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...vestris catus) are thought to be kept as pets, making them the most commonly maintained companion animal [1, 2]. How we house, manage, and care for cats may impact owner attachment and cat health and behavior. These factors also influence outcomes such as whether cats remain in their homes or are ultimately abandoned or relinquished to shelters. An estimated 3.4 million cats of which approximately 1.4 million are euthanized are admitted to US animal shelters annually [3]. Behavioral reasons are among the most common causes for cat relinquishment. Based on a survey of cat owners, Salman et al. [4] reported that at least one behavioral reason was given for 28% of cat relinquishments. The most common included house-soiling (43.2%), problems between pets (18.9%), aggression toward people (14.6%), unfriendliness (5.4%), fearfulness (3.8%), and destructive behavior (12.4%). A significant association was found between relinquishment for such reasons and owning another household pet, suggesting that cats living in single animal households had a lower risk of relinquishment for behavioral reasons [5, 6]. Thus, the ways in which cats are housed (indoor or outdoor) and the social environments th...

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... the most common causes for cat relinquishment. Based on a survey of cat owners, Salman et al. [4] reported that at least one behavioral reason was given for 28% of cat relinquishments. The most common included house-soiling (43.2%), problems between pets (18.9%), aggression toward people (14.6%), unfriendliness (5.4%), fearfulness (3.8%), and destructive behavior (12.4%). A significant association was found between relinquishment for such reasons and owning another household pet, suggesting that cats living in single animal households had a lower risk of relinquishment for behavioral reasons [5, 6]. Thus, the ways in which cats are housed (indoor or outdoor) and the social environments they experience may significantly impact their behavior, which in turn may have consequences for their well-being. In regard to cat housing, it is now commonpractice forUS veterinarians to advise clients to keep their cats indoors. The American Association of Feline Practitioners Statement on Confinement of Owned Indoor Cats-December 2007 (http:// www.catvets.com/guidelines/position-statements/confinement-indoor-cats) takes the position that “Veterinarians are encouraged to educate clients and the public ...

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... than in qualitative changes in the behavior itself [12]. The cat’s behavioral organization has been shaped by evolution to use information obtained from the environment to react to an event or to interact with an environmental feature to form rules of response for similar events or stimuli. The extent to which these “decision rules” of the ancestral species become altered by domestication may influence the negative subjective experiences (suffering) of an animal especially when there is a mismatch between an animal’s current environment and the environment in which its decision rules evolved [13]. In this sense, we may consider domestic cats as similar to zoo animals, with the proximity of conspecifics and other animals, combined with limited resources and opportunities to express species-typical behavior potentially influencing cats’ perceptions of control. Additionally, cats have evolved as solitary hunters with typical social groups consisting of related females and their offspring. Adult males live on the periphery of a group of females with adolescent males, and often females, dispersing from their natal territory [14]. Yet the domestic cat, while less gregarious than other domes...

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...51%), or that was regularly washed (73%). Horizontal scratching opportunities were not provided to 38% of cats; 32% were not provided toys that mimic prey and 91% of cats were fed a diet consisting of >75% dry food. These findings suggest a need for more concerted efforts to educate owners about meeting their cats’ welfare needs so as to attenuate risks and improve cat physical and behavioral welfare outcomes. 1. Introduction In the US, an estimated 74 to 85 million domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) are thought to be kept as pets, making them the most commonly maintained companion animal [1, 2]. How we house, manage, and care for cats may impact owner attachment and cat health and behavior. These factors also influence outcomes such as whether cats remain in their homes or are ultimately abandoned or relinquished to shelters. An estimated 3.4 million cats of which approximately 1.4 million are euthanized are admitted to US animal shelters annually [3]. Behavioral reasons are among the most common causes for cat relinquishment. Based on a survey of cat owners, Salman et al. [4] reported that at least one behavioral reason was given for 28% of cat relinquishments. The most common incl...

