Digital Commons Network^™

Inspiring Change

HSUS Annual Reports 2005-18

No abstract provided.

How You Can Help

HSUS Annual Reports 2005-18

No abstract provided.

Building A Humane Economy

HSUS Annual Reports 2005-18

No abstract provided.

Outdoor Cats: An Animal Welfare And Protection Perspective, John Hadidian, Inga Gibson, Susan Hagood, Nancy Peterson, Bernard Unti, Betsy Mcfarland, Katie Lisnik, Heather Bialy, Inga Fricke, Kathleen Schatzmann, Jennifer Fearing, Pam Runquist, Andrew N. Rowan (Ed.)

Stray and Feral Animal Populations Collection

First raised as a serious conservation issue more than 100 years ago, the impact of free-roaming cats on wildlife has been a subject of debate, controversy, and conflict since then. Cats have been tied directly to the extinction of sensitive species in island environments and implicated as major threats to certain wildlife populations elsewhere. Yet the study of free-roaming cats and the problems attributed to them lags behind the standards of research typical with more traditional vertebrate “pest” species. Alternative management approaches, ranging from traditional practices such as removal and depopulation to emerging concepts such as Trap- Neuter-Return (TNR), have …

Coyotes Among Us, Karen E. Lange

Serial - All Animals 2009-15

“If coyotes want to live in cities, they’re going to live in cities,” says researcher Stanley Gehrt. Animal advocates, scientists, and government officials are eschewing lethal methods in favor of changing our own behavior as the best hope for coexistence with this adaptable predator.

Unforgettable

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

Shots and stories of your most memorable animals.

Do Wild Baboons Kidnap Puppies For Pets?, Harold Herzog

Herzog - Wildlife Issues

A video of dogs living with baboons in Taif, Saudi Arabia is described and analyzed to determine if the dogs are simply associating with the baboons for mutual benefit or if they are more pet-like.

A Scientific Mystery: Do Wild Baboons Kidnap Puppies For Pets?, Harold Herzog

Interactive Behavior Collection

Do wild baboons really keep puppies for pets?

The Animal Research Paradox, Harold Herzog

Laboratory Research and Animal Welfare Collection

Does empathy give rats moral standing?

The Animal Research Paradox, Harold Herzog

Herzog - Animal policy and attitudes

The article describes the paradox that research on animals has led to a much greater understanding of animal empathy and feelings providing evidence that research on at least some animals should not be conducted.

Forbidden Foods: Does Loving Pets Make It Easier To Eat Meat?, Harold Herzog

Dietary Choice and Foods of Animal Origin Collection

A new theory of meat taboos.

Forbidden Foods: Does Loving Pets Make It Easier To Eat Meat?, Harold Herzog

Herzog - Dietary Issues

The article describes a new theory that proposes that doting on pets may atone for our consumption of other animals. But, in the end, the author suggests that the theory my not reflect actual human behavior.

A Non-Invasive Assay For Monitoring Stress Responses: A Comparison Between Wild And Captive-Reared Rainbowfish (Melanoteania Duboulayi), Amina Zuberi, Sinan Ali, Culum Brown

Aquaculture Collection

The stress response of wild and captive reared rainbowfish (Melanoteania duboulayi) following chasing by a simulated predator was examined. Cortisol release rate was monitored using a flow through system by measuring water borne hormone levels. Tests using known cortisol concentrations revealed that the technique yielded 95% of the cortisol present in the water. Cortisol release rates increased several fold in both populations after being chased but peaked at different time periods. Wild fish showed a typical stress response with release rate rising to (2.29±0.22 ng g⁻¹ h⁻¹) 2 h after exposure followed by rapid recovery. The captive-reared …

Animal Pain: What It Is And Why It Matters, Bernard E. Rollin

Animal Welfare Collection

The basis of having a direct moral obligation to an entity is that what we do to that entity matters to it. The ability to experience pain is a sufficient condition for a being to be morally considerable. But the ability to feel pain is not a necessary condition for moral considerability. Organisms could have possibly evolved so as to be motivated to flee danger or injury or to eat or drink not by pain, but by ‘‘pangs of pleasure’’ that increase as one fills the relevant need or escapes the harm. In such a world, ‘‘mattering’’ would be positive, …

Lessons From Chimpanzee-Based Research On Human Disease: The Implications Of Genetic Differences, Jarrod Bailey

Laboratory Experiments Collection

Assertions that the use of chimpanzees to investigate human diseases is valid scientifically are frequently based on a reported 98–99% genetic similarity between the species. Critical analyses of the relevance of chimpanzee studies to human biology, however, indicate that this genetic similarity does not result in sufficient physiological similarity for the chimpanzee to constitute a good model for research, and furthermore, that chimpanzee data do not translate well to progress in clinical practice for humans. Leading examples include the minimal citations of chimpanzee research that is relevant to human medicine, the highly different pathology of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C virus …

New Books For Intelligent Animal Lovers, Harold Herzog

Human-Animal Bonds Collection

New books for animal lovers.

