Public perception of urban companion animals during the COVID-19 outbreak in China

SARS-CoV-2 and Companion Animals: Sources of Information and Communication Campaign during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

This study analyzed data on the sources and the level of Italians' awareness on the risk of infection by SARS-CoV-2 at the human-animal interface. Data were collected through a survey-type investigation on a representative sample of the Italian population. Forty-five percent of the interviewees were aware that companion animals could be infected by SARS-CoV-2. However, 29.8% were familiar with preventive measures to adopt to avoid viral transmission between infected humans and companion animals, and only 20.7% knew which companion animals could be at risk of infection. Higher awareness regarding the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission between animals and humans (51.7%) and the measures to prevent it (33.3%) was detected among companion animals' owners. Notably, 40.4% of interviewees were not informed at all. Television broadcasts (26.4%) represented the main source of information, while only 3.5% of the interviewees relied on veterinarians, of which 31.9% considered this source of information as the most trustworthy. Overall, 72.4% of Italians recognized that the communication campaign on COVID-19 and companion animals was inadequate. This survey highlights the need for increasing the public awareness of the risk of companion animals being infected with SARS-CoV-2 and the involvement of professionals in the public communication on zoonoses.

Virulence-related factors and antimicrobial resistance in Proteus mirabilis isolated from domestic and stray dogs

Introduction

Proteus mirabilis is a multi-host pathogen that causes diseases of varying severity in a wide range of mammals, including humans. Proteus mirabilis is resistant to multiple antibiotics and has acquired the ability to produce expanded spectrum of β-lactamases, leading to serious public health problems. However, the available information on P. mirabilis isolated from feces of dogs, is still poorly understood, as is the correlation between its virulence-associated genes (VAGs) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs).

Method

In this study, we isolated 75 strains of P. mirabilis from 241 samples, and investigated the swarming motility, biofilm formation, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), distribution of VAGs and ARGs, as well as the presence of class 1, 2, and 3 integrons in these isolates.

Results

Our findings suggest a high prevalence of intensive swarming motility and strong biofilm formation ability among P. mirabilis isolates. Isolates were primarily resistant to cefazolin (70.67%) and imipenem (70.67%). These isolates were found to carry ureC, FliL, ireA, zapA, ptA, hpmA, hpmB, pmfA, rsbA, mrpA, and ucaA with varying prevalence levels of 100.00, 100.00, 100.00, 98.67, 98.67, 90.67, 90.67, 90.67, 90.67, 89.33, and 70.67%, respectively. Additionally, the isolates were found to carry aac(6')-Ib, qnrD, floR, bla_CTX-M, bla_CTX-M-2, bla_OXA-1, bla_TEM, tetA, tetB and tetM with varying prevalence levels of 38.67, 32.00, 25.33, 17.33, 16.00, 10.67, 5.33, 2.67, 1.33, and 1.33%, respectively. Among 40 MDR strains, 14 (35.00%) were found to carry class 1 integrons, 12 (30.00%) strains carried class 2 integrons, while no class 3 integrons was detected. There was a significant positive correlation between the class 1 integrons and three ARGs: bla_TEM, bla_CTX-M, and bla_CTX-M-2. This study revealed that P. mirabilis strains isolated from domestic dogs exhibited a higher prevalence of MDR, and carried fewer VAGs but more ARGs compared to those isolated from stay dogs. Furthermore, a negative correlation was observed between VAGs and ARGs.

Discussion

Given the increasing antimicrobial resistance of P. mirabilis, veterinarians should adopt a prudent approach towards antibiotics administration in dogs to mitigate the emergence and dissemination of MDR strains that pose a potential threat to public health.

Airborne transmission of biological agents within the indoor built environment: a multidisciplinary review

The nature and airborne dispersion of the underestimated biological agents, monitoring, analysis and transmission among the human occupants into building environment is a major challenge of today. Those agents play a crucial role in ensuring comfortable, healthy and risk-free conditions into indoor working and leaving spaces. It is known that ventilation systems influence strongly the transmission of indoor air pollutants, with scarce information although to have been reported for biological agents until 2019. The biological agents' source release and the trajectory of airborne transmission are both important in terms of optimising the design of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems of the future. In addition, modelling via computational fluid dynamics (CFD) will become a more valuable tool in foreseeing risks and tackle hazards when pollutants and biological agents released into closed spaces. Promising results on the prediction of their dispersion routes and concentration levels, as well as the selection of the appropriate ventilation strategy, provide crucial information on risk minimisation of the airborne transmission among humans. Under this context, the present multidisciplinary review considers four interrelated aspects of the dispersion of biological agents in closed spaces, (a) the nature and airborne transmission route of the examined agents, (b) the biological origin and health effects of the major microbial pathogens on the human respiratory system, (c) the role of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems in the airborne transmission and (d) the associated computer modelling approaches. This adopted methodology allows the discussion of the existing findings, on-going research, identification of the main research gaps and future directions from a multidisciplinary point of view which will be helpful for substantial innovations in the field.