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...ited resources and opportunities to express species-typical behavior potentially influencing cats’ perceptions of control. Additionally, cats have evolved as solitary hunters with typical social groups consisting of related females and their offspring. Adult males live on the periphery of a group of females with adolescent males, and often females, dispersing from their natal territory [14]. Yet the domestic cat, while less gregarious than other domestic species, does exhibit great plasticity in social behavior, with sociability appearing to be influenced by early experience and socialization [15]. While indoor living in itself and sharing of homes with other cats do not pose de facto feline welfare problems, living confined in close proximity to unrelated conspecifics may be stressful to some individual cats, particularly if they are not provided with adequate resources.Therefore, attention to the quality of the indoor housing environment is of critical importance to companion cat health and welfare. Contrary to our expectations, however (given the owners’ affiliations with veterinary medical colleges), the indoor housing environments provided to many of the cats were lacking in many ...

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...s in the household. As noted The Scientific World Journal 7 previously, environmental enrichment that provides outlets for typical feline behaviors, such as novel toys that allow cats to “hunt,” daily play sessions with owners, scratching, and climbing opportunities, is also recommended to promote cat health and well-being [16]. Yet few owners reported routinely providing such resources to indoor-housed cats. Similar results have been reported for members of the general public elsewhere. For example, using owner self-reports to explore the living conditions of indoor-housed cats, Heidenberger [17] found that 24% of cats did not have their own food bowls and 51% had to share the litter pan with other cats. An interesting finding was that 91% of cats were fed a diet consisting of 25% or less of wet food with 54% receiving no wet food at all. A review of the literature by Zoran and Buffington [18] found evidence suggesting factors relating to diet, including form (wet versus dry), composition (high carbohydrate versus high protein), and presentation (in a bowl or in a puzzle), are important environmental factors for domestic cats confined indoors [18]. Plantinga et al. [19] estimated the ...

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... the most common causes for cat relinquishment. Based on a survey of cat owners, Salman et al. [4] reported that at least one behavioral reason was given for 28% of cat relinquishments. The most common included house-soiling (43.2%), problems between pets (18.9%), aggression toward people (14.6%), unfriendliness (5.4%), fearfulness (3.8%), and destructive behavior (12.4%). A significant association was found between relinquishment for such reasons and owning another household pet, suggesting that cats living in single animal households had a lower risk of relinquishment for behavioral reasons [5, 6]. Thus, the ways in which cats are housed (indoor or outdoor) and the social environments they experience may significantly impact their behavior, which in turn may have consequences for their well-being. In regard to cat housing, it is now commonpractice forUS veterinarians to advise clients to keep their cats indoors. The American Association of Feline Practitioners Statement on Confinement of Owned Indoor Cats-December 2007 (http:// www.catvets.com/guidelines/position-statements/confinement-indoor-cats) takes the position that “Veterinarians are encouraged to educate clients and the public ...

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...hased from a breeder or pet store which is less than has been previously reported (2% and 3%, resp.) [2]. Our respondents’ cats were therefore primarily self-bred. This is not surprising given that of the “domesticated” species commonly kept in the US cats maintain the unique characteristic of owned populations interbreeding freely with feral populations rather than having mating strictly controlled by humans. Nonpedigree cats typically select their own mates and readily interbreed both with free-living feral domestic cats and with the wild progenitor species F. silvestris, where they coexist [11]. It is important to understand domestication when assessing the needs of cats. Evidence suggests that many of the differences between domestic and wild populations result from quantitative changes in the thresholds for performing a behavior rather than in qualitative changes in the behavior itself [12]. The cat’s behavioral organization has been shaped by evolution to use information obtained from the environment to react to an event or to interact with an environmental feature to form rules of response for similar events or stimuli. The extent to which these “decision rules” of the ancestral...

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..., Heidenberger [17] found that 24% of cats did not have their own food bowls and 51% had to share the litter pan with other cats. An interesting finding was that 91% of cats were fed a diet consisting of 25% or less of wet food with 54% receiving no wet food at all. A review of the literature by Zoran and Buffington [18] found evidence suggesting factors relating to diet, including form (wet versus dry), composition (high carbohydrate versus high protein), and presentation (in a bowl or in a puzzle), are important environmental factors for domestic cats confined indoors [18]. Plantinga et al. [19] estimated the nutrient intake of feral cats based on data of food consumption patterns in order to understand the nutrient profile to which the cat has been evolutionarily adapted. The calculated diet was 69.5% water with daily energy intake from protein 52%, from fat 46%, and from NFE only 2%, supporting the fact that cats are truly obligate carnivores. In a pair of studies Hewson-Hughes et al. [20, 21] have indicated that providing wet food as well as dry may be beneficial to cat well-being. They demonstrated that cats will regulate their macronutrient intake to reach a “target” intake of t...

