Maddie’s® Insights is our ongoing webcast series with practical tips based on current research to help pets and people. Join us on Thursday, January 9, 2025 at 12PM PT/3PM ET for “Benefits of Pair-Housing Dogs on Welfare Measures and Length of Stay.” Dr. Erica Feuerbacher, Associate Professor in the School of Animal Sciences at Virginia Tech and director of the Applied Animal Behavior & Welfare Lab will present.
Dr. Feuerbacher and her team investigated the behavioral and physiological effects of single- or pair-housing shelter dogs, most of which had recently entered the shelter, as well as the impact of pair-housing on length of stay. In this talk, Dr. Feuerbacher will review the literature on cohousing dogs, go into detail on her study methods and results, and discuss the benefits and practical considerations of pair-housing dogs.
Dogs are often housed alone in shelter settings to reduce injury and disease spread. However, social isolation can be a stressor for dogs. Most prior studies have focused on laboratory dogs or shelter dogs that have been kenneled for several months. Thus, those results might not necessarily generalize to shelter dogs, many of which have shorter lengths of stay than those dogs studied to date and might be cohoused soon after intake.
What you will takeaway:
- Identify behavioral and physiological benefits of pair housing
- Identify adoption benefits of pair housing
- Understand the requirements to consider using pair housing safely
This webcast has been pre-approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by the National Animal Care & Control Association. It has also been approved for 1 hour of continuing education credit in jurisdictions which recognize the Registry of Approved Continuing Education (RACE) approval.
Can’t attend live? Register anyway and you will get a link to the recording after the webcast.