Human-dog relationships during COVID-19 pandemic; booming dog adoption during social isolation

Morgan, Liat; Protopopova, Alexandra; Birkler, Rune Isak Dupont; Itin-Shwartz, Beata; Sutton, Gabrielle; gamliel, alexandra; Yakobson, Boris I.; Raz, Tal

doi:10.31235/osf.io/s9k4y

Cited by 33 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Previous research suggests that the likelihood of reporting that a dog’s behaviour is deteriorating increases for owners who rate their emotional closeness to a dog as high, owners who report themselves as often “getting mad” with a dog, and owners who report increased overall general changes in their routine [ 52 ]. Similar links were identified in a study of pet ownership during the lockdown in Israel, where dog owners’ perceptions of quality of life were linked with their judgment of their dogs’ quality of life and emergence of new behavioural problems [ 88 ]. Furthermore, lack of owners’ comments on a given behaviour is not equivalent with a dog not showing these behaviours.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

“More Attention than Usual”: A Thematic Analysis of Dog Ownership Experiences in the UK during the First COVID-19 Lockdown

Holland

Owczarczak‐Garstecka

Anderson

et al. 2021

Animals

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On 23 March 2020, the UK Government imposed a nationwide lockdown as part of efforts to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. This study aimed to explore how the experience of dog ownership in the UK was impacted during this lockdown. Data for this research came from open-ended survey questions and an electronic diary completed by members of the general public and participants involved in “Generation Pup”, an ongoing longitudinal cohort study of dogs. A total of 10,510 free-text entries were analysed. Three major themes emerged: spending time at home with dog(s), walking practices, and behaviour and training. Owners valued having more time than usual with their dog(s) but also recognised that spending extra time with their dog(s) may negatively impact on the dog’s future ability to cope when left alone. However, very few owners provided alone time for their dog(s) during the lockdown. The opportunity to walk their dog(s) as part of their permitted daily exercise was regarded positively, but walks under the lockdown guidelines were not always felt to be adequate with respect to providing sufficient exercise and opportunities for interaction with other dogs. Owners reported observing new undesirable behaviours in their dog(s) during the lockdown, including barking and dogs being “clingy” or vocalising when briefly left alone. Based on these findings, we suggest intervention strategies to best support dog welfare that include helping dog owners to teach dogs to cope with being alone, even if owners do not need to leave their dogs alone.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

“More Attention than Usual”: A Thematic Analysis of Dog Ownership Experiences in the UK during the First COVID-19 Lockdown

Holland

Owczarczak‐Garstecka

Anderson

et al. 2021

Animals

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“…Dogs became a pandemic precious commodity for companionship or as a means to go outdoors where this was permitted as an essential activity. Reports of increases in animal adoptions have grown around the world, with terms such as ‘pandemic puppies’ appearing in the media ( Morgan et al, 2020 ; Vet Record, 2020 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, acquisitions not always resulted or are likely to result in positive impacts; concerns about the future welfare of dogs that have grown with constant company and the risk to increase separation anxiety are very present among animal behaviour and welfare experts ( Morgan et al 2020 , Delanoeije, 2020 ; Christley et al 2021 ). Pets suffering of separation anxiety might have seen a positive improvement to their condition, with owners at home giving them more company and attention, however it is unknown whether this may result in a ‘bounce back’ effect, and possible recurrence or even aggravation of the condition once confinement measures are relaxed or removed completely.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…when the owner was in self-quarantine and unable to go outside) ( Christley et al, 2021 ; de Mansilla, 2020 ). A study found that impaired quality of life of the owners was associated with a decrease in quality of life of their dog, as well as increased development of new behavioural problems, as judged by their owners ( Morgan et al, 2020 ). On the other hand, some reported that many dogs had more play/training sessions with their owners and were given toys more frequently during lockdown ( Christley et al 2021 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The number of abandoned animals also saw an increase in many countries; this could be as a result of concerns regarding the risk of virus transmission between companion animals and people ( Yin et al, 2020 ) with an impact on animal welfare as animals were suffering from hunger, thirst and mistreatment. Whilst some reported that abandonment rates did not change ( Morgan et al 2020 ), others documented how increased rates of abandonment generated community impacts, with a raise on public complaints to the authorities and an increase on public safety issues due to hungry dogs attacking people in some communities ( Globo, 2020 ; Heraldo de Mexico, 2020 ; Huang et al, 2020 ; La Razon, 2020 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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One welfare impacts of COVID-19 – A summary of key highlights within the one welfare framework

Pinillos¹

2021

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

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One Welfare describes the interconnection between animal welfare, human wellbeing and their physical and social environment. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is the cause of COVID-19 and emerged as a human pathogen in 2019 although is thought to have a zoonotic source. The original wildlife reservoir and any potential intermediate hosts have not yet been identified. The combination of the virus zoonotic condition together with the impacts of disease control measures has exposed clear interconnections between animals, people and their environment from both a health and a welfare perspective. The One Welfare Framework comprises five sections that can help understand the different One Welfare levels on which the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the world. This paper uses the One Welfare Framework to provide an overview of examples, within each of the five sections, where evidence is and/or can be made available to document COVID-19 impacts on One Welfare. The paper identifies a number of areas where further research and evidence gathering is required to better understand the different One Welfare impacts. Based on evidence summarised in this paper the author recommends that those responsible for managing the COVID-19 impacts and for planning the future recovery phase of the pandemic should consider adopting a holistic approach, including both health and welfare, by adopting & One Health, One Welfare& policies.

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Managers and shorebird biologists' perceptions of enforcement and voluntary compliance techniques to increase compliance with dog regulations on beaches

et al. 2022

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1. Disturbance to shorebirds by domestic dogs can cause direct and indirect bird mortality. Dog regulations to minimize disturbance are only effective if people comply with them.2. Non-compliance is a universal problem in biodiversity conservation, with an associated body of applicable social science from the field of conservation criminology. We apply the lens of this literature to better understand non-compliance with dog regulations on beaches along the Atlantic Flyway of the U.S. and the role of law enforcement and voluntary compliance techniques (e.g. persuasive communications, behavioural alternatives) in fostering compliance.3. Through in-depth interviews with 27 land managers and shorebird biologists experienced in creating and/or implementing regulations to reduce disturbance to shorebirds, we found that non-compliance is a challenge that law enforcement alone is inadequate to address.4. Managers are working to overcome these challenges with law enforcement through training law enforcement officers, as well as voluntary compliance approaches, such as conducting on-site stewardship programs led largely by volunteers, placing educational signage at sites, and highlighting alternative areas to walk dogs.5. The early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. increased dog walking on beaches and exacerbated the issue of non-compliance and lack of enforcement, while the capacity for educational and stewardship programs was also limited.6. We conclude by recommending that managers and biologists tackle noncompliance with multiple and concurrent strategies along a spectrum from enforcement to voluntary compliance techniques, while also better studying the efficacy of these approaches. We also highlight the importance of continuing to track the ongoing challenges to compliance with biodiversity conservation regulations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Human-dog relationships during COVID-19 pandemic; booming dog adoption during social isolation

Cited by 33 publications

References 27 publications

“More Attention than Usual”: A Thematic Analysis of Dog Ownership Experiences in the UK during the First COVID-19 Lockdown

“More Attention than Usual”: A Thematic Analysis of Dog Ownership Experiences in the UK during the First COVID-19 Lockdown

One welfare impacts of COVID-19 – A summary of key highlights within the one welfare framework

Managers and shorebird biologists' perceptions of enforcement and voluntary compliance techniques to increase compliance with dog regulations on beaches

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