New Books For Intelligent Animal Lovers, Harold Herzog

Herzog - Animal policy and attitudes

The article reviews several recently published books discussing human-animal interactions and some that are simply cute.

Was Hitler A Vegetarian? The Paradox Of The Nazi Animal Protection Movement, Harold Herzog

Dietary Choice and Foods of Animal Origin Collection

What can we learn from Hitler's love of animals?

Was Hitler A Vegetarian? The Nazi Animal Protection Movement, Harold Herzog

Herzog - Dietary Issues

The article discusses the attitudes of the Nazi Party in Germany to the treatment of animals and their opposition to a range of animal uses. For example, the Nazis insisted on the humane euthanasia of pets while gassing millions of people labeled as undesirables in the concentration camps.

Learned Recognition And Avoidance Of Invasive Mosquitofish By The Shrimp, Paratya Australiensis, Joshua D. Bool, Kristen Whitcomb, Erin Kydd, Culum Brown

Sentience Collection

Little is known about the learning ability of crustaceans, especially with respect to their anti-predator responses to invasive species. In many vertebrates, anti-predator behaviour is influenced by experience during ontogeny. Here, predator-naïve glass shrimp (Paratya australiensisis) were exposed to a predatory, invasive fish species, Gambusia holbrooki, to determine whether shrimp could learn to: (1) avoid the scent of Gambusia via classical conditioning; and (2) restrict their activity patterns to the night to reduce predatory encounters. Conditioned shrimp were placed in containers in aquaria containing Gambusia for 3 days during which time they could be harassed but not consumed by Gambusia. …

Harnessing Opportunities In Non-Animal Asthma Research For A 21st-Century Science, Gemma L. Buckland

Experimentation Collection

The incidence of asthma is on the increase and calls for research are growing, yet asthma is a disease that scientists are still trying to come to grips with. Asthma research has relied heavily on animal use; however, in light of increasingly robust in vitro and computational models and the need to more fully incorporate the ‘Three Rs’ principles of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement, is it time to reassess the asthma research paradigm? Progress in non-animal research techniques is reaching a level where commitment and integration are necessary. Many scientists believe that progress in this field rests on linking disciplines …

The Evolution Of Lateralized Foot Use In Parrots: A Phylogenetic Approach, Culum Brown, Maria Magat

Sentience Collection

Cerebral lateralization refers to the division of cognitive function in either brain hemisphere and may be overtly expressed as behavioral asymmetries, such as handedness. The evolutionary history of laterality is of considerable interest due to its close link with the development of human language. Although considerable research effort has aimed at the proximate explanations of cerebral lateralization, considerably less attention has been paid to ultimate explanations. The extent to which laterality is constrained by phylogeny or shaped by ecological forces through natural selection has received little attention. Here, the foot preference of 23 species of Australian parrots was examined to …

Four Types Of Activities That Affect Animals: Implications For Animal Welfare Science And Animal Ethics Philosophy, D. Fraser, A. M. Macrae

Ethnozoology and Animal Welfare Collection

People affect animals through four broad types of activity: (1) people keep companion, farm, laboratory and captive wild animals, often while using them for some purpose; (2) people cause deliberate harm to animals through activities such as slaughter, pest control, hunting, and toxicology testing; (3) people cause direct but unintended harm to animals through crop production, transportation, night-time lighting, and many other human activities; and (4) people harm animals indirectly by disturbing ecological systems and the processes of nature, for example by destroying habitat, introducing foreign species, and causing pollution and climate change. Each type of activity affects vast numbers …

Letterbox

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

No abstract provided.

Coffee Break

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

What do you think is the best approach to adoptions?

Are there certain requirements organizations should never budge on?

What are the most important things to do when interviewing potential adopters?

Scoop

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

• Rescued from a hoarding case, these dogs are now thriving
• An abandoned cat in Oregon goes from a locked storage unit to a loving home
• An animal welfare advocate from Brazil learns the ropes at the ASPCA
• Vermont humane investigator branches out into innovative wildlife control business
• Nonprofit battles pet overpopulation in rural Eastern Pennsylvania
• Court decision emphasizes right of animal welfare volunteers, especially fosterers, to deduct expenses
• Trends in animal welfare salaries

Lives On The Line

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

Animal control and welfare work can be dangerous. How can we reduce the risks?

Finding The Alpha Dog

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

How to land a great executive director for your shelter

Kitten Up!

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

The ASV Guidelines in Real Life, Part Four: The Foster On-Deck System at the ARL of Boston

Playing With A Purpose

Animal Sheltering 2010-12

Aimee Sadler shows shelters how to socialize dogs through play groups