Partial analytic validation of determination of cortisol in dog hair using a commercial EIA kit

The quantification of cortisol in hair samples is a relatively recent method that has been increasingly used for the evaluation of long-term cortisol secretion and chronic stress levels, in both humans and non-human animals. The use of hair presents many advantages in relation to the use of other biological matrices, e.g. a very low invasiveness of the sample collection. Besides, cortisol analysis in hair samples provides measurements over a long period of time, which can be used as a chronic stress indicator. Nevertheless, the physiology of cortisol in hair and the evaluation of reliable methods for its quantification in hair samples need to be further investigated. The aim of this study was to perform a partial analytical validation for the quantification of cortisol in domestic dog hair samples using a commercially available high sensitivity salivary cortisol enzyme immunoassay kit. Results on both precision and linearity tests were overall favorable, supporting that the kit can be used to reliably measure hair cortisol concentrations in dogs

Optimization of a High–Speed Deployment Slider–Crank Mechanism: A Design Charts Approach

Mechanical and aerospace applications often require that mechanisms deploy in a quick stable and reliable way. The objective of this study is to implement a general optimization procedure to perform a first stage conceptual design of HSD mechanisms, focusing on both kinematics and dynamics. In particular, the authors will focus on the development of design charts. In the very first part of the work, a parametric lumped-mass system will be modeled in order to reduce the number of parameters for the synthesis phase. A correlation will be established between geometry, inertia and initial position to guarantee the maximum value of acceleration during deployment of the deployable arm by means of the principle of virtual work. In the second part of this work, the influence of important factors such as friction and joint clearance on the overall dynamics of the system will be investigated. Finally, a coupled dynamic and structural analysis of the helical spring, that actuates the mechanism, will be carried out in order to achieve optimal performance. The developed charts will also take into account the space limitation requirement, that are often needed for both aerospace and mechanical applications. A final example will summarize all the points covered by this research effort. Results will be validated using the commercial software ABAQUS.</jats:p

The Welfare of Fighting Dogs: Wounds, Neurobiology of Pain, Legal Aspects and the Potential Role of the Veterinary Profession

Throughout history it has been common to practice activities which significantly impact on animal welfare. Animal fighting, including dogfighting, is a prime example where animals often require veterinary care, either to treat wounds and fractures or to manage pain associated with tissue and where death may even result. Amongst the detrimental health effects arising are the sensory alterations that these injuries cause, which not only include acute or chronic pain but can also trigger a greater sensitivity to other harmful (hyperalgesia) or even innocuous stimuli (allodynia). These neurobiological aspects are often ignored and the erroneous assumption made that the breeds engaged in organized fighting have a high pain threshold or, at least, they present reduced or delayed responses to painful stimuli. However, it is now widely recognized that the damage these dogs suffer is not only physical but psychological, emotional, and sensory. Due to the impact fighting has on canine welfare, it is necessary to propose solution strategies, especially educational ones, i.e., educating people and training veterinarians, the latter potentially playing a key role in alerting people to all dog welfare issues. Therefore, the aim of this review is to describe the risk factors associated with dogfighting generally (dog temperament, age, sex, nutrition, testosterone levels, environment, isolation conditions, socialization, education, or training). A neurobiological approach to this topic is taken to discuss the impact on dog pain and emotion. Finally, a general discussion of the format of guidelines and laws that seek to sanction them is presented. The role that veterinarians can play in advancing dog welfare, rehabilitating dogs, and educating the public is also considered

Cat-Owner Relationship and Cat Behaviour : Effects of the COVID-19 Confinement and Implications for Feline Management

The aim of this study was to explore the effects of the Italian COVID-19 lockdown on the cat-owner relationship and on cat behaviour. In order to do so, we used a questionnaire to obtain information on the owner and cat's demographics, living environment, cat behaviour, and possible changes in some aspects of the cat-owner relationship. The questionnaire was distributed online when the lockdown was still ongoing and was completed by 548 cat owners, mainly women. Our findings suggest that the greater amount of time that owners spent at home with their cats, as a consequence of the social restrictions, had a positive effect on the owner's perception of their relationship with their cat (e.g., higher frequency of interaction, greater emotional closeness, reduced perceived costs of caring for the cat). Similarly, the lockdown seemed to have improved the welfare of many cats, as suggested by the positive changes in many of their behaviours, even for those cats with pre-existing behavioural problems. Overall, our findings suggest that the lockdown provided many cats with a more thriving physical and social environment. They also highlight the need to reconsider some cat management practices commonly implemented in non-exceptional circumstances. The restrictive measures implemented to stem the spread of COVID-19 abruptly changed the lives of many cats and their owners. This study explored whether the lockdown in Italy affected the cat-owner relationship, as well as cat behaviour and welfare. A survey that included questions on owner and cat's demographics, living environment, cat behaviour and a modified version of the Cat/Dog Relationship Scale (C/DORS) was distributed online during the lockdown and was completed by 548 cat owners, mainly women (81.6%). With regard to the C/DORS subscales, both emotional closeness and cat-owner interactions increased during confinement, as opposed to a reduction in perceived costs. The effect of the type of job, family role and owner's age on the C/DORS scores suggests that the relationship improved for those owners that, due to the lockdown, increased the time spent with their cats. For 58.8% of respondents, their cat's general behaviour did not change, but when changes occurred, they were mostly positive (20.4%). Attention-seeking and demanding behaviours were the most increased during lockdown (25.7%). Cats with pre-existing problematic behaviours tended to either remain stable or improve during confinement. The overall positive effects of lockdown-related environmental changes on a cat's behaviour suggest that some aspects of commonly implemented cat management practices should be revised to improve cat welfare in normal circumstances

