Jonathan J. Cooper

Asian small-clawed otters ( Aonyx cinereus ) engage in intricate activities using their paws for purposes such as food extraction, exploration, and tactile communication within their social group. However, some expressions of these behaviours do not appear to be immediately functional in captive populations. Here, we explore the expression of object manipulation behaviours (OMBs), such as rock manipulation (or ‘juggling’); the factors that may be driving their expression; and what OMBs may represent. A troop of six otters was observed at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park (United Kingdom) using camera-traps placed at three key locations in their enclosure: outside of their den, at the main feeding area, and at a rock-garden foraging area. A total of 2895 video clips were analysed using a hierarchical ethogram consisting of the behavioural categories of locomotion, stationary, vocalisation, physical affiliative, sustenance, and OMBs. The most commonly observed behaviours were walking (21.5%), lying (20.8%) and feeding (12.2%). OMBs were observed in 3.9% of total observations. Otters performed OMBs significantly more often outside their den than at the other locations. Grooming was also more frequent at this location. There was a negative association between the expression of OMBs and air temperature. Results suggest that in this otter population, OMBs were more likely an expression of play behaviour, contrasting findings reported elsewhere that rock juggling may be driven by hunger.

Parrots (Psittaciformes) are widely kept in captivity, yet their welfare is under-researched in comparison to other captive species. This study aimed to determine key welfare issues affecting parrots through a modified Delphi approach. Twenty-eight welfare issues were first compiled via a preliminary literature review. Parrot welfare experts and sector professionals (n = 26) were then recruited to participate in an online survey to rank the identified welfare issues on a six-point scale according to severity, duration and prevalence of each issue. Participants could provide commentary on their ranking and propose additional welfare issues of concern. Items with a mean score of 4 or above progressed to a second survey, where participants (n = 14) indicated whether they agreed or disagreed with the current ranking of the welfare issue. Finally, two online workshops were held, where participants (n = 7) discussed the rankings from the second survey and sought to establish a consensus on the top ten welfare issues in each category and overall. Six of the seven final participants agreed with the final rankings, achieving a consensus rate of 86%. The top welfare issues overall were lack of owner knowledge and support; social isolation; housing; environmental opportunity to express behaviours; nutrition; development of normal behaviour; lack of a ‘life plan’ for birds; abnormal behaviours; lack of parrot-specific veterinary training; and insufficient application and enforcement of legislation. It is hoped that identification and recognition of these priority areas will be useful in directing future efforts in research, owner and veterinary education, and policy initiatives to improve parrot welfare.

The public expects zoos to provide high standards of animal care. Failing to meet public expectations can have detrimental impacts on public experiences and behavior, which in turn can compromise zoos’ organizational goals relative to conservation and public education. Despite increased research interest in understanding how the public perceives animal welfare in zoo settings, to date the factors that influence such perceptions are still unclear. To address this gap in knowledge, we conducted a mixed methods systematic review using a PRISMA approach to identify the factors that influence public perceptions of zoo animal welfare and the potential ramifications of these perceptions on public attitudes, experiences, and behaviors. A total of 114 peer reviewed journal articles were analyzed: 43 provided qualitative data for thematic synthesis and 85 reported quantitative data for content analysis. Three main groupings were identified that impacted public perception of animal welfare in zoos: human, animal, and environmental factors. Within the human factors, ethical justifications, direct interactions, and inappropriate visitor behaviors were important. For the animal factors, animals’ behavior, apparent health status, and the suitability of certain taxa for captivity were found to be key. Finally, several aspects of the environment – conditions of the facility, the exhibit, and welfare-related educational material – were influential. Overall, negative perceptions of animal welfare resulted in negative visitor attitudes towards zoos, detrimentally impacted experiences, and lowered likelihood to visit zoos and engagement in conservation efforts. The articles in this review provided valuable insights into the factors affecting public perception of zoo animal welfare; however, future research may benefit from a more structured approach to increase comparability and validity of results across studies. We conclude by proposing seven recommendations to increase the robustness and validity of future research in this area.

Within post‐conflict communities, attempts to identify and repatriate unidentified and missing individuals poses a difficult task. As current forensic strategies commonly lack the capacity to provide region of origin assessments, forensic anthropologists/investigators are often unable to identify sources of DNA for kinship analysis. Using Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry (TIMS), hair samples from 10 volunteers were used to assess the variation in strontium isotope ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) between extant people in Guatemala City and Coban; with a leach (external) and digest (dietary) signal analyzed for each sample. A two‐way anova demonstrated that the difference between ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr of Guatemala City and Coban was statistically significant (F [1, 16] = 259.839, p < 0.05), with no statistically significant differences observed between leach and digest ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (F [1,16] = 4.319, p = 0.054). Overall, individuals from Coban demonstrate ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr comparable to previously recorded baseline values, demonstrating a minimal change in diet which is reflected in associated surveys. Volunteers from Guatemala City, however, show a marked shift in ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr away from predicted values highlighting the potential influence of imported goods. The results here highlight the applicability of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in hair to serve as a potential tool to support the identification of unknown individuals in Guatemala in a forensic context.

