Pet Health Research Articles

Exposure to Tick-Borne Pathogens in Cats and Dogs Infested With Ixodes scapularis in Quebec: An 8-Year Surveillance Study.

Cats that spend time outdoors and dogs are particularly at risk of exposure to ticks and the pathogens they transmit. A retrospective study on data collected through passive tick surveillance was conducted to estimate the risk of exposure to tick-borne pathogens in cats and dogs bitten by blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) in the province of Quebec, Canada, from 2010 to 2017. Blacklegged ticks collected from these host animals were tested by PCR for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, Borrelia miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Babesia microti. A total of 13,733 blacklegged ticks were collected from 12,547 animals. Most ticks were adult females and partially engorged. In total, 1,774 cats were infested with ticks and 22.6 and 2.7% of these animals were bitten by at least one tick infected with B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum, respectively. For the 10,773 tick infested dogs, 18.4% were exposed to B. burgdorferi positive ticks while 1.9% of infested dogs were exposed to ticks infected with A. phagocytophilum. The risk of exposure of both cats and dogs to B. miyamotoi and B. microti was lower since only 1.2 and 0.1% of ticks removed were infected with these pathogens, respectively. Traveling outside of the province of Quebec prior to tick collection was significantly associated with exposure to at least one positive tick for B. burgdorferi, A. phagocytophilum and B. microti. Animals exposed to B. burgdorferi or B. miyamotoi positive tick(s) were at higher risk of being concurrently exposed to A. phagocytophilum; higher risk of exposure to B. microti was also observed in animals concurrently exposed to B. burgdorferi. The odds of dogs having B. burgdorferi antibodies were higher when multiple ticks were collected on an animal. The testing and treatment strategies used on dogs bitten by infected ticks were diverse, and misconceptions among veterinarians regarding the treatment of asymptomatic but B. burgdorferi-seropositive dogs were noted. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that cats and dogs throughout Quebec are exposed to blacklegged ticks infected with B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum, and veterinarians across the province need to be aware of this potential threat to the health of pets and their owners.

Sistem Informasi Klinik Hewan Untuk Meningkatkan Kinerja Keuangan Menggunakan Metode Rasio Profitabilitas

Veterinary Clinic which is located at Jalan Brigjend. S. Sudiarto No. 134 Semarang is an agency engaged in serving its clients in caring for the health of livestock and pets. In recording and processing data using an organized system and not yet well integrated.
 In financial management and also in making financial reports, it is not optimal in evaluating financial performance, so that they cannot see the ability to generate operating profit from the income generated.
 There is a need for a system to be used to increase activity at the veterinary clinic, so that it is much more effective and efficient in the provision of equipment, equipment, and data management including recording, making financial reports, and assessing financial performance, so that it can show the time used and the system as well. can be accessed simultaneously by interested parties. In the implementation of a new system, namely the Animal Clinic Information System to Improve Financial Performance with the Web-Based Ratio method.
 From these problems, an application program can be made using PHP and MySQL as the database. With the above design, it provides benefits for veterinary clinics that provide benefits in improving their financial performance, can be accessed simultaneously, and provides services in the provision of equipment and equipment needed.

Dog and cat owners' use of online Facebook groups for pet health information.

Facebook is a frequently used social media platform and is often used for human health information, yet little research has been conducted on how pet owners use Facebook pet groups to obtain and share pet health information. This study was designed to assess how pet owners use dog and cat Facebook groups to provide and receive pet health advice and their perception of these groups' trustworthiness. Two comparable questionnaires (dog and cat owners) were developed and distributed through an online survey platform. Results suggest that Facebook groups are a common source of pet health information, with 56.2% of dog owners and 51.8% of cat owners reporting receiving health information through Facebook groups. Similar numbers report giving health information through Facebook groups: 55.0% of dog owners and 57.9% of cat owners. Dog health information most commonly exchanged related to dermatology, gastroenterology and orthopaedics and the most common cat health information focused on gastroenterology, renal and urinary-related issues. While the majority of Facebook users report feeling that Facebook groups are not a trustworthy source of pet health information, a substantial minority of users do appear to be influenced by these groups. Approximately 50% of cat and dog owning respondents either give or receive pet health advice through Facebook groups. These results suggest that many owners deem Facebook groups as useful, but not entirely trustworthy, sources of information.