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...at social interaction, and (5) an environment that respects the importance of the cat’s sense of smell (e.g., not removing scent marks, minimal use of harsh chemicals and perfumes, and use of synthetic pheromones). In addition, indoor housing may be associated with certain physical health risks. Epidemiological studies have found that indoor housing is associated with increased risk (odds ratio) for a variety of common cat diseases, including odontoclastic resorptive lesions (∼4.5), obesity (1.6–15.8), type 2 diabetes mellitus (1.4–4.6) [8], hyperthyroidism (4– 11.2), and behavioral disorders [8, 9]. Given the popularity of the cat as an indoor-housed companion animal, understanding the extent to which owners provide care, management, and housing that meets their needs may help to promote their well-being and avoid adverse health and welfare outcomes for them. This pilot study therefore aimed to obtain information on the housing and management practices (including resources provided and feeding practices) used for companion cats by a cohort of veterinary professionals at two Midwestern veterinary colleges. 2. Materials and Methods 2.1. Survey. This data was collected as part of a larger ...

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...l-being and avoid adverse health and welfare outcomes for them. This pilot study therefore aimed to obtain information on the housing and management practices (including resources provided and feeding practices) used for companion cats by a cohort of veterinary professionals at two Midwestern veterinary colleges. 2. Materials and Methods 2.1. Survey. This data was collected as part of a larger project assessing cats’ responses to environmental factors where cats were temporarily housed in cages for two or three days to simulate conditions and acclimation that might be experienced at a shelter [10]. The studies were conducted at The Ohio State University (OSU) and Purdue University (PU) Colleges of Veterinary Medicine. The questionnaire was intended to gather information on the housing environment, resources available to the cat, and frequency of certain behaviors including sickness and abnormal behaviors (the Appendix). Close-ended questions were used to identify cat signalment (age, breed, sex, neuter status, and declaw status), source of the cats (how they were obtained), housing environment, and feeding practices. Frequency of sickness and abnormal behaviors was reported on a scale ...

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... cats were lacking in many of the resources most feline experts agree are essential for good welfare. At a minimum, these include individual resting, feeding, and elimination areas that are private and relatively free of unpredictable noise and interruption from other animals in the household. As noted The Scientific World Journal 7 previously, environmental enrichment that provides outlets for typical feline behaviors, such as novel toys that allow cats to “hunt,” daily play sessions with owners, scratching, and climbing opportunities, is also recommended to promote cat health and well-being [16]. Yet few owners reported routinely providing such resources to indoor-housed cats. Similar results have been reported for members of the general public elsewhere. For example, using owner self-reports to explore the living conditions of indoor-housed cats, Heidenberger [17] found that 24% of cats did not have their own food bowls and 51% had to share the litter pan with other cats. An interesting finding was that 91% of cats were fed a diet consisting of 25% or less of wet food with 54% receiving no wet food at all. A review of the literature by Zoran and Buffington [18] found evidence sugges...

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...f owners reported that their cats had excessive appetite at least once a month. This is in contrast to studies of cats housed in laboratories and in housing mimicking shelter environments, where decreased appetite was the most common abnormal behavior reported [10, 22, 23]. One explanation is that free-fed cats living in multicat households may have decreased appetite that goes unnoticed if changes in food intake are of short duration. Conversely, cats may use begging for food or overeating as an attention seeking behavior or in response to environmental stressors or negative emotional states [24]. A limitation of the current study is that body condition score was not recorded for the cats recruited from OSU. The mean body condition score of the cats recruited from PU (...

