The Society for Companion Animal Studies’ AGM will take place online on Tuesday 10 November 2020 at 7pm (UK time). All SCAS members are welcome to attend; a link to join the meeting has been sent out to members. If you have not received a copy of this email, or have any queries in the meantime, please contact us.
The Society for Companion Animal Studies (SCAS) and Fostering Compassion are delighted to announce a new downloadable publication: Creating Compassionate Classrooms, Children and pet loss: Guidance for teachers.
Continue readingThe University of Arizona is currently hiring for two full-time research coordinators to help with HAI studies.
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By Dee Bonett
I would like to dedicate this to Elizabeth Ormerod, her support and belief of everything I have achieved to date, alongside those who are also very much a part of this journey, has been invaluable. This has indeed been a rollercoaster of incredible “highs” and “lows”, whilst making change for those already at their most vulnerable, at the point of Homelessness with their Pets, to ensure this tragedy never happens again…..
Continue readingThe Covid-19 pandemic raises questions about the role that relationships and interactions between humans and animals play in the context of widespread social distancing and isolation measures.
Researchers from the University of York, University College London and Queen’s University Belfast have investigated links between mental health and loneliness, companion animal ownership, the human-animal bond, and human-animal interactions; and explored animal owners’ perceptions related to the role of their animals during lockdown.
A link to the findings from this research can be found here.
Whilst previous research has indicated beneficial effects of Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAIs) for children with Autism, the findings are often contradictory.
Continue readingDespite us being a nation of animal lovers, with companies including Google welcoming dogs into the workplace, 55% of private landlords (1) still fly in the face of Government guidelines with a ‘no pets’ policy.
On the latest episode of A DOG’S LIFE, host and ‘dog guru’, Anna Webb and Gabby Kuehn, Founder of PAAW (Pets Are Always Welcome) House discuss concerns that many ‘lockdown’ puppies may face homelessness due to private Landlords either misinterpreting or ignoring pet clauses and replacing them with blanket bans.
Continue readingThe Society for Companion Animal Studies (SCAS) is delighted to announce that its 2020 conference ‘Human and Animal Welfare in AAI: Learnings from the UK and across the globe’ will take place this year online, and is now open for registration.
After much consideration and in light of the global Coronavirus pandemic, this year’s conference will be held in a virtual format on Sunday 13 September 2020. Although it is lovely to meet up in person with delegates at the conference, we are excited about the opportunity of welcoming delegates to the event that may not have been otherwise able to take part due to travel restrictions.
Continue readingA recent paper introduces the new LEAD Risk Assessment Toolkit which provides urgently needed unified guidelines on best practice in relation to risk assessment, safeguarding and animal welfare priorities in Animal-Assisted Intervention (AAI) practice. The authors also provide the first comprehensive risk assessment and animal welfare tools to achieve consistent welfare and safety standards for best practice across educational and other settings around the world.
Continue readingLoneliness and isolation are endemic and linked with a plethora of physical and mental health problems. There is now overwhelming evidence that companion animals can provide important social support and help to mitigate against these effects. Unfortunately, many people in the UK, who would benefit most from the health and social support provided by animal companionship, are still denied this opportunity due to restrictive pet keeping practices. SCAS, since its inauguration, has raised awareness of pets in housing issues for example through its conferences, research and by presentations to politicians in Westminster, the Scottish Parliament and in Brussels. There is now political interest in this vexing area of discrimination. A growing number of overseas governments and regions have enacted positive pet policies. The Labour Party included positive pet legislation in its Animal Welfare manifesto.
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