One of the most enduring myths about our pets is that housecats need to be allowed to roam free in our neighborhoods.  The fact is, they don’t.  In fact, being let outdoors will shorten their lives, along with those of a lot of other animals.

Studies of the life expectancy of roaming cats vary, with some claiming that their life expectancy is as low as two to five years (Watson, nd; Loyd et al, 2013a), however this is complicated by the difficulty that researchers have in distinguishing between feral cats, strays and pets that are allowed to roam outside the house.  But all of these cats face the same dangers and threats to their health and lives.

The leading cause of death for roaming cats is by automobiles (Tan, Stellato & Niel, 2020).  Lesser, but still serious risks are becoming trapped or lost, drinking dangerous substances, being poisoned, fighting with other cats or wildlife, or being preyed upon by wild predators, such as foxes, coyotes or raptors (Loyd et al, 2013a).  They are also at high risk for exposure to diseases and parasites, many of which can be passed to their human families, such as tularemia, rabies, ringworm and other human-transmissible pathogens or parasites (Gerhold & Jessup, 2012).  One of the greatest threats to human health from free-roaming cats is toxoplasmosis, an intestinal microorganism that can spread throughout households from an infected cat (Aguirre, et al, 2019).  All of these factors represent serious threats to their health and well-being and significantly shortens the life expectancy of any cats that are allowed to freely roam their neighborhoods.

And there is also the damage they inflict on other animals.  Unlike dogs, cats have been domesticated for only a few thousand years and have retained their predatory instincts to a much greater extent.  When allowed to roam, they’ll establish a range of up to 1,500 meters from their homes and spend much of their time hunting (Nicholas, 2019).   And they are efficient killers of the birds and small animals that make up the ecosystem we live in.  A 2012 study showed

Cats retain their predatory instincts and will stalk and kill small animals regardless of how well they are fed at home.

that cats will actively engage in hunting small prey regardless of how well fed they are at home (Kitts-Morgan, Parsons & Hilburn, 2014) and, on average, will kill two prey animals per week (Loyd et al, 2013b).  A 2016 study of animals admitted to a Virginia wildlife hospital showed that cat attacks were the second leading cause of small birds and animals being treated (Mcruer, Gray, Horne & Clark, 2016).

The bottom line is that allowing your cats to roam not only endangers them and shortens their lives significantly, it places you and your family at risk for diseases and parasites.  They also prey on small birds and animals, and represent a risk to the ecosystems in our towns and neighborhoods.  There is no good reason to allow them out of the house, and every reason to keep them indoors.

If you have a cat that has been allowed to roam and would like to make the transition to keeping him indoors, The Wildlife Center of Virginia has published a step by step guide to accomplish this:  Steps to Bring Your Outdoor Cat Indoors | The Wildlife Center of Virginia

References

Aguirre, A.A., Longcore, T., Barbieri, M. et al (2019). The One Health Approach to Toxoplasmosis: Epidemiology, Control, and Prevention Strategies. EcoHealth 16, 378–390. doi.org/10.1007/s10393-019-01405-7

Gerhold, R. W. and Jessup, D. A. (2012).  Zoonotic Diseases Associated with Free-Roaming Cats.  Zoonoses and Public Health 60 (3). doi 10.1111/j.1863-2378.2012.01522.x.

Kitts-Morgan, S., Parsons, E. and Hilburn, K. A. (2014). Sustainable Ecosystems:  Free-Ranging Cats and Their Effect on Wildlife Populations.  Paper presented at the 2014 ADSA-ASAS-CSAS Joint Annual Meeting

Loyd, R. A., Hernandez, S. M., Shock, B. C., Abernathy, K. J. and Marshall, G. J. (2013a).  Risk Behaviors Exhibited by Free-Roaming Cats in a Suburban US Town.  Veterinary Record (2013).  Doi:  10.1136/vr.101222

Loyd, R. A., Hernandez, S. M., Carroll, J. P., Abernathy, K. J. and Marshall, G. J. (2013b).  Quantifying Free-Roaming Domestic Cat Predation Using Animal-Borne Video Cameras.  Biological Conservations 160. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2013.01.008

Mcruer, D. L., Gray, L. C., Horne, L. and Clark, E. E. (2016).  Free-Roaming Cat Interactions with Wildlife Admiited to a Wildlife Hospital.  The Journal of Wildlife Management 81 (1).  pp 163-173.  doi:  10.1002/jwmg,21181