This commentary provides an overview of the practical implications of attributing sentience to protect decapods as food, companion and research animals in the UK context. Recognising their capacity to suffer has implications for humane slaughter in farming and fishing sectors. It should also place a greater duty of care on owners of captive decapods, considering their needs and avoiding unnecessary suffering. The recognition of decapod sentience should also have an impact on their protection as research animals, although research with a potential to cause suffering may be needed to better understand decapods’ capacity to suffer.

Response: Commentary: Remote Electronic Training Aids; Efficacy at Deterring Predatory Behavior in Dogs and Implications for Training and Policy

We assessed the efficacy of dog training with and without remote electronic collars compared to training with positive reinforcement. A total of 63 dogs with known off-lead behavioral problems such as poor recall were allocated to one of three training groups (each n = 21), receiving up to 150 min of training over 5 days to improve recall and general obedience. The 3 groups were: E-collar—manufacturer-nominated trainers who used electronic stimuli as part of their training program; Control 1—the same trainers following practices they would apply when not using electronic stimuli; and Control 2—independent, professional trainers who focused primarily on positive reinforcement for their training. Data collection focused on dogs' response to two commands: “Come” (recall to trainer) and “Sit” (place hindquarters on ground). These were the two most common commands used during training, with improving recall being the target behavior for the subject dogs. Measures of training efficacy included number of commands given to elicit the response and response latency. Control 2 achieved significantly better responses to both “Sit” and “Come” commands after a single instruction in the allocated time. These dogs also had shorter response latencies than the E-collar group. There was no significant difference in the proportion of command disobeyed between the three groups, although significantly fewer commands were given to the dogs in Control 2. There was no difference in the number of verbal cues used in each group, but Control 2 used fewer hand and lead signals, and Control 1 made more use of these signals than E-collar group. These findings refute the suggestion that training with an E-collar is either more efficient or results in less disobedience, even in the hands of experienced trainers. In many ways, training with positive reinforcement was found to be more effective at addressing the target behavior as well as general obedience training. This method of training also poses fewer risks to dog welfare and quality of the human-dog relationship. Given these results we suggest that there is no evidence to indicate that E-collar training is necessary, even for its most widely cited indication.

A survey was designed to explore the effect of type classification on perception and expectation of a dog’s behavior. The survey focused on two forms of presentation: the effect of visual image versus breed name in the identification of a breed as a dangerous dog type, and the effect of breed group classification on expectation of a dog’s level of aggressiveness. The findings have serious implications for Staffordshire Bull Terriers. Respondents were over 5 times more likely to misascribe by image alone the Staffordshire Bull Terrier as a dangerous breed as defined under the United Kingdom’s Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. Furthermore, the classification of Terrier attracted high scores in relation to type-specific aggressiveness. These findings highlight the need for more research on personal perception of supposedly dangerous dog breeds to better understand and explain this phenomena, leading to better protection of the public and better welfare outcomes for dogs.

Free-roaming cats are exposed to a variety of risks, including involvement in road traffic accidents. One way of mitigating these risks is to contain cats, for example using an electronic boundary fence system that delivers an electric ‘correction’ via a collar if a cat ignores a warning cue and attempts to cross the boundary. However, concerns have been expressed over the welfare impact of such systems. Our aim was to determine if long-term exposure to an electronic containment system was associated with reduced cat welfare. We compared 46 owned domestic cats: 23 cats that had been contained by an electronic containment system for more than 12 months (AF group); and 23 cats with no containment system that were able to roam more widely (C group). We assessed the cats’ behavioural responses and welfare via four behavioural tests (unfamiliar person test; novel object test; sudden noise test; cognitive bias test) and an owner questionnaire. In the unfamiliar person test, C group lip-licked more than the AF group, whilst the AF group looked at, explored and interacted more with the unfamiliar person than C group. In the novel object test, the AF group looked at and explored the object more than C group. No significant differences were found between AF and C groups for the sudden noise or cognitive bias tests. Regarding the questionnaire, C group owners thought their cats showed more irritable behaviour and AF owners thought that their cats toileted inappropriately more often than C owners. Overall, AF cats were less neophobic than C cats and there was no evidence of significant differences between the populations in general affective state. These findings indicate that an electronic boundary fence with clear pre-warning cues does not impair the long term quality of life of cats.