Animal welfare complementing or conflicting with other sustainability issues
Systems for the production of food, or other products for human use, should be sustainable. This means that the system should be acceptable now and its expected future effects should be acceptable, in particular in relation to resource availability, consequences of functioning and morality of action. However, there are many components of sustainability. People who […]
Environmental enrichment Practical strategies for improving feline welfare
Practical relevance The clinical application of evidence-based enrichment strategies for the domestic cat housed in a variety of confined environments, ranging from the veterinary cage to the domestic home, is of particular importance – both in relation to providing opportunity for appropriate feline behaviour, and in the prevention and treatment of behavioural and associated health […]
Spacing pattern in a social group of stray cats: effects on male reproductive success
Reproductive consequences of male spacing patterns have received relatively little attention in nonterritorial mammals, in particular in group-living species, where most studies have focused on the relation between social rank and reproductive success. We investigated the effects of spacing pattern on male reproductive success within a social, nonterritorial, promiscuous population of stray cats, Felis catus. […]
Environmental factors that affect the behavior and welfare of domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) housed in cages
Understanding environmental factors that affect the behavior of cats in cages is important if caretakers are to improve the welfare of confined cats. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of the macro (room) and micro (cage) environments on cat behavior and their implications for cat well-being. Cats (n = 76) were […]
Assessment of behavior and physical condition of shelter cats as animal-based indicators of welfare
Surveillance of cat shelters by official veterinarians in Austria is based on legal requirements and does not directly assess cat welfare. The aim of this study was to develop animal-based parameters that are feasible to measure in a surveillance setting, stable over time, and reproducible by different raters. We assessed physical condition (body condition, eye […]
The effects of social interaction and environmental enrichment on the space use, behaviour and stress of owned housecats facing a novel environment
Every day, millions of domestic cats are held temporarily in captive environments, such as boarding catteries and rescue shelters. Being in confinement can potentially invoke high levels of stress for these animals. Therefore, there is a need to develop appropriate strategies to reduce these effects. Here, we investigated the effect of physical (inclusion of different […]
Guardians’ Knowledge and Husbandry Practices of Feline Environmental Enrichment
Feline environmental enrichment can prevent numerous disorders including anxiety, stress, obesity, and feline idiopathic cystitis. Despite its easy implementation and low cost, it has received little attention. The main goal of this study was to assess guardians’ knowledge concerning feline environmental enrichment and husbandry practices. A questionnaire was given to 130 companion animal guardians at […]