Animal Behavior

The stress of an animal shelter adversely impacts dog and cat behavior, and reduces pets' chances for adoption. There are many ways to improve the situation, as the nation's leading experts in animal behavior describe in the articles below.

• Taking a Bite Out of Food Bowl Aggression

  2008
  A new food aggression protocol for shelter dogs developed by certified applied animal behaviorist Dr. Emily Weiss has the potential to save thousands of shelter dog lives.  Read More

• Behavioral Assessment in Animal Shelters

  2007
  One of the nation's premiere shelter behavior experts, Sheila Segurson, DVM, DACVB talks about the limits of temperament testing, methods to increase the usefulness of the test you are using, and the importance (and guidelines for) developing a shelter behavioral program.  Read More

• Open Paw: Saving Pets, Benefiting Shelters, Educating the Community

  2006
  The brainchild of Certified Pet Dog Trainer Kelly Gorman, and world renowned animal behaviorist, Dr. Ian Dunbar, Open Paw teaches dogs their ABC's and helps speed them into new homes.  Read More

• Handling Shelter Cats and Assessing Their Behavior: A Conversation with Joan Miller

  2003
  Cat Fanciers' Association board member, Winn Feline Foundation past President, and all-breed judge Joan Miller offers helpful hints on how to treat, handle and comfort shelter cats. Joan received great acclaim for this presentation at the 2009 No-Kill Conference in Washington DC.  Read More

• Behavior Problems And Long-Term Housing of Shelter Dogs

  2000
  Jean Donaldson, renowned author, trainer and animal behavior expert, talks about how to deal with barrier-related barking and aggression, housetraining regression, separation anxiety and other behaviors common in shelter dogs.  Read More

• The Behavioral Implications of Long Term Shelter Cat Stays and Methods of Alleviating Stress

  2000
  Temperament assessment isn't immediately obvious, it's something we learn by watching reactions over a broad range of environments and experiences.  Read More

• Behavior Assessment Editorial

  2007
  A pet's temperament isn't immediately obvious, it's something we learn by watching reactions over a broad range of environments and experiences.  Read More