Exotic pets in Ireland: 1. Prevalence of ownership and access to veterinary services

BackgroundThere has been increasing concern expressed about the welfare of exotic pets worldwide. For the purposes of this article, an exotic pet is considered to be a non-domesticated species, where there are knowledge gaps on good practice (minimum standards of care), veterinary diagnostics and treatments. The categories of exotic pets included in this study were: small mammals (< 20 kg), large mammals (> 20 kg), birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates. Dogs, cats, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, mice, rats, and ferrets were excluded from the study. An online survey of pet owning staff at University College Dublin was conducted between July and August 2020 to provide the first empirical data for Ireland. In this pilot study (the first in this thematic series) we aim to characterise exotic pet ownership, the challenges and benefits of keeping exotic pets, and access to veterinary services from the pet owner’s perspective.ResultsUsing an online survey this pilot study gathered evidence from 83 domestic and 32 exotic pet owners within the staff (n = ~ 3600 FTE) at University College Dublin, the largest third level institution in Ireland. The prevalence of exotic pet ownership was determined to be 34.4 % of households with more than 10 % of pet owning households owning only exotic pets. Fish (n = 15), reptiles (n = 13) and birds (n = 8) were the most common types of exotic pets. Thirty-four per cent of exotic pet owners never sought veterinary services, the most common reasons were due to lack of local veterinary specialists (n = 10) and good owner knowledge (n = 8). However identifying appropriate guidance on the animals’ needs was a common challenge for exotic pet owners (n = 13). A reasonable monthly cost of caring for an exotic ranged from €20–180, depending on the species.ConclusionsThis pilot study contains important implications for veterinary education to support the veterinary community with providing services to the exotic pet owning community. Policy issues with exotic pet ownership also need to be considered and further research into the proposed strategies to support the health and welfare of exotic pets should be carried out such as the introduction of white lists and guidelines on responsible pet ownership.

Exotic pets in Ireland: 2. Provision of veterinary services and perspectives of veterinary professionals\u2019 on responsible ownership

BackgroundThere has been increasing concern expressed about the welfare of exotic pets worldwide. For the purposes of this article, an exotic pet is considered to be a non-domesticated species, where there are knowledge gaps on good practice (minimum standards of care), veterinary diagnostics and treatments. The categories of exotic pets included in this study were: small mammals (< 20 kg), large mammals (> 20 kg), birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates. Dogs, cats, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, mice, rats, and ferrets were excluded from the study. An online survey of veterinary professionals conducted between July and August 2020 provides the first empirical data for Ireland. In this pilot study (the second in this thematic series) we aim to characterise the provision of veterinary services to exotic pets from the veterinary professionals’ perspective, explore the main concerns of veterinary professionals towards exotic pet ownership, and their recommendations to support responsible exotic pet ownership.ResultsUsing an online survey this pilot study gathered evidence from 63 veterinary professionals currently working in private practice in Ireland. The prevalence of veterinary services for exotic pets in Ireland was determined to be 82% of small and mixed animal clinics of respondents’ practices ranging from 9.1 to 100% for different categories of exotic pets. The most common issues encountered in practice with exotic pets were related to nutrition, environment, and behaviour followed by clinical diseases such as respiratory, infectious, and gastrointestinal issues. The most common concerns veterinary professionals had with exotic pet ownership related to the lack of owner knowledge as well as the lack of veterinary knowledge and accessible resources. The most common strategic initiatives indicated by veterinary professionals included black or white lists (to prohibit and permit the keeping of exotic pet species respectively), licensing for owners and increased availability of CPD for veterinary professionals.ConclusionsMore than four in every five veterinary professionals in small or mixed animal practices surveyed were willing to treat exotic pets and in many cases they already were. A scaffold for best practice is required to support the health and welfare of exotic pets and responsible ownership. Keystones include veterinary education to support veterinary professionals with daily practice, establishing a white list of exotic species that are suitable as pets, registration at the point of purchase to enable traceability for biosecurity purposes and research to identify care standards to support the health and welfare of exotic pets.