Nicholas, J. (2019). What Cats Do When They’re Out at Night.  Preventive Vet.  Retrieved from What Cats Do When They’re Out at Night (preventivevet.com)

Tan, S. M. L., Stellato, A. C. and Niel, L. (2020).  Uncontrolled Outdoor Access for Cats:  An Assessment of Risks and Benefits.  Animals 10 (258).  doi:  10.3390/ani10020258

Watson, S. (nd) Should You Have an Indoor Cat or an Outdoor Cat?  WebMD.  Retrieved from Indoor Vs. Outdoor Cats: Health and Safety (webmd.com)

It’s Tick Season

If you live pretty much anywhere in the United States, you are in tick country.  These little parasite arachnids are not only a pest, they present a serious health risk for both humans and their pets.  There are numerous tick species in the US that present varying levels of threats to us, our pets and wildlife (Mayo Clinic, 2021).   I’ll be discussing what they are and how they feed in for a little bit; if you’re a little squeamish you might want to skip down a couple of paragraphs.

What are they?

Basically, they’re bloodsuckers.  They are opportunistic feeders that are found in tall grass, low-hanging bushes and leaf litter, along the edges of wooded areas and in gardens; that will crawl onto any animal that brushes up against the plant material they’re using at the time (New York State, 2011).  Once a tick finds itself on a promising host animal, it will crawl to a protected area on that animals skin and plant its mouth into the skin.  The tick then injects its saliva into the bite, alternating with sucking blood from its victim.  The saliva facilitates feeding by suppressing any local pain or immune system response, allowing it to remain attached and feeding for days at a time.  This saliva also acts as a transmission mechanism for various tick-borne pathogens (Bonnet, Kazimírová, Richardson & Šimo, 2018).  The tick will remain attached for up to 10 days, while it becomes engorged on its hosts blood before dropping off.

Aside from feeding off their hosts, ticks present a serious danger.  They are a disease vector for a number of diseases, such as Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, along with others, that can affect both us and our pets (CDC, 2020).  These illnesses are contracted by the ticks’ victims as the ticks remain attached while feeding.

How to Prevent Tick Bites

There are a number of things you can do to protect your pets from ticks:

First off:  Keep your lawns mowed and gardens trimmed to reduce the risk of ticks being present in them.  Clear any piles of leaves or brush.  Don’t allow your pets to roam in areas where ticks are likely to be found. If possible, put a fence around your yard to prevent deer from visiting and depositing ticks.

Second:  If your pets have been in an area with low plants or high grass, check them for ticks.  In fact, check them regularly.   As I said above, ticks tend to attach themselves to dogs in protected areas, including in the ears, around the base of the tail, under their front legs, on their bellies, and a few others (CDC, 2019).  Your pets can also be treated with topical sprays and powders to kill any ticks they may have picked up.  However, you should consult your veterinarian before using any such preventatives regularly.

Third:  Have your veterinarian prescribe a flea and tick preventative and keep your pets on them year-round.  It is important to follow your vets’ advice in this and obtain these medications from a trusted source.

• Your vet should be fully knowledgeable of any medications that your dogs is currently taking and is the best source for understanding the risks to your dog. He is in the best position to know what particular flea and tick medications should be prescribed.  For example, collies and related breeds often have a genetic anomaly that causes a deadly reaction to the drug Ivermectin; and preventatives that contain Ivermectin should be avoided in dogs with this genetic condition.  Your vet will be able to ensure that you are using safe and effective preventatives.  Also, as discussed in my March 2021 article on Seresto collars (March, 2021 | The Animal Nerd), medications are also prescribed based on your dogs size and related factors.  This is something that is best left to professionals.
• There have been frequent reports of counterfeit pet medications being marketed to pet owners, with ingredients that can range from being completely ineffective to downright dangerous. Use trusted sources, such as your veterinarian or a reputable pharmacy for flea and tick preventatives, along with all of your pets’ other medications (EPA, 2004).
• Another reason to use veterinarian-prescribed preventatives from trusted sources is that they are proven effective and safe. There are a number of internet sources that cite “natural” or “home-made” tick preventatives, with no evidence that they are either safe or effective.  Look for preventatives that have “Approved by the FDA” on their label (Roberts, 2018).

Fourth:  Have your dog inoculated against Lyme Disease.  There is a safe and effective Lyme vaccine that will keep your dog protected from that tick-borne illness.

What to do if you find a tick on your pet?

So, if you find a tick on your pet, what do you do?  Remove it as quickly and safely as possible.

