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Chemical Sterilization: A Safe Alternative for Dogs?
In an effort to reduce stray dog populations, researchers are looking at the safety and effectiveness of chemical sterilization as an alternative to surgery. In this article, Raffaella Leoci looks at the use of calcium chloride dihydrate (CaCl2) as a chemical sterilization agent that could help to make neutering programs more cost and time efficient. With the right formula and application, CaCl2 is highly effective, and the author concludes it could be a major step forward in reducing dog overpopulation. READ MORE

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Pet Virginia Opossums and Skunks
In this information article from the Journal of Exotic Pet Medicine, Cathy Johnson-Delaney profiles Virginia opossums and skunks as potential pets, outlining their physical characteristics and personalities, as well as explaining the unique challenges encountered when keeping them as companion animals. Minimal attention is paid to how humans might happen to have acquired such species as companions. The author instead focuses on how to care for opossums and skunks, with the paper geared towards vets who may have to work with these animals. READ MORE

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Modelling Farm Animal Welfare
In this study, researchers Lisa Collins and Chérie Part evaluate the usefulness of various modeling approaches to provide for better evaluations and assessment of farm animal welfare. The paper takes into account different forms of data that numerous models collect, as well as the ways they might be able to shape or influence policy. Though the authors note that models must be "parameterised" with "real world observations," they hope that this effort to create a comprehensive whole system approach will inspire further research in this direction. READ MORE

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Studying Personality Variation in Invertebrates: Why Bother?
In this article, Simona Kralj-Fiser and Wiebke Schuett review literature relating to the personality of a range of invertebrate species, and find that there are numerous fruitful avenues for further study and validation of personality variation in invertebrates. By comparing a range of research, the authors honed in on a group of personality traits (including life histories, social and sexual behaviors, complete metamorphosis, male emasculation during copulation, asexual reproduction, eusociality, and parasitism) that have been identified and could be studied further to better understand how invertebrates exhibit different personalities, and how those traits might change over time. READ MORE

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What Elements Make a Vegetarian Leaflet More Effective?
This study from the North Eastern U.S. looks at what kind of images and informational approach contained in a vegetarian leaflet might be the most effective in reaching a young audience. Using a variety of test booklets, researchers conducted initial surveys, as well as follow-ups, to better understand what literature tended to produce the best results, and how respondents differed in their stated intent versus whether or not they actually changed. The study reveals that for many youth, showing a wide range of farm animals, and focusing on how to go vegetarian (vs. why to go vegetarian) yields the best results. READ MORE

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Americans are Having Dogs Instead of Babies
In this article for Quartz Magazine, Roberto Ferdman draws a link between declining birth rates in the U.S. and the ever-increasing trend of people having small dogs as companion animals. Using statistics from the United States Department of Health, as well as Pets International and research firm Euromonitor, Ferdman finds that the numbers are rising and falling in tandem, and that demographic data suggests that they may be correlated. READ MORE

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The Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Gillnet Fisheries: A Global Review
Bringing together a wide range of data, both published and unpublished, this paper takes a look at incidental catch (or "bycatch") of seabirds in gillnets, from a global perspective. Though the bycatch of seabirds has been studied around the world regionally, there has been virtually no literature reflecting the global picture. In addition to giving potential estimates of the total amount of seabird bycatch annually, the authors also make suggestions on how those unnecessary deaths can be mitigated. READ MORE

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The Welfare of Australian Livestock Transported by Sea
In an extensive editorial / literature review in The Veterinary Journal, authors Susan Foster and Karen Overall comprehensively outline current challenges of "animal welfare" in the transport of Australian livestock. Through review and analysis of public policy, reported statistics, and veterinary reports, Foster and Overall paint a rather grim picture of what it means to be an Australian sheep or cow, transported live for weeks at a time to be slaughtered upon arrival in South-East Asia, China, and the Middle East. Though the authors stop short of saying the practice should be ended, they offer strong evidence that current "welfare" measures are woefully inadequate. READ MORE

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The Sympathy of Policy-Makers Towards Animal-Rights Activists, and the Future of Biomedical Research
This letter to the editor published in Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacologyargues that, despite the fact that the European biomedical community has "labored intensely" for many years to deliver on animal welfare standards, animal rights activists are winning the hearts and minds of the public and policy makers through "relentless opposition." The letter cites examples, such as the campaign to ban the transportation of primates for research, as occasions when animal advocates have caused damage to the larger research industry in the EU. READ MORE
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