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...s in the United States. Studies in several countries have reported up to 63% of the cat population to be overweight or obese [25–29]. A recent report from the 2015 National Pet Obesity Awareness Day Survey conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP) noted that 58.2% or roughly 42million cats in theUSwere found to be overweight or obese by their veterinarians [30]. Many factors contribute to this problem, including gender and hormonal changes due to neutering, age, inactivity, boredom due to indoor confinement, overfeeding, and feeding style (meal feeding versus free choice) [9, 18, 31]. Further, many cat health issues are associated with obesity, including type-2 diabetes mellitus, joint disease and lameness, development of feline lower urinary tract disease, idiopathic hepatic lipoidosis, and nonallergic skin condition [9]. Thus, the importance of owner attention to cats’ diets, appetitive behaviors, and their implications for feline health cannot be overstated. Another finding of particular interest was that owners reported that the most common sickness or abnormal behaviors in their cats were excessive appetite (34%), vomiting (25%), and nervous (22%) and aggressive (13%...

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...ncreases risk in other areas. For example, to optimize behavioral well-being, cats maintained indoors require attention to aspects of their environments that many owners may not be prepared to meet. According to the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) and the International Society of Feline Medicine Hindawi Publishing Corporation e Scientific World Journal Volume 2016, Article ID 7108374, 13 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/7108374 2 The Scientific World Journal (ISFM) recommendations for indoor-housed cats (referred to as the five pillars of a healthy feline environment) [7] include provision of (1) a safe place, (2) multiple and separated key environmental resources (food, water, toileting areas, scratching areas, play areas, and resting or sleeping areas), (3) opportunity for play and predatory behavior, (4) positive, consistent, and predictable human-cat social interaction, and (5) an environment that respects the importance of the cat’s sense of smell (e.g., not removing scent marks, minimal use of harsh chemicals and perfumes, and use of synthetic pheromones). In addition, indoor housing may be associated with certain physical health risks. Epidemiological s...

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...havior, (4) positive, consistent, and predictable human-cat social interaction, and (5) an environment that respects the importance of the cat’s sense of smell (e.g., not removing scent marks, minimal use of harsh chemicals and perfumes, and use of synthetic pheromones). In addition, indoor housing may be associated with certain physical health risks. Epidemiological studies have found that indoor housing is associated with increased risk (odds ratio) for a variety of common cat diseases, including odontoclastic resorptive lesions (∼4.5), obesity (1.6–15.8), type 2 diabetes mellitus (1.4–4.6) [8], hyperthyroidism (4– 11.2), and behavioral disorders [8, 9]. Given the popularity of the cat as an indoor-housed companion animal, understanding the extent to which owners provide care, management, and housing that meets their needs may help to promote their well-being and avoid adverse health and welfare outcomes for them. This pilot study therefore aimed to obtain information on the housing and management practices (including resources provided and feeding practices) used for companion cats by a cohort of veterinary professionals at two Midwestern veterinary colleges. 2. Materials and Metho...

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...ulations interbreeding freely with feral populations rather than having mating strictly controlled by humans. Nonpedigree cats typically select their own mates and readily interbreed both with free-living feral domestic cats and with the wild progenitor species F. silvestris, where they coexist [11]. It is important to understand domestication when assessing the needs of cats. Evidence suggests that many of the differences between domestic and wild populations result from quantitative changes in the thresholds for performing a behavior rather than in qualitative changes in the behavior itself [12]. The cat’s behavioral organization has been shaped by evolution to use information obtained from the environment to react to an event or to interact with an environmental feature to form rules of response for similar events or stimuli. The extent to which these “decision rules” of the ancestral species become altered by domestication may influence the negative subjective experiences (suffering) of an animal especially when there is a mismatch between an animal’s current environment and the environment in which its decision rules evolved [13]. In this sense, we may consider domestic cats as si...

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...nment and the environment in which its decision rules evolved [13]. In this sense, we may consider domestic cats as similar to zoo animals, with the proximity of conspecifics and other animals, combined with limited resources and opportunities to express species-typical behavior potentially influencing cats’ perceptions of control. Additionally, cats have evolved as solitary hunters with typical social groups consisting of related females and their offspring. Adult males live on the periphery of a group of females with adolescent males, and often females, dispersing from their natal territory [14]. Yet the domestic cat, while less gregarious than other domestic species, does exhibit great plasticity in social behavior, with sociability appearing to be influenced by early experience and socialization [15]. While indoor living in itself and sharing of homes with other cats do not pose de facto feline welfare problems, living confined in close proximity to unrelated conspecifics may be stressful to some individual cats, particularly if they are not provided with adequate resources.Therefore, attention to the quality of the indoor housing environment is of critical importance to companion ...

