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Eagan, Bailey Hope

University of British Columbia

Fear and anxiety are common challenges affecting the welfare of cats in animal shelters, yet individualized approaches to address these issues remain limited. The primary aim of this thesis was to evaluate intervention strategies that support fearful cats in shelter environments through innovative monitoring methods, a targeted narrative review, a survey of North American shelters, and a clinical trial. In Chapter 1, I provide foundational context by exploring the history of domestic cats and animal shelters, as well as the unique challenges of assessing and addressing cat welfare in shelter environments. In Chapter 2, I introduce BeRSTID, a computer vision-based system that tracks individual cats’ eating and drinking behaviours in real time, offering a practical solution for shelters with limited resources. Validation demonstrated high correlation with human observations, presenting BeRSTID as a scalable option for accurate welfare monitoring. In Chapter 3, I conducted a narrative review of individual-level welfare interventions, including environmental modifications, psychoactive medications, non-pharmaceutical anxiety-reducing alternatives, and behaviour modification techniques. This review underscored the importance of tailored care based on individual temperament and highlighted gaps in research specific to shelter settings. Chapter 4 builds on these findings by exploring the current use of psychoactive medications and alternatives in North American shelters. A survey revealed that while medications like gabapentin and trazodone are commonly used, notable barriers, such as safety concerns and limited knowledge of their efficacy, prevent widespread use for fearful shelter animals. Finally, in Chapter 5, I conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the impact of gabapentin on fearful cats from hoarding environments. Results demonstrated that gabapentin reduced stress and improved behavioural progress, marking the first evidence of effective combined medication and behaviour modification intervention for shelter cats. Together, this research advances the understanding of individualized care strategies for shelter cats, highlighting both practical tools and effective interventions to enhance welfare outcomes.

Text

2025-05-02

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/90990

Applied Animal Biology

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/