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Animals
Special Issues
The Complexity of the Human–Companion Animal Bond
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The Complexity of the Human–Companion Animal Bond

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Companion Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2024 | Viewed by 1282

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Rosemary Strasser

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska, Omaha, NE, USA
Interests: human-animal social bonds; pet-owner relationship; animal behavior; behavioral neuroendocrinology; wellness; animal welfare

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Social relationships and early life histories play an important role in the physical and psychological well-being of many animal species. The close relationships some humans form with companion animals can be both beneficial and, in some cases, detrimental, to the well-being of that animal and their human. While numerous studies have examined the benefits of the human–animal bond to humans, few investigations have been performed on the benefits or their lack thereof to the animals. In addition, studies investigating the early life histories and husbandry of animals on future behaviors such as forming beneficial bonds with humans are also sparse.

In this Special Issue, studies or review papers exploring the variables important for forming healthy human–companion animal bonds are encouraged. Similarly, studies or review papers examining unhealthy or dysfunctional relationships between humans and companion animals are also encouraged.

Dr. Rosemary Strasser
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • human–animal bond
  • human–animal relationships
  • companion animals
  • early life histories
  • social behavior
  • stress
  • welfare

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 991 KiB  
Article
The Associations between Human–Companion Animal Relationship Duration, Companion Animal Life Stage, and Relationship Quality
by Annalyse Ellis, Steve Loughnan, Roxanne D. Hawkins and Sarah C. E. Stanton
Animals 2024, 14(11), 1606; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14111606 - 29 May 2024
Viewed by 221
Abstract
Although many companion animal (or “pet”) owners report that their relationships with their pets are important, we know little about how animal ownership duration and animal life stage are related to relationship quality. In a sample of 1303 dog and cat owners, the [...] Read more.
Although many companion animal (or “pet”) owners report that their relationships with their pets are important, we know little about how animal ownership duration and animal life stage are related to relationship quality. In a sample of 1303 dog and cat owners, the present research explored the associations between relationship duration, pet life stage (puppy/kitten, young adult, mature adult, and senior), and four markers of relationship quality: pet-related self-expansion, perceived pet responsiveness, perceived pet insensitivity, and human–animal bond. We found that relationship duration was negatively and linearly associated with self-expansion for both dog and cat owners. Results comparing relationship quality markers across pet life stages revealed that for both dog and cat owners, self-expansion was higher for owners of younger animals compared to owners of older animals. There were no significant effects for perceived pet responsiveness, perceived pet insensitivity, or human–animal bond based on relationship duration or animal life stage. These findings indicate that the duration of the relationship with one’s pet and animal life stage have implications for how much people feel a pet helps them grow, whereas other markers of human–pet relationship quality likely vary based on other experiences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Complexity of the Human–Companion Animal Bond)
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11 pages, 1168 KiB  
Article
Where Do They Come From and Where Do They Go? Socioeconomic Patterns in Dog Acquisition and Rehoming
by Tom Kremer and Sue M. Neal
Animals 2024, 14(9), 1378; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14091378 - 3 May 2024
Viewed by 845
Abstract
This research examines the ways people acquire dogs in the US as well as the ways the dogs leave the household and the way these differ by income level in seven geographically diverse study communities. A web-based panel survey was distributed and received [...] Read more.
This research examines the ways people acquire dogs in the US as well as the ways the dogs leave the household and the way these differ by income level in seven geographically diverse study communities. A web-based panel survey was distributed and received 6318 responses. Individuals were asked a series of demographic and socioeconomic questions as well as how they acquired their current dogs, how previous dogs left their household, and where they left to. The results indicate that the likelihood of acquiring a dog through friends and family decreased monotonically as income increased, while the opposite was observed for adopting and purchasing a dog. The likelihood of giving a dog away to a friend or family member also decreased as income increased, as opposed to shelter surrender—a person earning over USD 100,000 annually was more than four times likelier to surrender to a shelter than a person earning under USD 15,000. The results suggest a stronger reliance on informal social networks in lower-income communities for both obtaining and placing dogs. As these dogs would otherwise end up in the shelter system, animal shelters may support low-income pet owners to help keep their dogs within their community of care. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Complexity of the Human–Companion Animal Bond)
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