Examining the Impact of Virtual Animal Stimuli on College Students' Affect and Perception of their Academic Advising Experience.

The benefits of animal-assisted interventions (AAI) involving animals in therapy are widely accepted. The presence of animals in therapy can decrease a patient's reservation about therapy and promote a sense of comfort and rapport during the therapy process. Using survey data from college students (n = 152) attending a large public four-year institution, this study is the first to investigate the benefits of virtual animal stimuli during academic advising appointments. It posits that exposure to virtual animal stimuli can influence positive mental health and well-being in academic advising settings. Specifically, the research questions explored how different types of video content influence students' affect and how virtual animal stimuli impact students' perception of their advisor and university. College students were randomly assigned to watch one of four types of virtual stimuli (wild animals, companion animals, nature, and a control) prior to their advising session. Subjective measures were collected at baseline and after the advising session. Results indicated animal stimuli increase positive affect, and companion animal stimuli influence the student's perception of the advisor. This study supports the notion that companion animal videos positively impact students' well-being and interactions with their advisors and may have broader implications beyond the academic setting.

Reimagining Healthcare: Human-Animal Bond Support as a Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Public Health Intervention.

The emergence of human-animal support services (HASS)-services provided to help keep people and their companion animals together-in the United States has been driven by two global public health crises. Despite such impetuses and an increasing recognition of One Health approaches, HASS are generally not recognized as public health interventions. The Ottawa Charter, defining health as well-being and resources for living and calling for cross-sector action to advance such, provides a clear rationale for locating HASS within a public health framework. Drawing from Ottawa Charter tenets and using the United States as a case study, we: (1) recognize and explicate HASS as public health resources for human and animal well-being and (2) delineate examples of HASS within the three-tiered public health intervention framework. HASS examples situated in the three-tier framework reveal a public health continuum for symbiotic well-being and health. Humans and their respective companion animals may need different levels of intervention to optimize mutual well-being. Tenets of the Ottawa Charter provide a clear rationale for recognizing and promoting HASS as One Health public health interventions; doing so enables cross-sector leveraging of resources and offers a symbiotic strategy for human and animal well-being.

Pet Ownership and Wellbeing During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Importance of Resilience and Attachment to Pets

The governmental restrictions in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic led to social isolation, with many people spending more time at home with their pets. The relationships between pet ownership, pet attachment, and wellbeing were examined using two online surveys: one in the early stages of the pandemic (May, 2020) and the other over one year later (September, 2021). Resilience, optimism, and basic psychological need satisfaction (i.e., autonomy, competence, and relatedness) were examined as potential moderators. Study 1 had an international sample of 495 participants (70% pet owners), while study 2 had a UK sample of 243 participants (57% pet owners). Most participants reported that their pets provided emotional comfort and had a positive impact on their lives during the early stages of the pandemic. Pet ownership and pet attachment were positively associated with wellbeing in people with low levels of resilience. Conversely, people with high resilience who were pet owners or had higher pet attachment had lower wellbeing than non-pet owners and those less attached. Optimism and basic psychological need satisfaction were not significant moderators. Although some of the associations found in study 1 might have been specific to the beginning of the pandemic, other results were replicated a year later in the UK sample when social restrictions were eased (study 2). The findings from the two studies suggest that higher scores on a subscale of pet attachment, which involves the pet playing a more central role than humans in the owner's life, might be directly linked to lower resilience and wellbeing and increased loneliness. The combination of high resilience and higher levels of pet attachment or pet ownership might be unfavorable. Nonetheless, pet ownership and healthy human-animal bonds can be protective factors for people with low levels of resilience.Copyright © 2022 International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ).

Preventive healthcare among dogs and cats in Chile is positively associated with emotional owner-companion animal bond and socioeconomic factors.

