Midterm 2: Animal Shelters Flashcards
7 steps of animal flow through a shelter
- Source
- stray, owner surrender, return, agency transfer, shelter offspring, animal protection cases, other - Incoming
- file creation, behaviour and medical info collection, ID tracing - Medical Entry Exam
- health screening, vaccination, “track” placement - Behaviour Testing
- behaviour screening, case management, recommendations - Surgery
- spay/neuter, special surgeries - Adoption Process
- shelter, foster, interview - Post Adoptive Support
- training, pamphlets, impacts
*Non-Adoption Outcomes
- Transfer, euthanasia, return to owner
What are the shelter admission processes?
- managed intake
- ID verification
- Animal file creation
- Identifier
- Microchip/tattoo info
- Facility entrance date
- Species, age, sex, colour, breed
- Medical history
- Behaviour history
Why do shelters conduct entry exams?
“Full assessments when the animals come in”
- Animals enter with various health statuses
- Unknown health histories in many cases
- Maintain ‘herd health’
- screen for disease
- vaccination - Identify animal’s next steps
- medication intervention
- behaviour evaluation
- euthanasia
What do behaviour evaluations attempt to identify?
- identify risk level
- make rehoming recommendations
- improved adoption matching
What do ideal temperament tests include?
- Valid: Does the test correctly identify behaviour?
- Reliable: Is the test repeatable with the same result and do different testers get the same result?
- Feasible: Can the test be done with available resources?
What are 4 behaviour evaluation test types?
- Test batteries
- Expert opinion
- Behaviour history
- Daily observation
Test type: Test Batteries
Description
- Set of standardized stimuli administered and responses recorded
Example
- SAFER
Validity
- Mostly unknown; due to embargos
Reliability
- High; because there may be less outcomes
Feasibility
- Moderate; depends on the test, if it takes a lot of resources then it is low
Test type: Expert Opinion
Description
- Rating and recommendations by a expert based on experience
Example
- Veterinarian assessment of case
- Behaviourist consult
Validity
- Low
Reliability
- Low
Feasibility
- High
Test Type: Behaviour History
Description
- Recommendations based on owner completed questionnaires
Example
- C-BARQ
Validity
- Mostly unknown
- C-BARQ however is validated
Reliability
- Low
Feasibility
- High to Low; high if short, low if it involves a lot of resources
Test Type: Daily Observation
Description
- Notes based on observations made by staff and volunteers as animals go through daily routine
Example
- Behaviour journaling
Validity
- Mostly unknown
Reliability
- Low; what one individual nots may differ from another
Feasibility
- Moderate
What are the 4 pros and 6 cons to Test Batteries used as behaviour evaluation?
Pros
- standardized
- reduced subjectivity
- measurable
- each dog viewed as an individual
Cons
- requires training and time
- behaviour may not reflect behaviour in a home
- shelter stress can alter test results
- behaviour can change over time
- some behaviour not testable in shelter
- fast
What are 2 pros and 3 cons to expert opinions used for behaviour evaluation?
Pros
- quick
- low stress on animals
Cons
- risk of bias
- no definition of an expert
- opinions can vary widely
What are 4 pros and 3 cons to behaviour history used as a behaviour evaluation?
Pros
- behaviour history from real life situations
- covers behaviours not testable in shelter
- minimal resource usage
- low stress on animals
Cons
- applicable only to owner surrenders
- owners may not accurately identify behaviour
- owners may misrepresent behaviour intentionally
What are 2 pros and 4 cons of daily observation used for behaviour evaluation?
Pros
- low stress on animals
- observation in real life situations
Cons
- time intensive
- may not see all behaviour
- in shelter behaviour may vary
- extended observation period
What does behaviour and physical in shelter care look like?
Behaviour
1. Daily monitoring
2. Socialization
- ppl
- animals
3. Enrichment
- food
- social
- environmental
Physical
- 9 minutes per day for cleaning
- 6 minutes per day for feeding
- medical checks
- elimination tracking
What is often a limiting factor in shelter flow through?
Surgery
What are specialized surgery considerations?
- Recovery
- Resource usage
- Is treatment humane?
Adoption placement types
- Adoption floor (open vs closed)
- Foster based
- Back of shelter
How to improve how animals “show”
- Home environments
- Training
Intensive adoption processes
- long questionnaires
- home visits
- screening
- “meet your match”
Adoption conversation processes
- conversation based
- focused mostly on answering questions
- open ended questions
- less rigorous
- “adopters welcome program”
Adopter Support
- Preadoption counselling resources followed but do not prevent behaviour problems
- Follow up calls and surveys allow support before problem behaviours become unacceptable
- Training classes aid in pet integration but few adopters participate even if free
- Limited feasibility to deliver due to resources required
What are 4 important points about euthanasia?
- Prevents release of dangerous animals into the community
- Provides humane release from severe illness, injury or distress
- In some circumstances it is the best option for animals that have poor quality of life
- Must be done in a humane manner
