Companion Animals
Wandering Cats: Attitudes and Behaviors towards Cat Containment in Australia
Submitted on Feb 02, 2012 (Original item from 2012) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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This survey of adults in Victoria, Australia examined attitudes toward keeping cats indoors. Those who live with cats were also asked if they keep their cats indoors and why. The authors find that most support some degree of cat containment, though the motivations for this differ between those who live with cats and those who do not.
Email this Research CitationNew Survey of Shelter Leaders Shows Strength and Unity of Animal Movement
Submitted on Feb 01, 2012 (Original item from 2011) Companion Animals | Farmed Animals | General Animal Protection | Wildlife and Exotics
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This article summarizes findings from a survey of animal shelter and rescue workers. The survey, designed and administered by HRC, was commissioned by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). Respondents were asked about various animal protection issues and their use of HSUS resources.
Coming Soon: Year Five of HRC's Animal Tracker
Submitted by HRC Admin on Jan 24, 2012 Animal Experimentation | Companion Animals | Entertainment Animals | Farmed Animals | General Animal Protection | Research Tools and Methods | Wildlife and Exotics
We’re getting ready to launch year five of HRC’s Animal Tracker annual survey of the public opinions and behavior of adults in the U.S. This year’s survey, which will field in March, addresses opinions toward various social movements, who people trust to provide information about animal welfare, opinions about the adequacy of animal protection laws, attitudes toward the importance of animal welfare in various situations, and the frequency with which people discuss animal protection issues. We asked the exact same questions in 2008 and 2009 and will be able to analyze changes over time. When the results are available in April, we’ll also refresh the Animal Tracker graphing tool so that the results will be easy to access and interpret. Owning the Problem: Media Portrayals of Overweight Dogs and the Shared Determinants of the Health of Human and Companion Animals
Submitted on Jan 24, 2012 (Original item from 2012) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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This study examined how overweight dogs have been portrayed in English-speaking media between 2000-2009. The authors find that, while the media may report on social issues leading to increased obesity, they tend to focus the solutions to the problem solely on what the dog's companion person should do to resolve the issue.
Humane State Rankings 2011
Submitted on Jan 22, 2012 (Original item from 2011) Animal Experimentation | Companion Animals | Entertainment Animals | Farmed Animals | General Animal Protection | Wildlife and Exotics
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This report is the Humane Society of the United States' ranking of each US state based on laws addressing animal protection. The report is user friendly--presented as an interactive map, a listing of each state by ranking, as well as short individual reports for each state that provides detail on which laws exists in that state.
The Development and Factor Structure of a Questionnaire Measure of the Strength of Attachment to Pet Dogs
Submitted on Jan 21, 2012 (Original item from 2011) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection | Research Tools and Methods
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This study describes the development of survey measures to evaluate people's attachment to their dogs. The authors test the scales and find that they are a reliable measure of degree of closeness to a companion animal, caring for and protecting a companion, and as a base measure of emotional comfort and well-being generally.
Dogs Respond Appropriately to Cues of Humans’ Attentional Focus
Submitted on Jan 18, 2012 (Original item from 2004) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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Researchers examined whether dogs responded to verbal cues if there was no eye contact. They found that dogs responded more when the person was looking at them compared to when the person making the verbal command was looking at someone else, indicating that dogs use multiple communicative symbols to interpret interactions with humans.
Looking for an Ideal Horse: Rider Preferences
Submitted on Jan 16, 2012 (Original item from 2011) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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This study examines the qualities that people who ride horses look for in a horse. Researchers found the most important qualities were ease of handling and maintenance. Ability to jump was also important to more advanced riders.
Poll: Euthanasia to Control Shelter Population Unpopular
Submitted on Jan 11, 2012 (Original item from 2011) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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This poll examined attitudes toward killing companion animals in shelters in order to control pet overpopulation. Seven out of 10 respondents did not support killing animals unless they are "unadoptable" due to illness or aggressiveness.
New Poll Reveals Americans Often Treat Pets Like Humans
Submitted on Jan 09, 2012 (Original item from 2010) Companion Animals | General Animal Protection
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This survey asks U.S. adults who live with companion animals about how they incorporate them into their families. Half of the respondents indicate that they feel their companion is as much a part of their family as the people in their household.
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