variation in individual behaviours, such as struggling during restraint and processing or foot stomping after, supports further investigation into specific welfare considerations of each handling method.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106623"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143816420","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Abundance of human-made food contribute to higher tolerance of human approaches in black-headed gulls","authors":"Yuran Liu,&nbsp;Yidong Wei,&nbsp;Wei Liang","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106626","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106626","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Food resources are key drivers of changes in animal behavior. The intentional or unintentional feeding relationships formed between humans and wildlife can be understood as animals discovering new foraging methods in artificial environments, leading to behavioral changes. This study focuses on the black-headed gull (<em>Chroicocephalus ridibundus</em>) to examine avian behavioral responses to human activities. We measured the flight initiation distance (FID) of black-headed gulls in three different sites (beach, shrimp ponds, and wharf) in Haizhou Bay, Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, China. The results showed that black-headed gulls in the wharf exhibited significantly shorter FIDs, suggesting a higher tolerance of human proximity. This tolerance is likely due to the incidental accumulation of oyster (family Ostreidae) shells by fishermen, which creates an association between humans and food resources, reducing their wariness of humans. In contrast, black-headed gulls in beach and shrimp pond, where such \"quasi-feeding\" phenomena are absent, display longer FIDs, indicating a higher level of vigilance toward humans. This study further emphasizes that research on animal adaptability in the context of urbanization should be conducted at smaller geographical scales. Understanding the behavioral responses of birds to human activities can help develop scientific and rational conservation measures and promote harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106626"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143784015","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Medical training in dairy heifers – A pilot study","authors":"Alice de Boyer des Roches ,&nbsp;Emeline Dumoulin ,&nbsp;Elodie Roux ,&nbsp;Jeanne Guinotte ,&nbsp;Valentin Brunet ,&nbsp;Pauline Otz","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106624","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106624","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Training is used in various species to reduce fear responses, ease handling, and improve welfare. This pilot study aimed to (1) design a positive reinforcement training program for dairy heifers, (2) monitor their learning performances and short-term memorization, (3) assess their long-term memory at one-year post-training, and (4) assess their behavior in new handling situations. We used 10 heifers randomly assigned to two treatments. TRAINED heifers (n = 5) underwent a training program including 19 husbandry and veterinary procedures split into 125 steps to be acquired over the course of 20 separate fifteen-minute sessions. The heifers had (median [1–3 quartiles]) 88 [62–100] commands and 80 [45–94] reinforcements per session. We used the ‘clicker training’ technique, with regular heifer concentrate as reinforcement. For each step, we established a learning criterion allowing to move to the next step, and we recorded the number of times the trainer gave the order (i.e. ‘command’) to the heifer and the number of times the heifer performed the correct behavior. CONTROL heifers (n = 5) were simply exposed to the handler’s presence. At one year after training, TRAINED heifers underwent the same procedures, and we recorded how many correct responses they produced out of 5 orders (or ‘commands’), together with a series of three behavioral tests: reaction to a motionless human, avoidance test, and ease-of-handling test. TRAINED heifers successfully learned 4 procedures (‘touching a target with the muzzle’; standing still calmly while being touched with: ‘arm-length glove’, ‘stethoscope’, ‘halter’) in (median) 1 session, 10 procedures (e.g. ‘eating from the hand’, ‘mouth opening and tongue manipulation’, ‘vaginal palpation’) in two sessions, 3 procedures (‘coming when called’, ‘tail lifting’, ‘rectal palpation’) in 3 sessions, and two procedures (‘standing still’, ‘left eyelid manipulation’) in 4 sessions. Results were similar when considering the number of commands required for learning. One year after training, four TRAINED heifers remembered 12–14 procedures, one heifer was able to only perform ‘eating from the hand’, and no heifers were able to perform ‘tail lifting’, ‘rectal palpation’, or ‘vaginal palpation’. At one year after training, TRAINED heifers were quicker to touch a motionless human, have a shorter avoidance distance, and require less time to be moved along the corridor than CONTROL heifers. Heifers can be clicker-trained for a large number of husbandry and veterinary procedures; they can remember most of the procedures one year later. Training may ease further handling.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106624"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143783929","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Training level and personality affect border collies’ olfactory performance in the Natural Detection Task","authors":"Attila Salamon ,&nbsp;Brigitta Lakatos ,&nbsp;Ádám Miklósi ,&nbsp;Barbara Csibra ,&nbsp;Enikő Kubinyi ,&nbsp;Attila Andics ,&nbsp;Márta Gácsi","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106625","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106625","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To be able to generalise findings to dogs as a species, many studies use a mixed sample, but applying a single breed sample enables the investigation of several influencing factors without the confounding effect of breed. Here, to reveal the effect of some intrinsic and extrinsic factors on olfactory performance, we investigated the effects of age, personality traits (Activity/Excitability and Responsiveness to training), inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity, training level, and owner’s rewarding style testing 101 border collies’ performance in the Natural Detection Task. We analysed the dataset of 89 individuals that passed the baseline criteria, while searching for hidden food as a reward at increasing difficulty levels. We found