Companion Animal Psychology

Easy ways to provide enrichment for your dog. Photo: Petr Lurch/Shutterstock By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. Although we love our canine friends, many dogs have a relatively boring life in which they spend a lot of time hanging around the house or yard, perhaps on their own. Dogs that are bored or under-exercised can easily find their own entertainment, which might not be so pleasing to their human companions. Luckily there are many easy ways to add enrichment to our dog’s lives. Dog Walks If you are one of those people who walks your dog whatever the weather, you may be surprised to learn that not everyone takes their pooch for walks. Estimates vary, but a recent meta-analysis found that only 59% of dog owners walk their dogs (Christian et al 2013). The obvious benefit is physical exercise for both dog and human. Remember to allow for sniffing time, because dogs lik...

An interview with Dr. Carri Westgarth about how to prevent dog bites and her research on dog walking and getting a puppy. By Zazie Todd, PhD Carri Westgarth and Francine Watkins new paper  explores the perspectives of victims of dog bites. The results give important new insights into dog bite prevention. Carri kindly agreed to answer questions about her research on dog bites, dog walking, and puppies, and her own companion animals.  How did you get interested in studying dog bite prevention? Carri as a child; Top photo: Carri with her dogs Jasmyn and Ben, and her friend's dogs Alfie and Zephyr My mum might say it started as a toddler when she dashed upstairs to get a nappy and left me with two Jack Russell’s, one elderly and blind in one eye (sorry mum – she never has forgiven herself!).   I still have the scar on my forehead and a nice little bald patch. I initially wanted to be a vet, didn’t get into vet school, but after a zoology and genetics degree,...

Strategies to prevent dog bites need to get past the belief that ‘it won’t happen to me.’ Photo: ARENA Creative/Shutterstock By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. 4.5 million people a year are bitten by a dog in the US, of whom 885,000 need medical attention (Gilchrist et al 2008). In England in the last year, there were 7,227 admissions to hospital for injuries due to dogs , over 3000 more than a decade earlier. Developing a better understanding of how to prevent dog bites is essential.  A new paper by Carri Westgarth and Francine Watkins (University of Liverpool) suggests new directions for dog bite prevention. They interviewed 8 women about their experience of being bitten by a dog. Four of the participants had received medical attention for their bite, and six had also been bitten by a dog before. The results show that dog bites are a complex phenomenon.   D...

There are surprises in the language used to talk about animals, and even similarities between a vegan and a foxhunter in how they use language.  Photo: Graham Taylor (Shutterstock) By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. A vegan and a fox hunter have completely opposed views of animals. Yet analyzing how they talk shows some similarities, according to research by Guy Cook (King’s College, London). He studied interviews with a spokesperson for the Vegan Society and a spokesperson for the pro-foxhunting group The Countryside Alliance.  Foxhunting has been illegal in the UK since 2005, and only a quarter of one per cent of the UK is vegan , so both groups can be considered outside the mainstream.  Prof. Cook says, “These two interviews and their language provide evidence of two conflicting ideas of human animal interaction, which despite their differences pr...

A survey of Labrador Retriever owners tells us what they eat, how often they exercise, and where they sleep. Photo: c. buatt-norman/Shutterstock By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. A survey of over 4000 people with Labrador Retrievers provides a fascinating insight into the lifestyle of the average Lab. 68% of the dogs were pets, 6% working dogs, and of the remainder the largest group of people did not say (a quarter of overall responses).   Black Labradors were the most common (49%), followed by yellow (27%) and chocolate (21%), with other colours including fox red and hailstone.  The study, by C.A. Pugh et al (Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies), looks at Labradors across the UK. The researchers say, “Engaging thousands of dog owners in the DogsLife project has generated a wealth of data that begin to address knowledge gaps regardin...