Companion animal adoption and relinquishment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Peri-pandemic pets at greatest risk of relinquishment

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a situation globally where companion animals may be at increased risk of relinquishment and abandonment due to multiple interrelated factors. The aims of this study were to establish the prevalence of self-reported adoption and relinquishment of cats and dogs during the pandemic, and to identify characteristics associated with relinquishment. A survey was distributed to 4,000 participants across several countries including the UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain and France. N = 3,945 responses were available for analysis. Three groups of participants were identified; Those that never considered relinquishment (NCR), those that have considered relinquishment (CR) and those that have already relinquished a cat or dog (R). Two follow-up surveys were sent to CR and R participants. Considering data from the three surveys, 4.06% of participants considered giving up their pet, 0.74% relinquished their pet, and 0.2% considered and then later give up their pet. Compared to pets given as a gift, there was a 38.7% decreased likelihood of relinquishment in pets sourced from a shelter (P < 0.001), 31.2% decrease in those sourced from a breeder, and a 24.4% decrease in those acquired directly from someone that needed to find a new home for their cat or dog. Compared to owners who acquired their pet > 6 months before COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, those acquired < 6 months before COVID-19 was declared a pandemic were three times more likely to be considered for, or be, given up (P < 0.001) and those acquired after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic were two times more likely to be considered for, or be, given up (P < 0.001). There was a trend for greater likelihood of CR or R of pets acquired online (P = 0.074). Of those that had already given up their pet, 14.3% relinquished to a shelter, 66.7% gave their pet to a new owner and 19% obtained temporary care from someone else. A total of 65.0% of CR participants were male, increasing to 72.2% of R participants. There was no effect of species (cat or dog) on risk of relinquishment. Financial constraints were the most mentioned reason for both giving up a pet and considering giving up a pet, followed by health concerns specific to COVID-19, and behavioral problems. The findings from this study should be used to inform interventions aimed at reducing companion animal relinquishment.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Primate Research and Conservation

Simple Summary

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has made it harder to effectively protect and manage biodiversity, and this could make it more difficult for countries to show progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Here, we surveyed experts in early 2022 from 30 countries to collect data on the impacts of COVID-19 on non-human primate research and conservation initiatives. Of the 93 experts that responded to our survey, we found that 39% had not been able to visit any of their field sites since March 2020 and only one out of ten had managed to achieve at least 76–100% of their planned primate-related work since March 2020. Six out of ten respondents (61%) felt that primate conservation efforts in protected areas were worse than before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and one-third (33%) felt hunting was happening more frequently than before. This study provides evidence of the impacts of COVID-19 on progress towards achieving SDG15 (Life on Land) and provides practical lessons learned for biodiversity conservation efforts moving forward.

Abstract

There is evidence to suggest that the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may hamper our achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Here, we use non-human primates as a case study to examine the impacts of COVID-19 on the ability to achieve biodiversity conservation and management sustainability targets. We collected data through a survey of members of the IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group from January to March 2022. Of the 93 experts that responded to our survey, we found that 39% had not been able to visit any of their field sites since March 2020, 54% said they had less funding available for their primate-related work, and only one out of ten said they had managed to achieve at least 76–100% of their planned primate-related work since March 2020. Six out of ten respondents (61%) felt that primate conservation efforts in protected areas were worse than before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and one-third (33%) felt hunting was happening more frequently than before. This study provides evidence of the impacts of COVID-19 on progress towards achieving the SDGs, and provides practical lessons learned for biodiversity conservation efforts moving forward.

Panic, Psycho-Behavioral Responses, and Risk Perception in the Earliest Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic in China

Background

Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19), a rising global pandemic, has triggered psychological crises among the public. Panic, a severe symptom of mental disorders, is increasing in the public in China and it is urgent to provide research for intervention development.

Objectives

This study aimed to assess the prevalence of public panic in China during the earliest stage of the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore the associated psychological behavioral responses and public's risk perception of the pandemic.

Methods

A cross-sectional study using a web-based survey with convenience sampling was conducted with 2,484 participants nationally from February 11 to February 24, 2020 in China. A self-developed questionnaire was applied to assess the prevalence of public panic and its associated factors. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was applied to assess the risk and protective factors of public panic.

Results

There were 23.39% (581/2,484) of the participants who reported experiencing panic during the earliest stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Taking temperature repeatedly, being nervous in a crowd, being suspicious of infection in the family, being worried about the future, and worries about high infectivity of the COVID-19, lack of effective therapies, and wide impact of the COVID-19 pandemic increased the odds of public panic. Whereas, avoiding gatherings during holidays was negatively associated with the odds of public panic.

Conclusions

Psycho-behavioral responses were closely associated with public panic during the earliest stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Defusing excessive health-related worries, the guidance of appropriate self-protective behaviors, strengthening of health education in communities, and available treatment for mental disorders should be adopted to monitor the psychological responses and to guide the behaviors of the public.

Pets and people: information experience of multispecies families

Purpose

This paper introduces more-than-human perspective in information behaviour and information experience studies. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to understandings of the concept of multispecies families by exploring their significant dimensions related to information phenomena involving multiple contexts, situations, spaces, actors, species, and activities.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on previous research in human information behaviour and human-animal studies, our ideas around information experience of multispecies families are developed conceptually. The paper builds both on previous empirical findings about human information behaviour and the new domain of information experience.