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...health and well-being [16]. Yet few owners reported routinely providing such resources to indoor-housed cats. Similar results have been reported for members of the general public elsewhere. For example, using owner self-reports to explore the living conditions of indoor-housed cats, Heidenberger [17] found that 24% of cats did not have their own food bowls and 51% had to share the litter pan with other cats. An interesting finding was that 91% of cats were fed a diet consisting of 25% or less of wet food with 54% receiving no wet food at all. A review of the literature by Zoran and Buffington [18] found evidence suggesting factors relating to diet, including form (wet versus dry), composition (high carbohydrate versus high protein), and presentation (in a bowl or in a puzzle), are important environmental factors for domestic cats confined indoors [18]. Plantinga et al. [19] estimated the nutrient intake of feral cats based on data of food consumption patterns in order to understand the nutrient profile to which the cat has been evolutionarily adapted. The calculated diet was 69.5% water with daily energy intake from protein 52%, from fat 46%, and from NFE only 2%, supporting the fact t...

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...y), composition (high carbohydrate versus high protein), and presentation (in a bowl or in a puzzle), are important environmental factors for domestic cats confined indoors [18]. Plantinga et al. [19] estimated the nutrient intake of feral cats based on data of food consumption patterns in order to understand the nutrient profile to which the cat has been evolutionarily adapted. The calculated diet was 69.5% water with daily energy intake from protein 52%, from fat 46%, and from NFE only 2%, supporting the fact that cats are truly obligate carnivores. In a pair of studies Hewson-Hughes et al. [20, 21] have indicated that providing wet food as well as dry may be beneficial to cat well-being. They demonstrated that cats will regulate their macronutrient intake to reach a “target” intake of total energy comprised of 52% protein, 36% fat, and 12% carbohydrate [20]. Importantly, this “target” could only be met by provision of wet foods in addition to dry and the cats consistently consumed more wet food (85% of total food intake) than dry when offered both [21]. More research is needed to determine if the shift from an obligatory meatbased natural diet to a meat-based and grain-based pet food ri...

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...y), composition (high carbohydrate versus high protein), and presentation (in a bowl or in a puzzle), are important environmental factors for domestic cats confined indoors [18]. Plantinga et al. [19] estimated the nutrient intake of feral cats based on data of food consumption patterns in order to understand the nutrient profile to which the cat has been evolutionarily adapted. The calculated diet was 69.5% water with daily energy intake from protein 52%, from fat 46%, and from NFE only 2%, supporting the fact that cats are truly obligate carnivores. In a pair of studies Hewson-Hughes et al. [20, 21] have indicated that providing wet food as well as dry may be beneficial to cat well-being. They demonstrated that cats will regulate their macronutrient intake to reach a “target” intake of total energy comprised of 52% protein, 36% fat, and 12% carbohydrate [20]. Importantly, this “target” could only be met by provision of wet foods in addition to dry and the cats consistently consumed more wet food (85% of total food intake) than dry when offered both [21]. More research is needed to determine if the shift from an obligatory meatbased natural diet to a meat-based and grain-based pet food ri...

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...sed pet food rich in carbohydrates places the cat’s metabolism under stress and possibly has unwanted negative health effects in the long run. Unfortunately, only limited conclusions can be drawn from this study as detailed information pertaining to diet was not collected which should be addressed in future studies. Thirty-four percent of owners reported that their cats had excessive appetite at least once a month. This is in contrast to studies of cats housed in laboratories and in housing mimicking shelter environments, where decreased appetite was the most common abnormal behavior reported [10, 22, 23]. One explanation is that free-fed cats living in multicat households may have decreased appetite that goes unnoticed if changes in food intake are of short duration. Conversely, cats may use begging for food or overeating as an attention seeking behavior or in response to environmental stressors or negative emotional states [24]. A limitation of the current study is that body condition score was not recorded for the cats recruited from OSU. The mean body condition score of the cats recruited from PU (...

