When support is "pawsed": Increased attachment mediates the association between loss of support and pet bereavement during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced and exacerbated innumerable stressors for Americans. Pet ownership has been shown to help individuals cope with stress and loneliness. However, given the shorter life spans of most pets compared to humans, many pet owners inevitably dealt with pet loss and its associated grief during the pandemic. We surveyed 284 community and college participants that had suffered the loss of a pet during the pandemic. We asked these pet owners about their pandemic-related experiences over the preceding year with regard to the types of losses they experienced, whether they experienced isolation through quarantine and their perception of social support. We also measured their general attachment to pets along with the grief they felt as a result of pet loss. We hypothesized that greater loss, increased isolation, and reduced social support would lead to increased attachment to pets, which would intensify the experience of grief. Mediated regression analyses revealed a direct effect of loss on grief that was not mediated through attachment. Unexpectedly, greater perceived social support showed an indirect effect on grief through stronger attachment to pets. Results confirm prior findings that greater pet attachment leads to more intense pet grief, but the attachment was not intensified through loss of support social or increased isolation as predicted. It is important to recognize the substantial impact of pet loss, especially during stressful times, and this topic deserves further investigation, perhaps with a greater focus on the type of pet and pet-specific measures of attachment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Overcoming the social stigma of losing a pet: Considerations for counseling professionals

During the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals found themselves spending more time with their pets and relied on them to maintain normalcy and provide security during isolation. Pets play a significant role in the lives of their caregivers, taking on different attachment roles depending on the needs of the individual. Grieving the death of a pet continues to be disenfranchised in society. Perceptions of judgment can lead individuals to grieve the loss without social support. The present review builds on research in the field of pet loss and human bereavement and factors in the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on human-animal attachment A goal of the present review is to provide counselors with perspectives to consider in their practice when working with clients who have attachments to their companion animals and to acknowledge the therapeutic benefits of working through the grief process to resolution as a way to continue the bond with a deceased pet. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Development of the pet owner connectedness scale (POCS)

Studies that have reported on the loneliness protective effect of pet ownership have recently been called into question owing to methodological drawbacks, including the use of inappropriate scales of measurement for loneliness in pet owner samples. It has also been recently demonstrated that pet interactions may only influence positive, not negative, human affect. In light of these recent advances, the current study aimed to create a new scale focusing on the inverse experience of loneliness: connectedness. An initial 24-item scale was developed using qualitative data collected from our previous study investigating the impact of pet ownership for Australians living alone during a government-enforced lockdown in response to COVID-19. Study 1 included 934 dog and cat owners who self-selected into the online study. Factor analyses revealed two distinct factors, and only items that loaded uniquely on one factor were retained. Study 2 included 526 dog and cat owners who self-selected into the online study, which confirmed the two-factor structure and established validity and reliability of the scale. The result was a 14-item Pet Owner Connectedness Scale (POCS) with two subscales: (i) owner-pet connection, and (ii) connectedness through pet. Hence, we present evidence for a new scale that can be used to measure the positive social states of connectedness that owners may gain from their pets. This may provide a good alternative to more traditional methods such as measuring the buffering effect pets have on negative social states such as loneliness. It may also offer a more robust method to measure the impact of pet interactions on their owners. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Understanding the performance of truffle dogs

Trained dogs can detect many biochemical traces, from the most hostile, such as COVID-19, to the most expensive, such as truffles. However, it is still unclear how the interplay of genetic disposition, education, experience, personality, and environmental conditions influences the performance of dogs. Here, we combine published evidence with the knowledge of truffle hunters to assess direct and indirect factors that affect the hunting performance of truffle dogs. Since the transport of truffle aroma into the canine nasal cavity is most puzzling, we propose 5 experiments to further investigate the role of weather conditions, soil parameters, and bacterial composition on the dispersal of truffle volatiles perceived by trained dogs. We also suggest exploring whether the application of multiple dogs increases the success of truffle hunting. Moreover, we argue that interdisciplinary research on dog behavior and performance, including insights from veterinary science and comparative psychology as well as the experience of truffle hunters and farmers, is needed to improve the quantity and quality of truffle harvests. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

The importance of pets during a global pandemic: See spot play

This chapter discusses my personal experiences as a clinician who contracted COVID-19, as a director of a nonprofit animal sanctuary, and as a clinician working in animal-assisted therapy (AAT) who has had to modify her treatment model in consideration of the quarantine health mandates. Although the human-animal bond has long been acknowledged as an effective treatment model, it is still considered a burgeoning field. The current health crisis has brought the benefits of the human-animal bond to the forefront of public perception. Both zooeyia (the benefits of the human-animal bond) and zoonosis (diseases transmitted by animals) will be discussed, as well as adaptations to AAT to work with clients remotely during quarantine regulations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Animal (non-human) companionship for adults aging in place during COVID-19: A critical support, a source of concern and potential for social work responses

This reprinted chapter originally appeared in Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 2020, 63[6-7], 702-705. (The following of the original article appeared in record 2021-00510-030.) In this letter, we present a case for why and how social workers who work with older adults should assess and respond to human-pet interaction;while important on a routine basis, given the current pandemic situation and subsequent increases in isolation experienced by older adults, it is especially crucial to be responsive to their relationships with pets as potential strengths, stressors or both. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)