Global companion animal population has been increasing as well as the number of dogs and cats being considered as a family member. However, it is unclear whether this close relationship could be associated with higher preventive healthcare in companion animals. Using data from 7,048 questionnaires of dogs and 3,271 of cats from the First National Study on Responsible Companion Animal Ownership, we estimated the proportion of preventive healthcare in companion animals of Chile. We also conducted a general linear mixed-effect regression model to identify socioeconomic factors and indicators of the emotional owners-companion animal bond that could influence owners' practices related to vaccination, parasite control, and veterinary visits. Based on the owner's answers, Chile has a satisfactory overall rates of parasite control (71%) and annual veterinary visits (65%) but a low vaccination coverage of both dogs (39%) and cats (25%). 'Purebred', 'live in urban areas', 'acquired by monetary compensation', and 'dog species' were associated with a higher probability of preventive healthcare in companion animals. Conversely, this probability was lower among senior animals compared to adults, males, and those owned by the Silent Generation or Baby Boomers (i.e., owners born before 1964). 'Sleeping inside', 'acquired for an emotional reason' (e.g., companionship), and 'considered a family member' were positively associated with at least one of assessed preventive measures. Our findings suggest that emotional owner-companion animal bonds could positively impact the frequency and quality of preventive healthcare in dogs and cats. However, owners who totally disagreed that a companion animal is a "family member" were also associated with a higher likelihood of vaccination uptake and veterinary visits for their animals. This highlights that owner's compliance with veterinary preventive healthcare is multifactorial. Chile has a high prevalence of infectious diseases circulating among dogs and cats and increasingly close contacts between owners and companion animals due to emotional bonds. Thus, our study calls for One Health approaches to reduce the risks of cross-species disease transmission. Specifically, increasing vaccination coverage of companion animals in Chile is the most urgent preventive measure needed, especially among cats, males, and older animals. Expand preventive healthcare among dogs and cats will promote public and animal health, including local wildlife that is susceptible to infectious diseases circulating in companion animals.

A Qualitative Analysis of Management Perspectives on Seeking to Implement the Foster Cat Project in Residential Aged Care in the Context of COVID-19.

This study explores the challenges facing a pilot project aiming to foster homeless cats in an Australian residential aged care facility. The global COVID-19 pandemic stalled the project but also presented an opportunity to gain reflective insights into the perceived barriers, enablers and tensions involved in seeking to implement pet animal inclusion in residential aged care. Perspectives from aged care management, animal welfare services and researchers/project managers were all sought using semi-structured interviews, and themes developed using a qualitative descriptive analysis. Perceived barriers to the project before and after the pandemic were not dissimilar with four key themes emerging: competing priorities, risk and safety, resources, and timing. All existed differently across stakeholder groups creating tensions to be negotiated. These themes are then mapped to the competencies established by the International Union of Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE) for undertaking health promotion, demonstrating that this skill base can be drawn on when seeking to implement human-animal inclusive projects. Creating supportive healthful environments for frail older persons is a moral imperative of extended lives. Health Promotion skills as outlined in the Ottawa Charter and IUHPE competencies for health promotion workers need to be extended to include animal services, agendas and cultures to promote multi-species health promotion into the future.

Pet ownership, feelings of loneliness, and mood in people affected by the first COVID-19 lockdown.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused dramatic changes to our lifestyle, particularly affecting our ability to interact "in person" with our social network. These changes have had a detrimental effect on the mental welfare of the global population. The international questionnaire "Pets in Lockdown" was designed to investigate whether feelings of loneliness were affecting the mood of people during the COVID-19 lockdown and whether pet ownership may have had a positive influence on both loneliness and general mood. As expected, higher loneliness scores were associated with higher negative and lower positive affective states. In addition, lower loneliness scores were associated with pet ownership and living with other people, but not with more frequent interactions with people from outside the household, suggesting that physical and close contact has an important role in decreasing feelings of loneliness. Besides the effects on the loneliness score, pet ownership was not associated with positive or negative affective states. The strength of the attachment to animals, measured as the amount of comfort that people obtain from their pets, was stronger in people with potentially limited access to affiliative physical human contact and was associated with both higher positive and negative affective states. Additionally, people obtained significantly more comfort from dogs and horses compared with other pet species. The results suggest that during the confinement period, pets may have benefited people with smaller social networks by alleviating loneliness and offering comfort and embodied close contact.