A prática colaborativa na formação em saúde: Relato de experiência do PET saúde Interprofissionalidade

Objetivo: Relatar a experiência de um grupo de aprendizagem tutorial do PET Saúde Interprofissionalidade, com vistas à promoção da prática colaborativa na formação em saúde. Método: Trata-se de um relato de experiência de um grupo de aprendizagem tutorial do projeto PET Saúde Interprofissionalidade em um município do estado de Pernambuco. A equipe conta com tutores docentes, preceptores profissionais do serviço e estudantes de graduação e residência, contemplando os seguintes cursos: educação física, enfermagem, nutrição, psicologia, saúde coletiva e serviço social. São realizadas reuniões semanais para aprofundamento teórico, elaboração de material educativo e discussão de casos complexos, bem como visitas domiciliares às famílias em acompanhamento. Resultados: No ano de 2020, realizou-se o acompanhamento sistemático de famílias com problemas principais de obesidade e sofrimento psíquico. A cada semana, as visitas domiciliares eram realizadas por um subgrupo de preceptores e discentes, para avaliar e intervir junto às famílias. Os casos eram discutidos nas reuniões, nas quais eram elaboradas as propostas de intervenção em conjunto, por meio da prática colaborativa. Conclusão: Observou-se que o projeto promoveu a integração do ensino-serviço-comunidade, proporcionou aos estudantes a experiência da prática colaborativa interprofissional na sua formação, bem como um atendimento individualizado e de qualidade às famílias assistidas.

Why Can’t I Resist Those “Puppy Dog” (or “Kitty Cat”) Eyes? A Study of Owner Attachment and Factors Associated with Pet Obesity

Simple SummaryAttachment theory has become widely used in research on human-animal interactions. However, the majority of this research has examined how individual differences in attachment affect how humans seek care and comfort from animals. The current paper examines an additional component of attachment theory—the caregiving component. Specifically, the aim of the study was to understand how individual differences in attachment anxiety and avoidance predict factors associated with pet obesity including pet weight, body condition, daily treats, and daily interactions. An online survey with recruitment via social media captured the responses of dog and cat owners. As expected, all of the associations between owner attachment and factors associated with pet obesity were mediated by the owner’s concerns that a pet may negatively evaluate them and the owner self-reported caregiving and attentiveness. That said, the results indicate that higher levels of attachment anxiety were associated with dog and cat owners providing a greater number of daily treats and more daily interaction, and a larger body condition for dogs. In addition, higher levels of attachment avoidance were associated with dog (but not cat) owners giving fewer treats and less daily interaction. Interestingly, despite these relationships, pet weight was not associated with owner attachment. Although the effects presented in the present paper are relatively small, they are nonetheless important, as continuing to understand how differences in attachment anxiety and avoidance are related to care-giving behavior and pet obesity may provide for novel interventions that veterinarians can use to improve pet well-being and may provide avenues for future research.Attachment theory posits that patterns of interaction derived from the attachment system provide a starting point for understanding how people both receive and provide care. Extending this theory to human-animal interactions provides insights into how human psychology affects pets, such as pet obesity. The goal of this study was to determine how attachment anxiety and avoidance might contribute to pet obesity. We assessed 563 pet owners’ attachment-related anxiety and avoidance, as well as additional attachment-related constructs (emotional rejection, evaluation concern, caregiving, and attentiveness to a pet). We also assessed various factors associated with pet obesity, including weight, body condition, daily treats, and daily interaction. The results indicate that dog owners high in attachment anxiety are concerned about how their pet may evaluate them, leading to more caregiving and attentiveness that results in more treats given per day, and a larger body condition (but not weight). In addition, owners high in attachment avoidance may seek to downplay the possibility of the dog negatively evaluating them, thus providing more negligent care. These findings suggest that attachment plays a unique role in shaping the pet-caregiver relationship and influences various elements that contribute to pet obesity, particularly in dogs. As such, the findings may lend a novel perspective to strategies for reducing pet obesity and provide a framework for future research into pet health.