that senior dogs were less successful than late puppies, which is in line with previous findings, where older dogs performed worse than young adults. Some level of training positively affected performance, similar to other studies; even dogs with basic obedience performed better than those with no training, but dogs with advanced or special olfactory training were not superior. Dogs with higher Responsiveness-to-training scores and lower Activity/Excitability scores were more successful. Inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity scores and the owner’s general rewarding style did not affect the performance. By focusing on a single breed, instead of a large pool of dogs, we could better identify the influencing effects of different training levels and some personality traits on the olfactory performance than in a mixed sample. Our study highlights the importance of how experience gained in any task situation, as well as certain personality traits, can improve a dog's olfactory performance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106625"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143768254","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validation of the monash dog owner relationship scale (MDORS) for Brazilian Portuguese and factors influencing dog-owner relationships","authors":"Paulo Henrique Araújo Soares ,&nbsp;Joana Correia Prata ,&nbsp;Aluísia Tavares de Faria ,&nbsp;Clara Guimarães Silveira ,&nbsp;Igor Tadeu Assis ,&nbsp;Larissa Cristina de Castro ,&nbsp;Laura Boaventura Siqueira ,&nbsp;Thainara Marçal Pelegrino ,&nbsp;Tatiane Aparecida de Castro ,&nbsp;Renata Aparecida Nascimento Ribeiro ,&nbsp;Saulo Nascimento de Melo ,&nbsp;Marco Aurélio Pereira Horta ,&nbsp;Vinícius Silva Belo","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106621","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106621","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Monash Dog Owner Relationship Scale (MDORS) is a multidimensional scale that assesses the dog-owner relationship through 28 items distributed across three subscales: Dog-Owner Interaction (DOI), which evaluates shared activities, Perceived Emotional Closeness (PEC), which assesses the affectional bond between owner and dog, and Perceived Costs (PC), which analyzes ownership challenges. The present study validated MDORS in Brazilian Portuguese and analyzed factors associated with the dog-owner relationship. To achieve this, a questionnaire was administered in person to 501 randomly selected dog owners in a Brazilian municipality. The validation process included independent translations of the original scale, a pre-test, a pilot study, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The association between the MDORS dimensions and the explanatory variables was analyzed by means of Gamma models. The validated version has 24 items in the three dimensions, with good fit (comparative fit index = 0.96; root mean square error of approximation = 0.04), excellent test-retest reliability for DOI (0.92), and good test-retest reliability for PEC (0.84) and PC (0.79). In the DOI dimension, higher scores (more positive relationship between owner and animal) were associated with dogs of defined breeds and with a more adequate adoption of the responsible companion animal guardianship (RCAG) score, while lower scores were related to owners’ low level of schooling, unneutered dogs, and medium/large-sized dogs. In the PEC dimension, higher scores were observed in owners who had more than two dogs, dogs of defined breeds, and the RCAG score. In the PC dimension, owners of female dogs obtained higher scores. Owning many cars was associated with lower PEC and PC scores. The Brazilian version of the MDORS proved to have adequate validity and reliability. Thus, the validated scale is suitable for in-person application to assess the dog-owner relationship. The associations found, in turn, are useful to subsidize animal welfare initiatives and public health actions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106621"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143784016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Zoos and other organisations with living world impacts should have honest policies","authors":"S. Peng ,&nbsp;H.M. Yeh ,&nbsp;D.M. Broom","doi":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106618","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106618","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To balance action and publicly stated intention is a problem for zoos, as it is for most commercial organisations. The public now want activities that are sustainable in all aspects, including good welfare of animals where these are a part of the business. They also want transparency and evidence for whatever is claimed. Policy statements by organisations that use or have impact on animals or plants may give an incorrect impression of actual world consequences. The efforts of zoos to present themselves as significant contributors to conservation, education and research are examined and found to be often misleading. Although this comment applies to almost all zoos, in accuracy of claims as in quality of keeping conditions and welfare of the animals, the best zoos are much better than the worst zoos. A factor underlying many visits by the public to zoos is biophilia, a desire to experience the presence and observe the behaviour of living animals, but this is greatly undermined if it is perceived that the needs of individual animals are not met, and their welfare is poor. The differences in behaviour and physiological functioning between zoo and wild animals are briefly examined in order to consider what actions are ethical, in particular in relation to the welfare of the animals. The policies adopted by zoos have to keep pace with the changing demands of the public and zoos have opportunities to have positive effects on sustainability and the current rapid decline in most of the natural world. Some zoos are starting to do this but, in order for zoos and other organisations using animals and plants to remain sustainable, the image of their own activities that they present should be honest and closely related to the public’s demand. In particular the public need evidence, from their own observations and from good quality scientific studies, of good welfare of animals that are kept and of other components of sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8222,"journal":{"name":"Applied Animal Behaviour Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 106618"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143784017","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}