Fantastic Beasts and Why It Is Necessary to Understand Our Relationship-Animal Companionship under Challenging Circumstances Using the Example of Long-Covid.

Studies in the field of human-animal interaction tend to highlight the positive results of the influence of animals on humans, which supports the popular belief that the human-animal bond positively affects humans' well-being ("pet-effect"). Nevertheless, contradictory results exist that seem especially visible since the COVID-19 pandemic, a prominent external stressor. Despite critical findings, individuals seem to want to believe in the beneficial effects of the human-animal relationship ("pet-effect paradox"). Based on this background, the present study aims to investigate this phenomenon using a mixed-method design. Therefore, animal caregivers were surveyed online and compared using psychometric measurements and open-ended questions. In this context, a special focus was placed on the additional stressor of Long-Covid and related concerns. The results demonstrate once more the existence of the "pet-effect paradox" due to a contradiction in the quantitative and qualitative results. At a quantitative level, the findings show additional burdens on animal caregivers who are confronted with multiple loads. However, the qualitative results indicate a belief in the beneficial effects of pets at the biopsychosocial level. Additionally, the data demonstrate a shift in focus away from the environment to oneself when affected by Long-Covid, which might affect the ability to care for an animal.

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)

Risk Factors for SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Illness in Cats and Dogs1.

We tested swab specimens from pets in households in Ontario, Canada, with human COVID-19 cases by quantitative PCR for SARS-CoV-2 and surveyed pet owners for risk factors associated with infection and seropositivity. We tested serum samples for spike protein IgG and IgM in household pets and also in animals from shelters and low-cost neuter clinics. Among household pets, 2% (1/49) of swab specimens from dogs and 7.7% (5/65) from cats were PCR positive, but 41% of dog serum samples and 52% of cat serum samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2 IgG or IgM. The likelihood of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity in pet samples was higher for cats but not dogs that slept on owners' beds and for dogs and cats that contracted a new illness. Seropositivity in neuter-clinic samples was 16% (35/221); in shelter samples, 9.3% (7/75). Our findings indicate a high likelihood for pets in households of humans with COVID-19 to seroconvert and become ill.

Pets During Covid-19 Pandemic: Significant Role as Stress Buster for their Owners

Background: COVID-19 pandemic has affected everyone’s lives in many different ways since January 2020 globally. COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the vulnerability of humans to disorders related to loneliness due to physical distancing measures and it has also highlighted the positive aspects of the relationship between animals and humans. Apart from physical wellbeing, psychological wellness has also been a matter of concern during lockdown. Animal assisted therapy aims at improving physical, mental and emotional aspects of human life. Aim & Objective: To evaluate the Role of pets in an individual’s life during Covid-19 Pandemic Methodology: Questionnaire on PSS-10-C and a questionnaire on human animal relationship with relevant demographic data was distributed electronically via social media to subjects of age group more than 18 years after taking consent for participation in the study during April-May 2021. Subjects having any psychiatric disorder or taking any medication were excluded from the study. Result: Out of 230 participants 69 (30%) had pets amongst which dog was the most preferred pet. Many pet owners were concerned about their pet during lockdown, reason being restriction to veterinary treatment, etc. Stress of non-pet owners was significantly high as compared to pet owners. Regardless of owning a pet, 82% participants agreed that pets act as stress busters. Conclusion: Human-animal bond has beneficial effect on human’s physical and mental health. Animal assisted therapy utilises this interaction to promote the health of patients. Animals as pet played an important role in reducing stress among their owners during COVID-19 pandemic. Animal assisted therapy therefore can be promoted in certain ailments which will not only cure the patients but improve the well-being of animals too.