What Do Veterinary Students Value about Service Learning? Insights from Subsidized Clinics in an Urban Environment.

To promote accessible veterinary care in the community and to help students refine their communication skills, the University of Calgary, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (UCVM) partnered with the Calgary Urban Project Society (CUPS), a human services organization, to develop the UCVM-CUPS Pet Health Clinics. These clinics are a service-learning experience where third-year students provide services to those facing barriers to veterinary care in Calgary, Alberta. The clinics are offered at CUPS for 6 weeks at 1 day per week. Each student participates in one 4-hour lab; running two 90-minute appointments. In this mixed-methods article, the question was asked: How does a communication-based veterinary service learning program impact students' perception and knowledge of their skills and their perceived role in community outreach to underserved populations and their animals? All third-year veterinary students (N = 30) participated in the 2018 UCVM-CUPS Pet Health Clinics. Students completed a demographics survey, and a pre- and post-clinic questionnaire. Statistical analysis was used to compare pre- and post-clinic responses, and to determine relationships between questionnaire responses and the demographics survey data. Students were significantly more in agreement with statements that demonstrated confidence in their medical knowledge, technical abilities, and communication skills after participating in the program. There was significantly more disagreement to continue volunteering after graduation, but many planned on providing community outreach. Overall, students felt a strong sense of social responsibility and were motivated to help underserved populations. The findings suggest that communication-based, service-learning experiences are related to greater social awareness and enhance students' clinical skills including communication.

Pet owners' online information searches and the perceived effects on interactions and relationships with their veterinarians

Objective: To explore pet owners’ online search experiences for pet health information and the perceived effects on their interactions and relationships with veterinarians.&#x0D; Background: Few studies have examined pet owners’ online searches for pet health information; even less is known about how these search experiences may impact pet owners’ interactions and relationships with veterinarians, including any effects on bond-centered care.&#x0D; Methods: Qualitative study consisting of five focus groups conducted with 26 pet owners in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada, between June to September 2016. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. QSR NVivo 11® was used to facilitate organisation of focus group data for thematic analysis.&#x0D; Results: Participating pet owners frequently referred to their relationships with veterinarians when discussing experiences searching online for pet health information. Owners reported choosing either to disclose or withhold declaring their online searches to veterinarians, depending on whether participants perceived a beneficial or detrimental impact on a “good” professional relationship with their veterinarian. Perceptions of veterinarians' reactions towards declaration of online searches were mixed, and influenced pet owners’ views of the existing relationship.&#x0D; Conclusion: Pet owners viewed their veterinarians as their most trusted source of pet health information, but many owners also wanted supplemental information from online searches. Owners preferred veterinarians refer them to online pet health resources, ideally those affiliated with the veterinary profession. Searching for pet health information online does not displace veterinarians’ guidance. Rather, the veterinarian-owner relationship was perceived to be strengthened when online searches were openly discussed with veterinarians.&#x0D; Implications: Findings offer insight into pet owners’ expectations of veterinarians within the context of online pet health information, providing ideas for veterinarians to strengthen bonds with owners such as; showing support of owners’ online pet health information searching by recommending resources and considerations about communicating professional opinions to owners regarding online information.&#x0D; &#x0D;

Demographic and contextual factors as moderators of the relationship between pet ownership and health

