by Linda Boettger and Diane P. Genereux
For a purebred dog and, on occasion, even a first-generation hybrid, breed-inference services often just confirm what the dog owner already knows. Sometimes a pedigree is available, tracing back through multiple generations of purebred ancestors and providing essentially complete information about the pet's ancestry.
by Patience Fisher
Go-to-box training is a very useful tool. It enables you to not only relocate a cat, but more importantly to refocus him. It is an excellent tool for teaching impulse control. I find that target training is the best first step to teaching this. Below is a case study of teaching an impulsive kitten to go to a box on cue. I worked with Freddy and his owners from the time he was 5 months old until he was 7 months old.
by Brian J. Burton
Separation anxiety (SA) and separation-related behavior (SRB) are significant welfare concerns for companion dogs (Cannas et al., 2014; Lund & Jorgensen, 1999).
by Emily Talbot
Stallions can be used in different disciplines and they may stand at stud either as retirement or alongside their "career." Traditionally they are managed with little regard to their natural behaviour; they may be stabled and turned out in isolation or where their interaction with other equines is limited. (Burger et al., 2012). This has the benefit of preventing unwanted impregnation, injuries, and the transfer of diseases but the disadvantages of depriving the stallions of their natural breeding behaviours as well as social contact (Christensen et. al, 2002).
by Jennifer Cunha
In 2016, I began to teach my parrot, Ellie, phonics—mostly out of desperation. Like many parrot owners, I found that my hand-raised Goffin's cockatoo presented with a myriad of behavioral challenges-from nipping to property destruction, and the occasional screaming fit. I knew that these behaviors very often arise from lack of stimulation. The trouble was that I could think of no further possible sources of enrichment:
by Mallory Robinson
Often times in sprawling country areas, such as the one I'm writing from now, the overall majority of dogs (and cats) brought into shelters and rescues are what I typically describe as "rural." Not exactly social and not exactly feral, the "rural dog" falls somewhere along that spectrum.
by Jesse Miller
Animal-assisted interventions can have specific therapeutic goals of improving physical or cognitive functioning, or they can provide general “opportunities for motivational, educational, recreational, and/or therapeutic benefits to enhance quality of life” (Morrison, 2007).
by Cindy Peacock
Boo is a male grizzly bear (Ursus arctos), born in 2002. He weighs 550 to 600 pounds in the spring, and up to 750 to 850 pounds in the winter before hibernation We came to take care of Boo after he and his brother Cari were orphaned at approximately 5 months of age, when their mother was shot by a poacher.
