Liana R. Moss

Conversation-based companion animal adoption policies have been used by U.S. animal rehoming organizations since the 1990s. These policies differ from traditional adoption approaches that often use screenings or restrictions to determine adopter suitability. Personal accounts indicate that adopter experiences vary significantly depending on the adoption policies an organization uses and therefore should not be assessed collectively. With recent research indicating that conversation-based policies may lead to more equitable access to the human–animal bond, there is a need to understand how these specific policies are experienced by adopters. This study used a phenomenological approach to understand how adopters perceive conversation-based adoption policies. The researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with 30 community members at the Wisconsin Humane Society Milwaukee Campus. Participants described a consistent adoption experience, highlighting strengths, aspects for improvement, and how they view such policies affecting their community. Moreover, participants identified key aspects of the organization’s adoption policies that both allow for and could be expanded to create more equitable access to the human–animal bond. Animal shelters and rescues should use these findings to optimize community participation in adoption programs and advance animal welfare.

The research on the relationships between free-roaming dogs, also referred to as reservation dogs or rez dogs, and Indigenous communities is extremely limited. This study aimed to document the cultural significance of rez dogs, challenges related to rez dogs, and community-specific solutions for rez dog issues affecting community health and safety from members of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara (MHA) Nation, also referred to as the Three Affiliated Tribes (TAT), who live on the Fort Berthold reservation in North Dakota, U.S.A. One hour semi-structured interviews with 14 community members of the MHA Nation were conducted in 2016. The interviews were analyzed via systematic and inductive coding using Gadamer’s hermeneutical phenomenology. The primary intervention areas described by the participants included: culturally relevant information sharing, improved animal control policies and practices, and improved access to veterinary care and other animal services.

Very little is known about the prevalence, scope, and methods of community engagement employed by animal control and field services officers to address the issue of animal cruelty and neglect. This study used a phenomenological approach to understand how officers defined community engagement. The researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with twenty-nine animal control and field services officers. The definitions of community engagement varied greatly across this sample of U.S. officers. However, most officers agreed that strategies such as relationship-building, providing assistance or information, and allowing time for compliance were among the most effective community engagement strategies. In addition, several barriers to incorporating community engagement strategies in the work of animal control professionals were identified. Future research and policymaking should seek to establish a consistent definition of community engagement in animal control and field services that can then be optimized for specific communities through rigorous evaluation.