Using a fine-tipped tweezers, grip the tick firmly by the head at the point where it is attached to your pet’s skin, and gently and firmly pull it upward and away. Do not squeeze the ticks’ body as that can cause infectious material or pathogens to be injected into your pet.  And do not twist while pulling, as that can result in the tick’s mouth breaking off and remaining in the dog (Although this sounds gross, it is not a big deal.  If they’re left in the dog, the mouth parts will eventually dry up and fall away, or you can just remove them like a splinter.  Still, its best to avoid this happening.)

You can also buy special tools such as “tick keys”, which are small devices that you can use to safely pull the tick away from your pet’s skin.  One advantage to these items is that they can be carried on your key chain for handy use.

Once the tick has been removed and disposed of (e.g., flushed), keep an eye on the site of the bite for a few days.  Normally, there will be a small rash or skin irritation that clears up within a couple of days.  However, if a circular red rash or a bulls-eye rash persists, consult your veterinarian as that can be an indication of a disease process or infection.

And, lastly, be familiar with the general symptoms of tick-borne diseases.  This is important for your family and your pets.  I can tell you from personal experience that these are serious medical conditions that can severely harm your pet.

References:

Bonnet, S., Kazimírová, M., Richardson, J. and Šimo, L. (2018).  Tick Saliva and Its Role in Pathogen Transmission.  In N. Boulanger (Ed.), Skin and Arthropod Vectors , Academic Press, London, UK

CDC (2019a).  Ticks, On Pets.  Retrieved from Preventing ticks on your pets | Ticks | CDC

CDC (2019b). Symptoms of Tickborne Illness.  Retrieved from Symptoms of Tickborne Illness | Ticks | CDC

CDC (2020). Diseases Transmitted by Ticks.  Retrieved from Diseases Transmitted by Ticks | Ticks | CDC

EPA (2004).  Fact Sheet:  Retailers and Counterfeit Pet Products.  Retrieved from U.S. EPA – Fact Sheet – Retailers and Counterfeit Pet Products

Mayo Clinic (2021).  Slide Show:  Guide to Different Tick Species and the Diseases They Carry.  Retrieved from www.mayoclinic.org/tick-species/sis-20147911?s-8

New York State (2011).  Be Tick Free – A Guide to Preventing Lyme Disease.  Retrieved from Be Tick Free – A Guide for Preventing Lyme Disease (ny.gov)

Roberts, C. (2018).  Should You Use Natural Tick Prevention for Your Dog or Cat?  Consumer Reports.  Retrieved from Use Natural Tick Prevention for Dog or Cat? – Consumer Reports

I’ve compiled a short list of animal-related books that I strongly recommend.

The first list are books that will interest and entertain people who have a concern for animal welfare, particularly young people who should be encouraged to have a love and respect for both companion animals and wildlife.  The second list is for dog owners.  This isn’t a list of “how-to” training guides, although there are several excellent ones that I could recommend if anyone is interested.  Instead, this is a list of books that will help people understand how their dogs perceive the world, why they behave in any particular way and what they are attempting to communicate.

Your comments and recommendations are most welcome.  I’ll update the site’s References page with these titles (some are already posted there), along with any good recommendations that may come in.

I hope you enjoy them.

Recommended reading for animal lovers:

Children / Young adult:

Owls in the Family, by Farley Mowat
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Owls_in_the_Family/q-bKFtbhif8C?hl=en

Big Red, by Jim Kjelgaard

https://holidayhouse.com/book/big-red/

Young adult / adult:

All Creatures Great and Small series, by James Herriot

https://us.macmillan.com/series/allcreaturesgreatandsmall/

Dogtown, by Stefan Bechtel

https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/DogTown/Stefan-Bechtel/9781426205620

Never Cry Wolf, by Farley Mowat

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Cry_Wolf

Dog owners:

The Other End of the Leash, by Patricia McConnell, Phd

https://www.dogwise.com/the-other-end-of-the-leash-why-we-do-what-we-do-around-dogs/

Through a Dog’s Eyes, by Jennifer Arnold

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8079728-through-a-dog-s-eyes

Decoding Your Dog, Debra Horowitz, John Ciribassi and Steve Dale, editors

https://www.dogwise.com/decoding-your-dog-the-ultimate-experts-explain-common-dog-behaviors-and-reveal-how-to-prevent-or-change-unwanted-ones/

