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Impact of COVID-19 on the Relationships between Human and Companion...
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Impact of COVID-19 on the Relationships between Human and Companion Animals

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Human-Animal Interactions, Animal Behaviour and Emotion".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 6354

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ana Junça-Silva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: human-animal interactions; pets at work; pet-friendly practices; well-being
Dr. Catarina Gomes

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
TRIE: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar Para o Empreendedorismo e Inovação Ecossistémica, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: self-leadership; well-being; career management; emotional work

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The recent pandemic crisis has generated diverse changes in the way people live their lives. For instance, adherence to telework increased all over the world as a strategy to contain the virus’s spread. As a result, people could experience more time with their companion animals, which led to the strengthening of their bond.

This Special Issue is focused on the relations between humans and their companion animals in the times after the pandemic crisis, and aims to expand the knowledge about the (1) processes that connect human–animal bonds and diverse outcomes (well-being, health, social relationships, etc.) and (2) the boundary conditions that may amplify or attenuate such relationships.

The aim is to expand knowledge about the influence of relationships between companion animals and their humans, namely their role in the recovery after a day's wear and tear—the furr-recovery method; and to outline new avenues of investigation into the role of these relationships in the work context and in everyday life in general.

Dr. Ana Junça-Silva
Dr. Catarina Gomes
Guest Editors

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 interactions
  • human–animal bonds
  • affectivity
  • pet-friendly policies
  • furry-co-workers
  • furr-recovery method

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

30 pages, 4524 KiB  
Article
Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Behavioural Tendencies of Cats and Dogs in Japan
by Saho Takagi, Hikari Koyasu, Madoka Hattori, Takumi Nagasawa, Michiro Maejima, Miho Nagasawa, Takefumi Kikusui and Atsuko Saito
Animals 2023, 13(13), 2217; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13132217 - 6 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2847
Abstract
Physical and mental effects stemming from COVID-19 have impacted not only people’s lives but also the lives of their pets, which in recent years are often seen as members of the family. This study aimed to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic [...] Read more.
Physical and mental effects stemming from COVID-19 have impacted not only people’s lives but also the lives of their pets, which in recent years are often seen as members of the family. This study aimed to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan on pets and their owners. Participants reported changes in physical activity and mental health, as well as working conditions and frequency of interaction with pets, before and after behavioural restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We also asked about their pets’ behaviours using the Feline Behavioural Assessment and Research Questionnaire (Fe-BARQ) and the Canine Behavioural Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ). This study showed that most cat and dog owners spent more time at home due to the COVID-19 behavioural restrictions and that the frequency of contact interaction with their pets increased. However, this study showed higher stress-related behaviours (e.g., cats: excessive grooming; dogs: aggression towards owners) among pets whose owners increased contact interaction. Furthermore, owners’ low mental health was correlated with high stress-related behaviours (e.g., touch sensitivity) in pets. The results of this study indicate that the lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan may have affected not only the lives of owners but also the interaction between owners and their pets, and consequently their pets’ behaviours. Therefore, there is also concern that changes in lifestyle patterns caused by pandemics could form a negative feedback loop between the health status of both owners and their pets. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of COVID-19 on the Relationships between Human and Companion Animals)
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37 pages, 2454 KiB  
Article
Is UK Puppy Purchasing Suffering a Long COVID Effect? Ongoing Negative Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic upon Puppy Purchase Motivations and Behaviours in 2021
by Rowena M. A. Packer, Claire L. Brand, Zoe Belshaw, Camilla L. Pegram, Fiona Dale, Kim B. Stevens and Dan G. O'Neill
Animals 2023, 13(13), 2186; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13132186 - 3 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3081
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic led to a surge in acquisitions of puppies in the UK, dubbed the “Pandemic Puppy” phenomenon. In addition to an increased demand for puppies, widespread changes to both why and how puppies were purchased during this period compared to pre-pandemic [...] Read more.
The COVID-19 pandemic led to a surge in acquisitions of puppies in the UK, dubbed the “Pandemic Puppy” phenomenon. In addition to an increased demand for puppies, widespread changes to both why and how puppies were purchased during this period compared to pre-pandemic 2019 purchases were documented, many of which threatened canine welfare (e.g., puppies being collected away from their place of birth, without seeing their mother). This study aimed to explore which changes to the pre-purchase and purchase motivations and behaviours of UK owners who purchased a puppy aged <16 weeks in the 2020 phase of the COVID-19 pandemic had persisted into 2021 or had returned to pre-pandemic 2019 levels. An online survey was conducted during February to April 2022 from which 2080 valid responses were analysed (“2021 puppies”) and compared with previously collected data from comparable cohorts in 2019 (n = 1148, “2019 puppies”) and 2020 (n = 4369, “Pandemic Puppies”). While the majority of the peak pandemic changes documented in 2020 had returned to their 2019 pre-pandemic baseline, others persisted into 2021. Multinomial logistic regression models revealed that the shifts during 2020 towards owners viewing their puppy pre-purchase over video calls or via video recordings/photos rather than in-person and towards collecting their puppy from outside of their breeders’ property rather than inside had persisted into 2021 and had not returned to pre-pandemic levels. Year-on-year significant rises in the number of puppies sold with a passport were documented between 2019 and 2021, with over 1 in 10 2021 puppies having been sold with a passport, the figure more than doubling since 2019. An increasing number of these puppies sold with a passport were under the minimum legal age for import at sale. Going forward, these concerning changes require further monitoring and human behaviour change interventions to tackle, including increased buyer awareness but also legislative approaches to prevent the greatest harm. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of COVID-19 on the Relationships between Human and Companion Animals)
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