Findings

The paper proposes a holistic approach both to information phenomena in everyday living with companion animals including embodied, affective, cognitive, social, digital, and objectual information that shapes pet care and management practices, and to the context of study, including work, domestic, and leisure aspects of multispecies family.

Originality/value

This study broadens our understanding of information phenomena in multispecies families, and so contributes to the field of information experience. It also provides insights for animal welfare scientists to help them understand the information behaviour of humans who are responsible for keeping and caring for animals.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 in domesticated animals and its potential of transmission: A meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIM

The coronavirus diseases-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused a global lockdown, which has limited the mobility of the public, and thus, more time is spent with their pets. Unfortunately, many social media have blamed pet animals as a reservoir of severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the etiologic agent of COVID-19, triggering a panic abandonment of pets. However, no article has summarized the information regarding the role of pets as SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs. This study aimed to evaluate the role of pets as a reservoir of SARS-CoV-2 on the basis of research papers (i.e., animal model, surveillance, and case report) published in 2020.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The review was conducted using articles from the PubMed database in 2020, using the keywords "COVID-19 in domesticated animals," which were screened and analyzed. Only the data from research articles were mimicked and transformed to conduct a meta-analysis. The meta-analysis was conducted regarding the effects of inhabitation and viral shedding in pets. In this study, we used 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS

A total of 132 papers in PubMed were related to the keywords, whereas only 12 papers were appropriate to answer the dynamics of the role of pets as the reservoir for SARS-CoV-2. Seven studies indicated the potential of cat-cat (4/7), human-cat (2/7), and human-dog (1/7) SARS-CoV-2 transmission. No study proved the presence of cat-human transmission. Another study showed that comingling did not affect SARS-CoV-2 viral shedding among a cat and dog. Furthermore, the viral shedding of cats and dogs caused asymptomatic manifestations and generated neutralizing antibodies within a short period of time.

CONCLUSION

SARS-CoV-2 transmission is present in domesticated animals, especially in pet cats and dogs, and transmission occurs between animals of the same species (cat-cat). The reverse zoonosis (zooanthroponosis) was found from human to cat/dog (comingled) with asymptomatic clinical signs due to the representation of neutralizing antibodies.

Exploring the impacts of travel-implied policy factors on COVID-19 spread within communities based on multi-source data interpretations

The global Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to the implementation of social distancing measures such as work-from-home orders that have drastically changed people's travel-related behavior. As countries are easing up these measures and people are resuming their pre-pandemic activities, the second wave of COVID-19 is observed in many countries. This study proposes a Community Activity Score (CAS) based on inter-community traffic characteristics (in and out of community traffic volume and travel distance) to capture the current travel-related activity level compared to the pre-pandemic baseline and study its relationship with confirmed COVID-19 cases. Fourteen other travel-related factors belonging to five categories (Social Distancing Index, residents staying at home, travel frequency and distance, mobility trend, and out-of-county visitors) and three social distancing measures (stay-at-home order, face-covering order, and self-quarantine for out-of-county travels) are also considered to reflect the likelihood of exposure to the COVID-19. Considering that it usually takes days from exposure to confirming the infection, the exposure-to-confirm temporal delay between the time-varying travel-related factors and their impacts on the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases is considered in this study. Honolulu County in the State of Hawaii is used as a case study to evaluate the proposed CAS and other factors on confirmed COVID-19 cases with various temporal delays at a county-level. Negative Binomial models were chosen to study the impacts of travel-related factors and social distancing measures on COVID-19 cases. The case study results show that CAS and other factors are correlated with COVID-19 spread, and models that factor in the exposure-to-confirm temporal delay perform better in forecasting COVID-19 cases later. Policymakers can use the study's various findings and insights to evaluate the impacts of social distancing policies on travel and effectively allocate resources for the possible increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases.

One welfare impacts of COVID-19 - A summary of key highlights within the one welfare framework

One Welfare describes the interconnection between animal welfare, human wellbeing and their physical and social environment. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is the cause of COVID-19 and emerged as a human pathogen in 2019 although is thought to have a zoonotic source. The original wildlife reservoir and any potential intermediate hosts have not yet been identified. The combination of the virus zoonotic condition together with the impacts of disease control measures has exposed clear interconnections between animals, people and their environment from both a health and a welfare perspective. The One Welfare Framework comprises five sections that can help understand the different One Welfare levels on which the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the world. This paper uses the One Welfare Framework to provide an overview of examples, within each of the five sections, where evidence is and/or can be made available to document COVID-19 impacts on One Welfare. The paper identifies a number of areas where further research and evidence gathering is required to better understand the different One Welfare impacts. Based on evidence summarised in this paper the author recommends that those responsible for managing the COVID-19 impacts and for planning the future recovery phase of the pandemic should consider adopting a holistic approach, including both health and welfare, by adopting & One Health, One Welfare & policies.