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Rabbits are the third most common mammalian pet in the United States. They make good pets because they generally are nonaggressive and are playful, active, and curious. They form strong social bonds, both with rabbits they live with in the household and with the humans who care for them. They have several behaviors derived from their wild counterparts that can cause problems, if not properly allowed for, or be beneficial, such as their proclivity to use a specific site for elimination., Competing Interests: Disclosure The author has nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives The objective of this study was to collect preliminary data on relevant features and preventative measures of feline inappropriate scratching. Preliminary data could then be used to inform future randomized controlled studies. Methods A paper questionnaire was distributed to 140 cat-owning clients of a small animal practice. The response rate was 82.9%. Questions related to features of inappropriate and designated items scratched, frequency of the behavior and how owners attempted to modify the behavior. The frequency of scratching was ranked and analyzed with repeated-measures models for differences between features of items. The effectiveness of techniques to modify scratching was analyzed with Student's t-tests comparing frequencies of scratching between cats of survey participants who did and did not use specific techniques. Results Scratching of inappropriate items was reported for 83.9% of cats. Most cats (81.5%) scratched chairs or other furniture and 64.1% scratched carpet. The frequency of scratching inappropriate items was significantly influenced by type and material of the items scratched, with furniture and carpet, and fabric and carpet, respectively, being scratched most often. Most cats (76.1%) had a designated scratching item. The frequency of scratching designated items was significantly influenced by type, with cats using scratching posts and other items more often than scratch pads. Owners used a variety of punishment- and reward-based techniques to stop inappropriate scratching and encourage scratching of designated items; only one technique was found to have a significant effect, with the frequency of scratching designated items being significantly lower in cats that were placed near the item. Conclusions and relevance Furniture covered with fabric was an object frequently scratched. Fabric should be further investigated as a potential material to encourage desired scratching behavior. Scratch pads appeared less desired than scratching posts. Punishment was a common strategy to deter scratching but did not appear to influence the frequency of scratching.

Objective: To evaluate the presence of a dominance rank in a group of cats and the relation between agonistic behavior and the use of resources, including environmental enrichment, in these cats., Design: Observational analytic study., Animals: 27 neutered cats in a shelter in Sao Paulo, Brazil., Procedures: The cats were video recorded for 4 consecutive days to obtain baseline data. Subsequently, a puzzle feeder was added as an enrichment device every other day over 8 days, for a total of 4 days with enrichment. Cats were also video recorded on these days. All pretreatment and posttreatment agonistic behaviors and interactions with the puzzle feeder were recorded by reviewing the videotapes., Results: 143 agonistic encounters were recorded, of which 44 were related to resources and 99 were not. There were insufficient agonistic interactions to determine a dominance rank. Presence or absence of the puzzle feeder did not affect the rate of aggression. There was no significant effect of weight, sex, or coat color on the rate of aggression, and aggressive behavior did not correlate with time spent with the puzzle feeder. Twenty-three of the 27 cats interacted with the puzzle feeder., Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: In a stable group of communally housed cats, environmental enrichment did not cause increased aggression as a result of competition for the source of enrichment. Because environmental enrichment increases the opportunity to perform exploratory behaviors, it may improve the welfare of groups of cats maintained long-term in shelters, sanctuaries, or multicat households.

Routine laboratory procedures can be stressful for laboratory animals. We wanted to determine whether human handling of adult rabbits could induce a degree of habituation, reducing stress and facilitating research-related manipulation. To this end, adult New Zealand white rabbits were handled either frequently or minimally. After being handled over 3 wk, these rabbits were evaluated by novel personnel and compared with minimally handled controls. Evaluators subjectively scored the rabbits for their relative compliance or resistance to being scruffed and removed from their cages, being transported to a treatment room, and their behavior at all stages of the exercise. Upon evaluation, handled rabbits scored significantly more compliant than nontreated controls. During evaluation, behaviors that the rabbits displayed when they were approached in their cages and while being handled outside their cages were recorded and compared between study groups. Handled rabbits displayed behavior consistent with a reduction in human-directed fear. This study illustrates the potential for handling to improve compliance in laboratory procedures and reduce fear-related behavior in laboratory rabbits. Such handling could be used to improve rabbit welfare through the reduction of stress and exposure to novel stimuli.

Pets with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) may present for an apparent specific phobia. Learn the signs that distinguish GAD from other demonstrations of fear.

The first two articles in this series on assessing behavior patients explored the use of history forms and owner interviews to gather information about history, environment, other problems, and owner commitment to treatment. This article addresses direct observation and evaluation of the patient, including interaction with the owner, veterinary staff, and other pets.

Changing an animal's behavior takes time, owner commitment, and attention to specifics. Learn what you need to know when planning a desensitization and counterconditioning program.

The question of what to do with an aggressive dog involves clinical, legal, and ethical considerations. This first column on the subject addresses the clinical aspects from the standpoint of the general veterinarian.

Although pet owners frequently have more than one species of pet, information on how to ensure a peaceful coexistence between species is scarce. Learn how to advise owners about safely introducing and keeping members of potential predator and prey species in the same house.

Aging pets can experience declines in memory, learning, perception, and awareness. These pets may be disoriented, forget previously learned behaviors, develop new fears and anxiety, or change their interactions with people. When these changes are due to cognitive dysfunction, behavioral and environmental adjustments along with medical therapy can slow the progression and keep pets active longer.

This double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed to evaluate the efficacy of clomipramine for the treatment of feather picking disorder in otherwise healthy cockatoos. Twenty cockatoos with chronic feather picking disorder were screened for medical conditions and then randomly assigned to either a clomipramine or placebo group. Based on caregiver assessments and physical examination findings, treatment with clomipramine significantly improved feather picking when compared to a placebo at 3 weeks (P=0.028) and at 6 weeks (P=0.021). Clomipramine had no significant effect, however, on videotaped preening behaviors.

An increasing body of research work has made it clear that, while Felis catus can survive in the solitary state, social groups with an internal structure, are formed whenever there are sufficient food resources to support them. Most people who have cats have two or more cats. Failure to understand what will promote either friendly or aggressive behavior can lead to various behavior problems, including aggression and conflict over resources, such as food, resting sites and litterboxes. An understanding of the natural social organization, relationships and communication between cats is therefore essential, and is the subject of this paper.

Objective: To evaluate associations between relatedness and familiarity with the affiliative behaviors of maintaining proximity and allogrooming in cats., Animals: 28 privately owned cats in 1 colony., Procedure: 15 of the cats had 1 or more relatives present representing 5 genealogies. Each cat was observed in 15-minute intervals for 3.5 hours during the study. All occurrences of allogrooming behavior were recorded. At the onset of each 15-minute observation period and at 2-minute intervals thereafter, the identity and location of all cats within 1 m of the observed cat were recorded., Results: Relatedness and familiarity was significantly associated with the number of times a cat was within 1 m of another cat and how often a cat was groomed. For relatives and nonrelatives that were equally familiar to a given cat, relatives were significantly more likely to be within 1 m and to be groomed., Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Familiarity and relatedness are significantly associated with allogrooming and proximity of another cat. This may be important when considering adoption of 1 or more kittens and when adding a new cat to a household in which other cats are present. Adopting small family groups may result in higher rates of affiliative behavior, stronger bonding, and lower incidence of conflict than periodically adopting single unrelated adult cats.