ABSTRACT Objective: Companion animals are an important feature of the family system, and human-animal interaction is increasingly being recognized as an important social determinant of health. However, there is a need for more nuanced assessment of not only who owns pets, but how pet ownership is related to various health outcomes, and which sociodemographic and contextual factors moderate these associations. Design: Secondary analysis of cross-sectional data collected from an online, probability-based panel to generate a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States (n = 1267). Data were analyzed using hierarchical and logistic regression models. Results: Results suggested that pet owners are systematically different from non-pet owners on a number of key demographic and contextual characteristics, and these differences vary somewhat when looking at dog owners and cat owners. When controlling for individual and family-level covariates, pet ownership was not associated with overall health status or Body Mass Index, but dog ownership was associated with higher levels of physical activity. Pet ownership was associated with higher odds of having an anxiety disorder with gender moderating this relationship, but this association was not present for dog or cat owners, suggesting this relationship is limited to other types of pets. Higher odds of depression were associated with pet ownership (for both dog and cat owners), with employment status significantly moderating the relationship between dog ownership status and depression. Conclusions: These findings suggest that pet ownership is a complex and context specific phenomenon. Future research should carefully consider and control for sociodemographic predictors and use measurement and analysis approaches sensitive to the variations in human-animal relationships to fully understand how pets contribute to individual and family health and well-being.

Metabolic Changes in Serum Metabolome of Beagle Dogs Fed Black Ginseng.

The effects of black ginseng, which has many kinds of biological activities, on dogs was investigated. Serum samples of beagle dogs, which were fed with black ginseng for 8 weeks, were measured using high-resolution magic angle spinning (HR-MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry. Acquired NMR data from the serum of dogs fed for 0, 4, and 8 weeks were analyzed by metabolic profiling and multivariate statistical analysis. In statistical analysis and biomarker analysis results of metabolite profiles, formate, glutamine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, proline, and valine had variable importance in projection (VIP) scores above 1.0 and excellent area under the curve (AUC) values of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves above 0.9. In the result of multivariate statistical analysis, the score plot showed the discrimination between before and after feeding of black ginseng. These differences in metabolic profiles are considered to be due to the involvement of metabolic processes following black ginseng administration, such as enhancing immunity and energy metabolism. Through metabolomics analysis, we confirmed the biological efficacy of black ginseng in dogs and also confirmed that metabolomics can be applied to the pet health industry.

Punishment to Support: The Need to Align Animal Control Enforcement with the Human Social Justice Movement.

Simple SummaryThe current emphasis on enforcement and punishment in animal control policy has disproportionately negative impacts on low-income communities in the United States (US), particularly people of color. In this way, animal protection efforts are perpetuating many of the same inequities under examination in the human social justice movement. Reallocating the resources that have historically gone towards enforcement in communities to efforts that provide support in addressing the root causes of animal welfare concerns is needed to improve outcomes for pets in historically underserved communities.Due to inherent and systemic biases, animal control policies in the US are over-enforced in low-income communities and communities of color, resulting in worse health outcomes for the pets in these communities. These outcomes are exemplified by higher confiscation, relinquishment, and euthanasia rates, lower return to owner rates, and extended lengths of stay in animal shelters. The Humane Communities framework operationalizes One Health and One Welfare concepts to comprehensively address issues of inequity at both the individual and structural levels to improve animal control policy and outcomes. Person-centered and culturally competent policies and programs that focus resources on addressing root causes of pet health and welfare issues as opposed to an emphasis on code enforcement can create more positive, scalable, and sustainable improvements in human, other animal, and environmental health and welfare outcomes. This shift from punishment-oriented approaches to support-based models of animal control aligns the animal welfare field with the modern human social justice movement.