Dogs and humans respond to emotionally competent stimuli by producing different facial actions

The commonality of facial expressions of emotion has been studied in different species since Darwin, with most of the research focusing on closely related primate species. However, it is unclear to what extent there exists common facial expression in species more phylogenetically distant, but sharing a need for common interspecific emotional understanding. Here we used the objective, anatomically-based tools, FACS and DogFACS (Facial Action Coding Systems), to quantify and compare human and domestic dog facial expressions in response to emotionally-competent stimuli associated with different categories of emotional arousal. We sought to answer two questions: Firstly, do dogs display specific discriminatory facial movements in response to different categories of emotional stimuli? Secondly, do dogs display similar facial movements to humans when reacting in emotionally comparable contexts? We found that dogs displayed distinctive facial actions depending on the category of stimuli. However, dogs produced different facial movements to humans in comparable states of emotional arousal. These results refute the commonality of emotional expression across mammals, since dogs do not display human-like facial expressions. Given the unique interspecific relationship between dogs and humans, two highly social but evolutionarily distant species sharing a common environment, these findings give new insight into the origin of emotion expression

On the constraints violation in forward dynamics of multibody systems

It is known that the dynamic equations of motion for constrained mechanical multibody systems are frequently formulated using the Newton-Euler’s approach, which is augmented with the acceleration constraint equations. This formulation results in the establishment of a mixed set of partial differential and algebraic equations, which are solved in order to predict the dynamic behavior of general multibody systems. The classical resolution of the equations of motion is highly prone to constraints violation because the position and velocity constraint equations are not fulfilled. In this work, a general and comprehensive methodology to eliminate the constraints violation at the position and velocity levels is offered. The basic idea of the described approach is to add corrective terms to the position and velocity vectors with the intent to satisfy the corresponding kinematic constraint equations. These corrective terms are evaluated as function of the Moore-Penrose generalized inverse of the Jacobian matrix and of the kinematic constraint equations. The described methodology is embedded in the standard method to solve the equations of motion based on the technique of Lagrange multipliers. Finally, the effectiveness of the described methodology is demonstrated through the dynamic modeling and simulation of different planar and spatial multibody systems. The outcomes in terms of constraints violation at the position and velocity levels, conservation of the total energy and computational efficiency are analyzed and compared with those obtained with the standard Lagrange multipliers method, the Baumgarte stabilization method, the augmented Lagrangian formulation, the index-1 augmented Lagrangian and the coordinate partitioning method.The first author expresses his gratitude to the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology through the PhD grant (PD/BD/114154/2016). This work has been supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology with the reference project UID/EEA/04436/2013, by FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 – Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) with the reference project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006941.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Defining Terms Used for Animals Working in Support Roles for People with Support Needs

This is the final version. Available on open access from MDPI via the DOI in this recordData Availability Statement: De-identified qualitative data can be made available by contacting the lead author.The nomenclature used to describe animals working in roles supporting people can be confusing. The same term may be used to describe different roles, or two terms may mean the same thing. This confusion is evident among researchers, practitioners, and end users. Because certain animal roles are provided with legal protections and/or government-funding support in some jurisdictions, it is necessary to clearly define the existing terms to avoid confusion. The aim of this paper is to provide operationalized definitions for nine terms, which would be useful in many world regions: "assistance animal", "companion animal", "educational/school support animal", "emotional support animal", "facility animal", "service animal", "skilled companion animal", "therapy animal", and "visiting/visitation animal". At the International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) conferences in 2018 and 2020, over 100 delegates participated in workshops to define these terms, many of whom co-authored this paper. Through an iterative process, we have defined the nine terms and explained how they differ from each other. We recommend phasing out two terms (i.e., "skilled companion animal" and "service animal") due to overlap with other terms that could potentially exacerbate confusion. The implications for several regions of the world are discussed