Understanding Shelter Animal Behavior:
Now more important than ever!
Amy Marder, VMD, CAAB
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine
At Tufts University
Historical Perspective
• PAST*
• PRESENT
• FUTURE
*Steve Zawistowski
The Past*
Drowning
Drowningof
of Strays
Strays*
Drowning
Strays
ASPCAof
1866*
Henry Bergh mourns the strays
Drowning
of Strays
City Refuge*
Accepted Philadelphia’s strays and
unwanted dogs and cats
First humane animal shelter
Provided medical treatment
Placement into new homes
Humane Euthanasia
Drowning
of Strays
New York
City Trend
(1894-1994)*
Drowning
of Strays
Program
Developments*
Drowning
of Strays
Program
Developments*
1946 – Post WWII veterinary
focus on companion animals
Dr. Mark Morris
1970s – emphasis on spayneuter to control populations
1974 – A modest proposal
Drowning
of Strays
Applied
Animal
Behavior
1974 – Tuber, Hothersall and Voith. Animal Clinical
Psychology: A modest Proposal. American Psychologist.
1976 - American Society of Veterinary Ethology
1980s – Behavior programs appear at animal shelters
1991 – Animal Behavior Society Certification for Applied
Animal Behaviorists
1993 – American College of Veterinary Behavior
Drowning
of Strays
Applied
Animal Behavior
in Shelters
1974 – Tuber, Dayton .
1980s – Zawistowski, Hetts behavior programs appear at
animal shelters (ASPCA, DDFL)
1993 - 2004 National Council on Pet Population
1998 - Center for Behavioral Therapy ASPCA
2001- Animal Rescue League of Boston
2006 - Center for Shelter Dogs
The
Present
The
Present
Changing World for Shelter Dogs
• Fewer dogs are being handled by shelters
• Reluctance to euthanize for space
•Desire to eliminate avoidable euthanasia
• More need to identify and manage behaviors
•More dogs being handled by less structured, grass-roots
networks (rescue, foster, transport)
•Dogs are being transported
•Internet has made dog rescue global and desirable
The Need is Great
• Many shelters are evaluating dog and cat
behavior
• Shelters are being pressured to do evaluations
and institute behavioral programs
• Behavior evaluations are not or only partially
validated and the effectiveness of enrichment and
behavior treatment programs is hardly known
• Predictability of behavior evaluations
• Effectiveness of JM program
The Time is Right
• Growing expertise in companion animal behavior
(CAAB, ACAAB, DACVB, CPDT)
• Increased volume and quality of scientific
literature on shelter animal behavior (journals, online journals)
• Textbook on shelter behavior
• Ability to keep statistics
• Great interest in modifying behavior
8
7
2008
6
2009
5
2010
4
2011
3
2012
2
2013
1
2014
0
Published articles
The Time is Right
• Great interest in measuring and understanding
the influence of stress on behavior
• Great interest in debunking shelter myths
• Black dogs
• Getting pets as gifts
• Identifying breeds
• Associating behavior and breed
• Treating each animal as an individual
•“Because every dog is different”
The FUTURE
• Use what we have learned and will learn to save
more animals lives
• Food aggression
• Behavior evaluations
• Play groups
• Work together to leave our old ways and
establish new ways based on research
•Shelters
•Universities
•Coalitions
•Organizations
Thank you for your attention!