Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians

09/06/2025

🐴

Detecting lameness in horses can be quite the challenge. However, the Animal Health Trust created the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE), a tool that correlates specific behaviours with musculoskeletal pain in horses.

Using this tool, if a horse exhibits eight or more of the behaviours, it is quite likely that the horse is lame.

Interested in finding out more? Read more about the application of this tool here: https://bit.ly/3pVV2tP

30/05/2025

🐱 Feline Friday 🐾

This week, we're focusing on a significant development in feline welfare: the joint call by the RSPCA and Cats Protection to phase out cat cafés in the UK.

The two leading animal welfare charities have expressed serious concerns about the ability of cat cafés to meet the complex needs of their feline residents. Cats are inherently territorial and often prefer solitude, making the bustling environment of a café—with constant human interaction and cohabitation with multiple other cats—potentially stressful and detrimental to their well-being.

A recent Freedom of Information request revealed a 44% increase in licences granted for cat cafés in England during the last financial year, bringing the total to over 30 licensed establishments. However, the actual number may be higher due to unlicensed operations.

Read more here:
https://bit.ly/4kC0Csu

29/05/2025

🐭 Tantalising Taxa Thursday 🌍

This week’s star species is the incredible African giant pouched rat, featuring none other than Ronin – a real-life hero who’s broken the world record for the most landmines detected by a rat! 👏🐀

Trained by the charity APOPO, Ronin uses his remarkable sense of smell and ability to work cooperatively with handlers to detect landmines in regions recovering from conflict. His success is not only life-saving but also a testament to the cognitive and behavioural capabilities of an often-overlooked species! 🐀

https://bbc.in/4jDaRvP

Ronin, a giant African pouched rat, is the first rodent to uncover more than 100 mines in Cambodia.

27/05/2025

🐶 Totally Dogs Tuesday 🐾

This week, we're spotlighting a must-watch resource for all dog professionals: "New Developments in Doglaw" by solicitor Trevor Cooper. In this comprehensive overview, Trevor delves into the significant changes in English dog law from 2020 to the present, providing invaluable insights for those working with or caring for dogs.

Watch the video here: https://bit.ly/3SnLQtk

26/05/2025

🐴 More Horses Monday 🐴

This week, we're spotlighting a significant advancement in equine welfare: the development of a consensus on inducing and measuring positive affective states in domesticated equines.

A recent Delphi consultation study brought together experts to identify effective methods for promoting and assessing positive emotions in horses, ponies, and donkeys. The study emphasised the importance of understanding and facilitating positive experiences, moving beyond merely mitigating negative states.

Key Insights:

🐴 Expert Consensus: Through iterative rounds of surveys, experts reached agreement on various indicators and practices that can enhance positive affective states in equines.

🐴 Practical Applications: The findings offer practical guidance for equine caregivers, trainers, and behaviourists to implement strategies that promote well-being and happiness in their animals.

This research underscores the evolving perspective in animal welfare science, where the focus is not only on preventing distress but also on actively promoting positive experiences.

📖 For a detailed exploration of the study, read the full article here: 'Inducing and measuring positive affective state in domesticated equines: A Delphi consultation'
https://bit.ly/4jdrayV

16/05/2025

🐱

A new study has found that therapy cats share specific behavioural traits that may make them well-suited for animal-assisted services.

The study utilised the Fe-BARQ and found that specific cats tended to be more social with both humans and other cats, more attention-seeking and more tolerant of being handled.

These results suggest that expanding animal-assisted services to include felines could make therapy more accessible to a wider range of people.

Interested in finding out more? Read the original study here: https://bit.ly/4lYuLnh

15/05/2025

🐝

Researchers at the University of Konstanz have discovered that honey bees within the same colony have different preferences for defensive behaviours.

The study investigated whether honeybees exhibit individual differences in stinging behaviour, and found that whilst some bees are hesitating, some are already attacking.

The results of the study provide a promising model for studying how collective and individual traits interact to regulate individual variability.

Interested in finding out more? Read the study here: https://bit.ly/4iCLsl7

14/05/2025

💻

Check out the webinar page on our website which contains FAB recordings from our fabulous members.

There are some great recorded webinars on the page, some of which are only available until the end of this year, so make sure to check them out!

Follow this link to find out more: https://bit.ly/3on0dga

Book our brilliant events and webinars. FAB Clinicians aim to showcase work at the cuting edge of the animal behaviour field.

13/05/2025

🐶

New research reveals that an AI Model is more accurate at selecting puppies that will be successful assistance dogs when compared to humans.

The study utilised C-BARQ evaluations to help identify which puppies would be suitable assistance dogs, where one model achieved up to 80 % prediction accuracy.

The results of this study highlight the potential value of AI for predicting future success in working dogs.

Interested in finding out more? Read the study here: https://bit.ly/4m4XV4f

12/05/2025

🐴

Are you interested in horse behaviour and welfare?

World Horse Welfare have a wealth of useful resources on their website, including a horse behaviour checklist which highlights common behavioural signs of pain and distress, and also explanations of these behaviours.

Interested in finding out more? Find the checklist here: https://bit.ly/49Uv6kH

Are you aware of the subtle signs your horse might be trying to tell you there is something wrong? Download our horse behaviour checklist to see if your horse is trying to tell you something.

09/05/2025

It's Feline Friday 🐱

The Cats Protection annual behaviour conference is back! And this year looking at the future of cat behaviour and welfare. Early bird tickets are available until the 20th of June.

https://bit.ly/3Z0hNLH

07/05/2025

Join our FAB webinar tonight at 7.30pm! (London time zone)

"COMPANION ANIMAL EMPATHY AND THE IMPACT OF THIS ON OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEM"
with Dr Karen Hiestand BVSc, BSc, MSc, MA, PhD, DipECAWBM(AWSEL), PGDip (VetEd), FHEA, MRCVS)

Relationships with companion animals are extremely important to people worldwide. Domestic cats and dogs represent the most common species that live with humans and provide companionship in their millions. While domestic dogs are often termed ‘man’s best friend’, domestic cats now rival dog numbers in western homes, with increasing popularity in many countries. A sharp spike in acquisition of both species was seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, perhaps illustrating a human motivation to use these animals for social and emotional support.

Free to members / £20 to non-members

Sign up now to join us: https://bit.ly/3on0dga