Inside of a Dog, by Alexandra Horowitz

https://alexandrahorowitz.net/Inside-of-a-Dog

A Pack of Two, by Caroline Knapp

https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-385-31698-9

The Culture Clash, by Jean Donaldson

https://www.dogwise.com/the-culture-clash/

In 1947, researcher Rudolph Schenkel published a very influential study titled Expression Studies on Wolves (Schenkel, 1947), which became the basis for the understanding of canine behavior and training practices for decades to come.  Schenkel wrote of the hierarchical nature of wolf “societies” with a dominant mated pair of wolves at the head of the wolfpack, and stratified levels of more and less dominant wolves under them.  This was reinforced by a later (1970) study of wolves by David Mech, in which he introduced the concept of “alpha” pack leaders (Ha and Campion, 2019)
 

Dogs playing at public park.  The muzzle grabbing is part of the smaller dog’s play repertoire.

This became the model for 20^th century understanding of canine social behavior and was incorporated into the practices of dog trainers – because, after all, dogs are close relatives to wolves.  Dog trainers, including very influential ones such as William Koehler (Koehler, 1962) incorporated a mindset that a human dog owner must be the dominant figure (the Alpha) to his dog and constantly enforce that relationship (*).   The use of dominance and pack theory has been adhered to by a large number of trainers, including celebrities, such as Cesar Millan and The Monks of New Skete (Monks of New Skete, 1978).

Under this theory, dogs feel more secure when they have a distinct place in a hierarchy.  Dominance trainers will tell their clients to physically place their dogs in subordinate positions, such as holding them by the muzzle, or putting them in “alpha rolls”.   Owners will be told to engage in dominance displays such as staring contests, forcing their dogs to look away first.  This extends to play activities:  owners will be told to never let their dogs win a tugging contest and to take away their toys when the play activity is done.  They are told to claim territory and never allow dogs on chairs or beds, never allow the dogs to precede them through a doorway and other controlling activities.   All this under the belief that domestic dogs are pack animals that thrive in a strict hierarchy and that the owner must be the “alpha dog” (Peeples, 2010; Herron 2009).  It should be noted that in later editions of How to be Your Dog’s Best Friend, the monks have moved away from recommending dominance enforcing actions such as “alpha rolls”, due to the number of biting incidents that resulted from this advice (Monks of New Skete, 2002).

This belief has given rise to the theory of “dominance aggression” in which dogs who growl at, or bite, their owners are disputing their position in “the pack” and are actually challenging them for the position of “alpha” (*).  These displays of aggression are seen as rebellion and resistance on the part of the dog which require the owners to reinforce their position as leader and instill submission on the dogs’ part (Uchida, Dodman, DeNapoli and Aronson, 1997).

This entire practice is fundamentally wrong on many levels:

First:  Schenkel was not researching wolf packs in the wild.  He was observing a population of unrelated wolves that had been put together in a confined space in the Basle Zoological Garden.  His theory of a pack hierarchy was based on observing a highly stressed population of wolves that had been put in a very restrictive environment, analogous to a human high-security prison (*).   Mech later retracted much of his conclusions about his research into wolves social behavior, when later investigations showed that his study population was atypical (Ha & Campion, 2019).  More recent research has shown that neither feral dogs nor pet dogs engage in any social hierarchies and that simple resource guarding has been commonly misinterpreted as a dominant behavior between dogs (Bradshaw, Blackwell & Casey, 2009)

Second:  Wolves are not dogs.  Although they are related species, they diverged from each other about twenty thousand years ago and have followed different evolutionary and behavioral paths.  Dogs have thousands of years of behavioral adaptation between them and their wolf cousins.  Dogs’ body language is more subtle than wolves and depends largely on individuals

.  For example, holding another dog’s muzzle in its mouth could be an attempt to make the other dog stop doing something, or it could be an invitation to play – depending on the dog or the situation.

Third:  Dogs know that humans are not dogs.  They are adept at reading our expressions and body language and do not need us to act like dogs to understand our emotions and intentions (Sinischalchi, d’Ingeo and Quaranta, 2018).

Fourth:  Dominance does exist in the canine world, but it is situational.  It centers on avoiding conflict rather than establishing a hierarchy.  When a dog owner tries to lock eyes with his dog and the dog looks away, the pup is not acknowledging that he is subordinate; he is responding to his owner’s aggressive stance and attempting to calm the situation and defuse a confrontation (Rugaas, 2006).

The white dog is voluntarily rolling over in a submissive display as a calming signal to the black dog.