Low and No-Contact Euthanasia: Associated Ethical Challenges Experienced by Veterinary Team Members during the Early Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many veterinary practices around the world have shifted to a low or no-contact consultation model to ensure the safety of their team members and clients, and comply with public health orders, while continuing to provide veterinary care. METHODS: We performed reflexive thematic analysis on a subset of data collected using a mixed-methods survey of veterinary team members globally. RESULTS: There were 540 valid responses available for analysis. Low and no-contact euthanasia we raised as a common and/or stressful ethical challenge for 22.8% of respondents. We identified five key themes: no-contact euthanasia as a unique ethical challenge; balancing veterinary team safety with the emotional needs of clients; low and no-contact protocols may cause or exacerbate fear, anxiety and distress in veterinary patients; physical distancing was more challenging during euthanasia consultations; and biosecurity measures complicated communication around euthanasia and end-of-life decision making. RECOMMENDATIONS: In light of concerns highlighted by respondents, we recommend the development of a toolkit of protocols that will assist veterinary team members in performing low-contact euthanasia in a range of circumstances, in alignment with their values and professional ethical codes. Professional bodies may be involved in developing, updating and disseminating this information, and ensuring a continuous supply chain of PPE.

The Initial Months of COVID-19: Dog Owners' Veterinary-Related Concerns.

Veterinarians, like many other professions, were significantly impacted by the onset of COVID-19 in the spring of 2020. Standard practices were disrupted, and veterinary hospitals had to quickly modify standard protocols to safely serve their clients and patients. The purpose of this study was to better understand dog owners' fears and concerns pertaining to veterinary care and obtainment of pet care products and food during the lock down phase of a pandemic to be better prepared to address these concerns now and in the future. To this end, an online, anonymous, cross-sectional survey was designed and distributed to adult dog owners via social media. The results, from a total of 4,105 participants (the majority from the United States and Canada), indicated substantial areas of concern. The number one concern of dog owners during this time was the availability of emergency veterinary care. Owners under 30 years of age, compared to older owners, were significantly more concerned about both availability and cost of veterinary care (emergency and non-emergency). The ability to care for one's dog if they were to become ill was a concern for many owners, yet only 60% had identified a caretaker for their dog if one was needed. These results suggest that the majority of dog owners remained true steadfast guardians of their dogs, continuing to make them a priority, even during pandemic times. Suggestions to help mitigate dog owners' concerns and improve communication between owners and veterinarian teams are offered.

Barriers to Care in Veterinary Services: Lessons Learned From Low-Income Pet Guardians' Experiences at Private Clinics and Hospitals During COVID-19.

This qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences of low-income pet guardians in accessing veterinary care during COVID-19. Participants were recruited through a purposive sampling method: 12 individuals who applied to and met the low-income threshold to access support for veterinary fees from the Vancouver Humane Society (VHS) were invited for semi-structured in-depth telephone interviews. Participants indicated that they experienced pandemic-related barriers related to and compounded by their low-income status. Their experiences fit into three categories: the barriers to accessing veterinary care pre-and peri-COVID-19, the emotional impact of compounding barriers related to accessing veterinary care during COVID-19, and the human-animal bond and resilience in the context of COVID-19. Drawing on the One Health, One Welfare approach, we argue that veterinary and animal services should evaluate and improve their support services, particularly programs developed for low-income pet guardians. Based on the participants' recommendations, we propose that veterinary and animal services prepare for future disaster situations by increasing their financial capacity to support people needing assistance, undergoing training to better work with people experiencing financial and emotional stress, and providing easily accessible resources to better distribute knowledge about animal needs and available financial assistance programming. The suggestions are intended to benefit animals, their guardians, and both veterinary and animal service sector workers.

Effect of COVID-19 on Pet Food Bank Servicing: Quantifying Numbers of Clients Serviced in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside, British Columbia, Canada.