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...sed pet food rich in carbohydrates places the cat’s metabolism under stress and possibly has unwanted negative health effects in the long run. Unfortunately, only limited conclusions can be drawn from this study as detailed information pertaining to diet was not collected which should be addressed in future studies. Thirty-four percent of owners reported that their cats had excessive appetite at least once a month. This is in contrast to studies of cats housed in laboratories and in housing mimicking shelter environments, where decreased appetite was the most common abnormal behavior reported [10, 22, 23]. One explanation is that free-fed cats living in multicat households may have decreased appetite that goes unnoticed if changes in food intake are of short duration. Conversely, cats may use begging for food or overeating as an attention seeking behavior or in response to environmental stressors or negative emotional states [24]. A limitation of the current study is that body condition score was not recorded for the cats recruited from OSU. The mean body condition score of the cats recruited from PU (...

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... that the majority of cats were overweight or obese. It is important for future studies to assess if a correlation between excessive appetite and obesity exists. Obesity is now the most common nutritional disorder in cats in the United States. Studies in several countries have reported up to 63% of the cat population to be overweight or obese [25–29]. A recent report from the 2015 National Pet Obesity Awareness Day Survey conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP) noted that 58.2% or roughly 42million cats in theUSwere found to be overweight or obese by their veterinarians [30]. Many factors contribute to this problem, including gender and hormonal changes due to neutering, age, inactivity, boredom due to indoor confinement, overfeeding, and feeding style (meal feeding versus free choice) [9, 18, 31]. Further, many cat health issues are associated with obesity, including type-2 diabetes mellitus, joint disease and lameness, development of feline lower urinary tract disease, idiopathic hepatic lipoidosis, and nonallergic skin condition [9]. Thus, the importance of owner attention to cats’ diets, appetitive behaviors, and their implications for feline health cannot be...

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..., joint disease and lameness, development of feline lower urinary tract disease, idiopathic hepatic lipoidosis, and nonallergic skin condition [9]. Thus, the importance of owner attention to cats’ diets, appetitive behaviors, and their implications for feline health cannot be overstated. Another finding of particular interest was that owners reported that the most common sickness or abnormal behaviors in their cats were excessive appetite (34%), vomiting (25%), and nervous (22%) and aggressive (13%) behavior. Similar behaviors have been reported in other studies. For example, Morgan and Houpt [32] found the most common behavior problems to be scratching furniture (60%), eating houseplants (42%), conspecific aggression (36%), food stealing (25%), hissing/aggression to people (17%), housesoiling (16%), excessive vocalizations (16%), fabric chewing (7%), and “shyness” (4%). Later, Heidenberger [17] reported the most frequent behavior problems cited by cat owners to include anxiety (16.7%), scratching furniture (15.2%), feeding problems (10.9%), aggression (10.5%), and inappropriate urination (8.2%) and defecation in the house (5.1%). Many of these behaviors have been observed in response ...

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...actices outlined for the welfare of cats housed indoors. This suggests a need for continuing education and “marketing” ofmessages about cats and their welfare needs so that all veterinary practitioners have the available tools, knowledge, and comfort to advise their cat owning clients. Ultimately, improved application and transfer of information to cat owners of current scientific information on the housing and handling is necessary to better meet cats’ needs, promote the human-animal bond, and reduce risk of cat abandonment and relinquishment to shelters. Appendix Questionnaire (Adapted from [33]) Cat and Client History Form Owner name: — Cat’s name: — Date: — Contact Information: Phone #: — E-mail: — Breed: — Date of Birth: — Weight: — lb/kg Sex: (circle one) FI FS MI MN Declawed? No: — Yes: — If yes, Front: — All: — Owned How Long? — Years, — months Total Cats: — Total Dogs: — Other Pets: — Other people: — Housing: Apartment: r studio, r 1-2 bedrooms, r 3 or more bedrooms, r attached house/twin duplex, r attached house, 3 or more units, r single house, r other — Previous Illnesses or Surgeries: — Directions. For items below, please use the following choices to describe how many time...