Dogs’ actions that had been previously thought to be displays of submission to higher-status animals or people are now understood to be “calming signals”, intended to avoid conflict.  Looking away, sitting, tail positions, and even rolling on its back are a dog’s efforts to signal that he is trying to avoid a confrontation and bring calm to a stressful situation.  We must remember that these behaviors are part of dogs’ communications repertoire and are a completely voluntary – we must not impose them on our dogs.  When we roll a dog on its back, grab its muzzle, glare into its eyes, we are acting like highly aggressive animals trying to provoke a confrontation.  Our dogs will typically try to appease and calm us down by engaging in “submissive” or calming signals.  This isn’t real submission to a pack hierarchy, they’re just attempting to avoid conflict.  When we engage in dominance behavior with our dogs, we’re simply creating an antagonistic relationship with them (ASVAB, 2008).

Similarly, there’s no such thing as “dominance aggression”.   When we act in a dominant or aggressive way with our dogs, we make them stressed and fearful.  When we impose dominance during play or simply walking, we are not making our dogs more secure in their “pack status”, we are making them insecure.  And when we ignore every appeasing and calming signal that the dog is desperately sending us, when we take away every other way for them to escape the stressful environment we’ve created for them, they will act in a way that we call “aggressive” (McConnell, 2002).   This isn’t an attempt to move up in some imaginary hierarchy, they are simply desperate to make their owners stop scaring them.   What has previously thought to be “dominance aggression, in which dogs are attempting to assert themselves in being “alpha”, is now understood to be the dogs being fearful of their aggressive-behaving owners (Herron, 2009).

Dogs, like us, are individuals.  Some are more assertive than others, some are braver, some are timid, some are more or less outgoing than others and some are socially awkward.  But they are never trying to challenge us for leadership.  Dogs have been with us for thousands of years and are the most human-cooperative animals in the world.  You don’t need to impose your dominance on your dog, all that does is damage his trust in you and make him stressed and apprehensive when you are around.  Your dog should be your buddy and companion.  Take the time to learn his personality traits, just like you would with a human friend, and train him in the skills he needs to live with humans just like you would with a human child.  Use positive reinforcement and make your interactions with your dog fun, even joyful.

References:

American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (2008), Position Statement on the Use of Dominance Theory in Behavior Modification of Animals.  Retrieved from Dominance_Position_Statement_download-10-3-14.pdf (avsab.org)

Bradshaw, J. W. S., Blackwell, E. J. and Casey, R. A. (2009).  Dominance in Domestic Dogs – Useful Construct or Bad Habit?.  Journal of Veterinary Behavior 4 (3). 135 – 144. doi:  10.1016/j.jveb.2008.08.004

Ha, J. C. and Campion, T. L. (2019).  Dog Behavior, Modern Science and Our Canine Companions.  Academic Press, London, UK

Herron, M. E., Shofer, F. S. and Reisner, I. R.  (2009).  Survey of the use and outcome of confrontational Animal Behavior Science 117 (1-2), 47 – 54.  doi:  10.1016/j.applanim.2008.12.011

Koehler, W. R. (1962).  The Koehler Method of Dog Training.  Retrieved from Amazon.com

McConnell, P. (2002).  The Other End of the Leash.  Ballantine Books, New York, NY

Peeples, L. (2010), Critics Challenge ‘Dog Whisperer’ Methods.  Live Science.  Recovered from:  https://www.livescience.com/5846-critics-challenge-dog-whisperer-methods.html

Rugaas, T. (2006).  On Talking Terms with Dogs:  Calming Signals.  Dogwise Publishing, Wenatchee, WA.

Schenkel, R. (1947). Expression Studies on Wolves.  Retrieved from Expression Studies on Wolves – Rudolph Schenkel, 1947 : Rudolph Schenkel : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

Siniscalchi, M., d’Ingeo, S. and Quaranta, A.  Orienting Asymmetries and Physiological Reactivity in Dog’s Response to Human Emotional Faces.  Learning Behavior 46 (4). 574 – 585. doi:  10.3758/s13420-018-0325-2

The Monks of New Skete (1978). How To Be Your Dog’s Best Friend. Little, Brown & Company.  New York, NY

The Monks of New Skete (2002). How To Be Your Dog’s Best Friend (2 ed.). Little, Brown & Company. New York, NY

Uchida, Y., Dodman N., DeNapoli, J. and Aronson, L. (1997). Characterization and Treatment of 20 Canine Dominance Aggression Cases.  Journal of Veterinary Medical Science 59 (5). 397-9. doi: 10.1292/jvms.59.397