Scientifically evaluating welfare in commercial breeding kennels: does high volume preclude good welfare? 2018-10-27
What s the connection between CB welfare and detection dogs?!? Sources of detection dogs Breed & societal considerations Scientifically monitoring dog welfare Evaluating & extending working life Ensuring quality of life OR
Commercial dog breeding Commercial breeding helps to meet demand for purebred dogs Ethical and welfare (scientific) issues What quality of life is acceptable? How to meet physical, behavioral and psychological needs? (Fraser et al., 1997; Broom, 1998; Webster, 2001) Owner-report studies indicate severe behavioral, psychological and physical problems (McMillan et al, 2011; 2013) Increased public and stakeholder concerns
CAN DEMAND BE MET SUSTAINABLY AND ETHICALLY? Application to detection dogs: how do we know how well dogs are doing? HOW CAN WELFARE-ORIENTED BREEDERS TO DISTINGUISH THEMSELVES FROM OTHERS?
Because dogs cannot consent to work or other human purposes for which we benefit, it is our ethical imperative to protect their welfare; at minimum this requires science and practice aimed at minimizing negative states and maximizing positive ones
Welfare: state of the animal in regards to its attempts to cope Welfare or well-being is a continuum; ranges from very poor to very good w/in and across individuals
THREE CONCEPTIONS OF ANIMAL WELFARE (FRASER ET AL., 1997) ANIMALS SHOULD: Function well Good health Normal growth, reproduction Feel well Minimize negative feelings (pain, fear) Experience positive feelings (contentment) Be able to lead reasonably natural lives Perform behaviors that are important to them Have natural elements in their living spaces
Are the animals healthy? Do they have what they want? Developing welfare assessment priorities Behavior gives insight to both But behavior is subjective! Dawkins, 2004. Animal Welf; 13:S3-7
BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL WELLNESS How can we know/objectively assess? Do the dogs have what they need? Space Social interactions Exercise Enrichment Socialization
EVALUATING WELFARE IN COMMERCIAL BREEDING KENNELS
Purdue breeding dog welfare standards program Phase 1 Standards writing & testing Breeder enrollment Research & benchmarking Breeder education Welfare status of dogs preand post-implementation of standards Flooring and Welfare Dental health Behavioral management practices Public perceptions, consumer behavior, economics
EFFECTS OF MATERNAL STRESS DURING PRENATAL PERIOD FETAL DEVELOPMENT EFFECTS OF STRESS CORTISOL CHANGES SET POINT HPA AXIS HIGH EMOTIONALITY AS ADULTS
INDICATORS OF BEHAVIORAL STATE
INDICATORS OF BEHAVIORAL STATE
Bauer, A.L., Jordan, M., Colon, M., Shreyer, T. & Croney, C. 2017. Evaluating FIDO: Developing and pilot testing the Field Instantaneous Dog Observation tool. Pet Behaviour Science, 4, 1-15. Methods Field Instantaneous Dog Observation (FIDO) tool developed Behavior: dogs responses to approach categorized Fight or flight Frozen Stereotypic Ambivalent Affiliative, Attentionsoliciting, Neutral
What can FIDO tell us about the immediate welfare state of dogs at CB kennels? Two novice raters evaluated the behavior and physical appearance of dogs at 3 IN breeding kennels (n = 20/kennel) Dogs re-evaluated with the primary caretaker present Identify effects of novel/unfamiliar people on responses
100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Percentage of Behavior* Types Expressed by Dogs 62.26 O 58.93 55.56 42.11 64.71 72.22 66.67 All Facilities Facility 1 Facility 2 Facility 3 R Y G O O 63.16
Benchmarking state-of-being Two experts evaluated behavior & physical appearance of dogs at 24 commercial kennels (n = 20/kennel) Range: 25-125 breeding females
Pilot-test results Health BCS Tear Staining (moderate or severe) Few, minor problems observed Other < 10 < 10 < 10 Behavior Improvement in 83% (10) of the 12 sites that tested for 1 year *The sampled population is skewed to positive
Breeder-reported outcomes Improved litter sizes and weights Improved health impacts and spending Behavioral changes Improved breeder attitudes towards dogs Increased transparency Preparation for retirement/rehoming Beneficial housing & management changes
Housing & management changes
Refining on-site canine welfare assessment: evaluating the reliability of(fido) scoring Correlation between RYG score & measures of fear in field-test FIDO test appears to be valid indicator of fear
Conclusions FIDO scoring is useful in detecting fearfulness (of people) Good field metric Adaptation for other types of fear screening relevant to detection dogs is feasible Breeder practices influence fear High variation exists in management practices Greater number of socialization practices associated with lower hair cortisol levels (stress indicator)
Take-home questions & considerations Can demand for dogs be met while maintaining high welfare standards in commercial kennels? High demand for detection dogs exists Sustainability of dog supply requires local sourcing US commercial breeders may provide sourcing options Dogs must be well selected, reared and screened Consider welfare state, ethics, intended purpose Adult welfare impacts puppy performance Progress on CB welfare and selection is ongoing Collaboration with scientists, trainers, handlers and those sourcing for detection may help meet demands
Acknowledgements Welfare standards contributors & reviewers ICAW, A. Beck, T. Grandin, B. Rollin, J. Serpell, J. Floyd Benchmarking research team T. Shreyer, A. Bauer, M. Colon, M. Jordan Lab members *J. Stella, L. Mugenda, H. Flint, A. Pietraniec Graduate students (M. Hurt) Undergraduate assistants Participating dog breeders Cooperating shelters Almost Home Humane Society, Humane Society of Indianapolis * SPONSORS THE STANTON FOUNDATION
QUESTIONS? ccroney@purdue.edu https://vet.purdue.edu/discovery/croney/