Alexandre P Rossi, Cassia R C Dos Santos, Caroline M Maia, Claudia C B Terzian, Deisy F Predebon, Juliana S C de Queiroz, Laraue P M Pereira, Marina Z N Bastos, Maurício Choinski, Patricia E Tsapatsis, Samantha R M de Assis, Tatiana M Corrêa
{"title":"Rescued Cats Prefer to Scratch Fabrics Commonly Used to Cover Upholstered Furniture.","authors":"Alexandre P Rossi, Cassia R C Dos Santos, Caroline M Maia, Claudia C B Terzian, Deisy F Predebon, Juliana S C de Queiroz, Laraue P M Pereira, Marina Z N Bastos, Maurício Choinski, Patricia E Tsapatsis, Samantha R M de Assis, Tatiana M Corrêa","doi":"10.1080/10888705.2021.1949595","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Preference responses of cats for scratching fabrics commonly used on furniture were evaluated during four consecutive days in three Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that rescue companion animals. Cats were grouped and their choices were registered at a group level (no individual identification). Daily choices for chenille, suede, synthetic leather, or waterproof grosgrain fabrics were evaluated for the cats' groups. A preference for chenille and non-preference for synthetic leather and waterproof grosgrain was found, independent of the NGO. In conclusion, although not using chenille does not assure that cats stop scratching furniture - especially if no other option to scratch is available - synthetic leather and waterproof grosgrain seem to be less attractive fabrics for these animals. Further studies are needed to investigate whether these findings apply to cats in a home scenario, when just one or a few individuals are usually present and only one type of fabric covering furniture is commonly available. Although we did not investigate the effect of providing scratching posts for these animals, we recommend such posts are available in the environment as scratching behavior is important to cats.</p>","PeriodicalId":56277,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science","volume":"26 3","pages":"313-324"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4000,"publicationDate":"2023-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10888705.2021.1949595","citationCount":"3","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2021.1949595","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"VETERINARY SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 3
Abstract
Preference responses of cats for scratching fabrics commonly used on furniture were evaluated during four consecutive days in three Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that rescue companion animals. Cats were grouped and their choices were registered at a group level (no individual identification). Daily choices for chenille, suede, synthetic leather, or waterproof grosgrain fabrics were evaluated for the cats' groups. A preference for chenille and non-preference for synthetic leather and waterproof grosgrain was found, independent of the NGO. In conclusion, although not using chenille does not assure that cats stop scratching furniture - especially if no other option to scratch is available - synthetic leather and waterproof grosgrain seem to be less attractive fabrics for these animals. Further studies are needed to investigate whether these findings apply to cats in a home scenario, when just one or a few individuals are usually present and only one type of fabric covering furniture is commonly available. Although we did not investigate the effect of providing scratching posts for these animals, we recommend such posts are available in the environment as scratching behavior is important to cats.
期刊介绍:
Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science (JAAWS) publishes articles on methods of experimentation, husbandry, and care that demonstrably enhance the welfare of nonhuman animals in various settings. For administrative purposes, manuscripts are categorized into the following four content areas: welfare issues arising in laboratory, farm, companion animal, and wildlife/zoo settings. Manuscripts of up to 7,000 words are accepted that present new empirical data or a reevaluation of available data, conceptual or theoretical analysis, or demonstrations relating to some issue of animal welfare science. JAAWS also publishes brief research reports of up to 3,500 words that consist of (1) pilot studies, (2) descriptions of innovative practices, (3) studies of interest to a particular region, or (4) studies done by scholars who are new to the field or new to academic publishing. In addition, JAAWS publishes book reviews and literature reviews by invitation only.