Previous research has focused on the benefits and difficulties of pet ownership in people, who are experiencing homelessness. However, many pet services, such as pet food banks, serve a more varied population of people. Furthermore, the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has not been documented within the context of pet food banks. Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES) population comprises a notable proportion of the city's overall population and has a high density of people who are experiencing financial hardships, but some of whom do not always experience homelessness. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the number of clients and pets that are being serviced by a pet food bank, whether that has changed over time, and if it was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We analyzed available attendance and service records from The British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals pet food bank between 2013 and 2020. We found that a median of 100 clients attended the food bank each week and that most of the companion animals serviced were cats (72.5%), then followed by dogs (25.2%), and rats (1.2%). Servicing was not consistent over time, with a weekly pattern of decreased attendance every fourth week of the month, which coincided with income assistance payments. This suggests that either servicing needs are decreased with income assistance or that the week of the month may present an access to care challenge. We also observed a decrease in the clientele attending in 2020 compared to previous years, suggesting an effect of COVID-19. Specifically, this trend was present for cats, rats, rabbits, and "other" companion animals, but not for dogs; the number of dog owners receiving services did not change in 2020, suggesting a difference between needed services in dog vs. other pet owners. The yearly trends shed light on the impact of COVID-19 on vulnerable populations, highlighting the need for additional support through times of crisis. Overall, the data show a complex relationship between pet service provision and other community issues and highlight the need to consider pet food banks within the greater social services networks.

The New Status Quo: Enhancing Access to Human-Animal Interactions to Alleviate Social Isolation & Loneliness in the Time of COVID-19.

Access to human-animal interactions (HAI) have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Service animals that were trained and accustomed to daily access to public places had to adjust to staying at home. Therapy animals and their handlers who previously visited with many of the populations most vulnerable to the virus have had to halt their programming. Professionals who utilize animal-assisted interventions (AAI) have had to develop new strategies for providing goal-oriented care. Even the landscape for companion animals has been significantly altered, leading to behavioral changes and new practices for pet owners and veterinarians. While animals and their human companions face new challenges, our recognition of the power of the human-animal bond (HAB) has grown, as it provides a vital need for connection during this time of isolation. In this paper, we will not only focus on describing the new status quo related to various kinds of animals and the public's access to HAI, but will also offer suggestions for sharing the human-animal bond during a time in which physical connections are limited. Organizational insights from the service and therapy animal fields will be explored, and findings related to the auspiciousness of new initiatives, such as animal-related engagement (ARE), will be presented. Recommendations for people who share their lives with any of these kinds of animals will be made to ensure both human and animal welfare. Finally, future research and best practices will be suggested, so we can empirically understand and develop these revised offerings to ultimately bring HAI to a wider audience than ever before.

Advancing Human-Animal Interaction to Counter Social Isolation and Loneliness in the Time of COVID-19: A Model for an Interdisciplinary Public Health Consortium.

The mental and physical human costs of social isolation and loneliness-and their possible amelioration through human-animal interaction (HAI)-have both received intense attention since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and its lockdowns, quarantines, and related mitigation measures. Concern about society's "loneliness epidemic", however, predates the pandemic, as does serious inquiry into HAI as a positive intervention. Recognizing the potential of companion animals to make a difference on an important public health issue, the Consortium on Social Isolation and Companion Animals-a novel partnership of the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI) and Mars Petcare-launched a joint initiative in 2019 to advance HAI research, address barriers to HAI, and support best practices in bringing together animals and people to ease loneliness. Beginning with a first-ever summit of multidisciplinary thought leaders, this collaboration has already yielded actionable insights and research projects. As a novel partnership initiative in the HAI field, it offers a promising model for future cross-disciplinary forward thinking to elevate HAI for the mutual benefit of companion animals and their welfare, as well as vulnerable human populations.

The effects of the Spanish COVID-19 lockdown on people, their pets, and the human-animal bond.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the Spanish confinement for the control of the COVID-19 pandemic on the behavior of pet cats and dogs, and the support that pets provided to their owners. We found that the quality of life of owners was strongly influenced by the lifestyle and emotional effects of the confinement, and that pets provided them with substantial support to mitigate those effects. However, pets showed signs of behavioral change that were consistent with stress, with dogs that had pre-existing behavioral problems being the most affected.