Nurses' views of pet owners: online pet health information

BackgroundMost research investigating online pet health information has focused on the views of veterinarians or clients with little attention given to the views of veterinary nurses.AimsTo investigate the views of UK veterinary nurses in relation to pet owners’ use of online pet health information.MethodsAn anonymous online survey was distributed via social media platforms.ResultsMost respondents report thinking that less than half of their clients understand what they read about pet health online, yet the majority do not provide pet health website information to their clients.ConclusionsMost responding veterinary nurses feel online pet health information has a negative impact on the client/veterinary nurse relationships. It is suggested that veterinary nurses take a proactive role via information prescriptions to guide information seeking behaviours of pet owners.

Does vaccination increase the risk of immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia in dogs?

Bottom line You admitted Scout, a four-year-old female neutered English springer spaniel, yesterday as she was jaundiced, anaemic and collapsed. Her haematocrit was 13 per cent, with prominent spherocytosis on...

Companion Animal Nutrition Symposia 2020 - A Review.

For the 2020 ASAS-CSAS Annual Meeting held in Madison, WI the Companion Animal nutrition section had three symposia to address “Food fraud and food safety in companion animal foods”, “Feeding behavior and management”, and “Dairy ingredients and their application in pet food”. As pets moved from the barn into homes, pet parents pay closer attention to dietary strategies and feeding practices that may improve pet health and longevity. Food safety is a key component to support health of pet animals and humans since they share the same environment, including areas devoted for food preparation and storage. Another key aspect is the use of novel and functional ingredients to improve health, for example the use of dairy products. While the health benefits associated with consumption of dairy ingredients (i.e., whey, kefir, yogurt) are known for humans, there is a need for further evaluation of the nutritional adequacy and functionality of these ingredients for companion animals. Finally, humanization of pets may have impacted their lives more than we thought, as the number of overweight and obese animals are rising. We explored some of the issues related to how the food could be a factor in contributing with obesity and strategies to help pets to lose weight.

Fog Computing-inspired Smart Home Framework for Predictive Veterinary Healthcare

Domestic Pet Care has been an important domain in the healthcare industry. In the presented study, a comprehensive framework of the Smart VetCare system for the health monitoring of domestic pets has been presented. The work is focused on the remote surveillance of domestic animals’ health conditions inside the home environment using IoMT Technology. Specifically, pet health is analyzed for vulnerability in the ambient home environment and ubiquitous activities over a fog computing platform of FogBus. Furthermore, a temporal data granule is formulated and the Probability of Health Vulnerability (PoHV) is defined for determining the health severity of the animal. Additionally, the Temporal Sensitivity Measure (TSM) is defined for real-time pet healthcare analysis, which is visualized using the Self Organized Mapping (SOM) Technique. For validation purposes, the framework is deployed in the smart home environment using 12 IoMT WiSense Nodes and Health Sensor belt for monitoring a domestic dog of American Bully breed over the dynamic resource management platform of FogBus and iFogSim simulator. Based on the comparison with numerous state-of-the-art techniques, the proposed framework can register a better precision value (94.78%), accuracy value (95.38%), sensitivity value (93.71%), and f-measure value (94.41%).

Generating consumer terminology to describe emotions in pet owners and their pets

AbstractEmotions affect the choices and behaviors of consumers toward products. However, there have been limited studies discussing the emotions of pet owners and pets (as perceived by their owners). The objectives of this study were to generate emotions terminology from both pets and pet owners and to investigate body language and signs perceived by pet owners related to pet emotion. Two focus groups were conducted for dog owners and two for cat owners. The participants were asked to provide activities that they share with their pets. Next, the participants voted on two positive and two negative activities to serve as situational backgrounds for providing how they and their pets feel when sharing specific activities. Lists of 39 and 53 emotion terms were generated for dogs and cats, respectively. In addition, lists of 33 and 60 emotion terms were created for dog owners and cat owners, respectively. Examples of emotion terms for dogs included excited, happy, anxious, and embarrassed, and calm, happy, angry, and fearful for cats. Overall, this study provided a general view of emotions experienced by pet owners and their pets, which may be helpful for the pet food industry and related areas to understand the pet food consumers further.Practical applicationsThe results from this study provide understanding on the range of emotions perceived by both pets and their owners. This information is needed to understand the human‐animal relationship and to improve services in pet care, health care, animal wellness, and human wellness areas.

The Impact of Pet Health Insurance on Dog Owners' Spending for Veterinary Services.

Simple SummaryAffordability to pay for veterinary services is a challenge for some pet owners. The presence of pet health insurance is one tool that can help alleviate this burden. This study surveyed dog owners, seeking out whether the presence of pet health insurance was a factor in dog owners spending more at the veterinarian, as well as having increased visits to the veterinarian. Results show the presence of pet health insurance had a positive association with spending at the veterinarian, but not with veterinarian visits. The U.S. pet population is increasing, but access to veterinary care continues to be a concern. One method of alleviating barriers that prevent access to care is the presence of pet health insurance for a pet. Dog owners were surveyed to see the impact of pet health insurance on dog owners’ visits and expenditures at the veterinarian. Using several models, it was found that pet health insurance had a significant and positive impact on the amount spent at the veterinarian. Other dog and dog owner characteristics were found significant in impacting expenditures and visits at the veterinarian. Findings from this study can help address the accessibility issue facing Americans across the country in obtaining affordable pet care. This research is the first which seeks to identify the driving factors behind dog owners’ choices regarding health care for their dogs.

New Zealand Pet Owners’ Demographic Characteristics, Personality, and Health and Wellbeing: More Than Just a Fluff Piece

ABSTRACT Although the relationship between pet ownership and health and wellbeing has received considerable attention in popular media, research on the topic shows inconsistent findings. We addressed the methodological weaknesses of previous studies by using data from a national probability survey (the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study; n = 13,347). We describe the demographic characteristics and personality of pet owners in New Zealand, examine whether pet owners cluster together by pet types, and test whether pet ownership and pet type are associated with health and wellbeing measures. The majority of participants (61.6%) reported having a pet, and we identified six clusters of ownership by pet type. Pet owners were more likely than non-owners to be younger, women, European, parents, partnered, employed, living rurally, and living in less deprived areas. Pet owners were less likely than non-owners to be of Asian ethnicity and religious and had lower mean levels of education. We found no evidence of reliable differences between pet owners and non-owners in the personality characteristics of extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism, or honesty-humility. However, pet owners scored higher than non-owners in openness and lower in conscientiousness. We found no reliable differences between pet owners and non-owners in selfesteem, life satisfaction, psychological distress, physical health diagnoses, or self-reported health. However, compared with non-owners, pet owners were more likely to report diagnoses of depression and anxiety. Although the relationship between pet ownership and depression diagnoses held across the six clusters of pet ownership, results indicated that the higher rates of anxiety were most commonly associated with cat ownership. Future longitudinal research is needed to establish whether pets decrease owners’ health and wellbeing or rather that people in need of comfort tend to seek pets.

Sistema remoto de alimentación semiautomatizado para mascotas

The overload of activities of the people causes the lack of time for the care of the pets, which causes that they do not receive their food in adequate schedules, or the opposite case of only leaving a food tower without measuring proportions. This causes serious problems in the health of pets in the long term, either malnutrition or obesity. The objective of the project is to feed the pets adequately at set times, avoiding health problems due to a bad diet in the pet due to lack of time, likewise avoiding the waste of food by giving specific portions according to the intake Automatic decision by weight and race size. This project will be carried out with recycled materials, reducing the cost of processing. A base that will hold an aluminum blade, this will be responsible for turning allowing or obstructing the passage of food. In the upper part there is a container with lid to store the food. With the help of an application created for cell phones where you enter the weight of your pet and the size of its breed, the amount of food that corresponds to it is calculated, this calculation is based on a food table. In this application you can also set different schedules for the three daily meals.