CHAPTER 12 Katherine Miller1 and Katie Watts2 1 Anti-Cruelty Behavior Team, Anti-Cruelty Behavior Team, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA®), New York, USA 2 Adoption Center, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA®), New York, USA The primary role of many animal shelters in the USA is shifting from containment of animals for a minimal reclamation holding period to the longer-term care of animals until placed into adoptive homes. Traditional minimalistic housing, which was sufficient for short-term “animal control” work, is less suitable for long-term housing because it is unable to adequately meet some important behavioral and psychological needs or sufficiently buffer the animals from the stressors of shelter life. Even recently renovated feline caging systems often prioritize the experience of the adopter or shelter staff over the experience of the cats themselves. Environmental enrichment programs are therefore necessary to fully meet the needs of cats in shelters and should be given the same priority as provision for their medical and physical needs (Newberry et al. 2010). Environmental enrichment may be defined as the provision of a captive animal with the ability to maintain or improve its physical, behavioral, and psychological functioning via modifications to the housing environment (Newberry 1995; Young 2003). The focus is therefore on the result of the intervention. Often a toy or other item is added to an animal’s cage as “enrichment” without any particular goal or determination of whether the item helped to achieve that goal. In addition, enrichment is often implemented only after an animal begins displaying a problematic behavior of some kind (Zawistowski 2005); however, effective enrichment can help alleviate the effects of both current and future stressors (see Fox et al. 2006 for review). Therefore, enrichment in animal shelters should be a daily part of the animal care plan (Box 12.1). From the moment a cat enters a shelter, it is challenged by a broad range of potential, unavoidable stressors. These include the following (Morgan & Tromborg 2007): The cats in US shelters tend to have a wide range of socialization histories with people, ranging from former house pets to free-roaming, unsocialized feral cats (Clancy & Rowan 2003; Levy et al. 2003; Slater 2004). Many pet cats have never left the house before, while many free-roaming cats have never been indoors. Depending on experience, genetics, age, personality, and the shelter environment itself, cats may respond to confinement in a shelter with varying levels of distress. Their stress levels can take over 2 weeks to return to baseline levels (Kessler & Turner 1997, 1999a), and some, especially unsocialized cats, will never adapt. Distress in sheltered cats is often characterized by reduced activity, withdrawal, and motivation to hide, usually in the litter box or under bedding if no suitable concealment area is available. Stressed cats often feign sleep, which is easily mistaken for relaxation. Distressed cats are tense and so may be hypervigilant, destructive, defensively aggressive, or escape-oriented. Overgrooming, decreased grooming, panting, and excessive drooling may also be signs of distress, as can failure to eat or use the litter box during daytime hours. Some distressed cats refuse to eat or drink, while others will urinate or defecate where they lay rather than move from their hiding spot or bed to use the litter box. Even cats who are withdrawn during the day may throw their cage into disarray at night when no people are around, apparently seeking to escape (see Griffin & Hume 2006, for a review of fear and stress behaviors). Youngsters and active adult cats can quickly find confinement to be understimulating, leading them to make playthings out of any item in their cage. Shelter staff may find them batting playfully at grains of cat litter or the water in their dish, overturning their bowls or litter box, chewing or tearing bedding, or reaching their paws through the bars of the cage when people pass by. Such boredom behavior can also include biting or scratching caretakers’ hands or legs as though toys or prey, making it difficult or even dangerous to clean the cage or handle the cat. Cats displaying fearful, avoidant, defensive, destructive, or aggressive play behaviors are likely to have difficulty attracting adopters (Gourkow & Fraser 2006; Weiss et al. 2012). Furthermore, research indicates that stressed cats are at increased risk of physical illness (Tanaka et al. 2012; Stella & Croney et al. 2013) that can further increase their length of stay or make euthanasia more likely. Also, any animal with a prolonged experience in a chronically barren environment may be subject to lasting detriments to brain structure and function (reviewed in Rosenzweig & Bennett 1996), a welfare concern both during and after a cat’s stay in a shelter. While research examining the efficacy of environmental enrichment to improve the welfare of shelter cats is still sparse, clearly stress and deprivation can reduce a cat’s quality of life and its chance of successful adoption. Stress in shelters is not limited to the animals, however. Shelter staff are likewise regularly exposed to stressors; high turnover and compassion fatigue are common. The creation of an environmental enrichment program is one way to heighten morale by increasing positive interaction between cats and staff, which can reduce stress for both (Carlstead et al. 1993). The effects of enrichment can extend to adopters as well, who seem to show a preference for cats that are more active or housed in more interesting environments (Fantuzzi et al. 2010). Enrichment can also facilitate positive interactions between cats and adopters (e.g., through play with interactive toys), helping adopters to bond with a cat while encouraging the cats to approach, important factors in the choice to adopt (Dybdall & Strasser 2011; Weiss et al. 2012) (Figure 12.1 and Table 12.1). Figure 12.1 Interactive play not only provides enrichment but can facilitate interaction between cat and adopter even when the cat is hesitant to approach. Reproduced with permission from K Watts. © K Watts. Table 12.1 Feline shelter enrichment programs. Listing of potential programs that are easy to implement in a shelter setting. These are usually appropriate for staff and/or volunteers. Behavioral responses are important for assessing quality of life of cats in shelters because behavior is a primary method by which animals cope with stressors (McMillan 2013). No single behavior can provide an accurate indication of quality of life, but the overall behavioral repertoire and time budget of a cat in a shelter, compared with those of cats living in low-stress home environments, could guide quality-of-life goals for socialized cats1 in shelters (Patronek & Sperry 2001; Timmins et al. 2007). The behavior of owned cats, for example, suggests that keeping the fur adequately groomed, sleeping 30–65% of the day, scratching substrates, and eating multiple small meals per day are normal feline behaviors (Panaman 1981; Beaver 2007; Manteca 2002in Broom & Fraser 2007), that cohabitating cats usually maintain several feet of “personal space” and time-share resources such as preferred resting areas (Bernstein & Strack 1996), and that cats frequently look out of windows (Shyan-Norwalt 2005) and use multiple semi-enclosed hiding places and elevated resting areas (Beaver 2007). Shelter professionals’ knowledge of pet cats’ behavior at home can therefore help to establish reasonable behavioral goals for most socialized cats in their care. Both the quality and quantity of behavior should be performed at typical levels, as normal behaviors become abnormal if performed too much or too little (McMillan 2013) (Box 12.2). While most cats have similar basic behavioral needs, effective enrichment programs will permit for individualization, monitoring, and flexibility. The typical shelter cat population includes a wide range of ages, past experiences, socialization histories, and personalities, and an individual cat’s behavior is variable across contexts and over time. In addition, not all housing areas within a shelter are identical. When examining a cage from the animal’s perspective, one will find significant variation in lighting, temperature, odors, sounds, line of sight, and exposure to surroundings. Therefore, enrichment programs should strive to meet the basic needs of the entire cat population as well as the specific needs of individual cats (Figure 12.2). Figure 12.2 A basic, enriched cage. Not all housing areas are identical so make sure to examine the cage from the animal’s perspective including line of sight and exposure to surroundings. Reproduced with permission from K Watts. © K Watts. Maintaining good quality of life and preparation for rehoming will, for most shelters, require thoughtful application of the following categories of enrichment. The suggestions that follow are, hopefully, a starting point and an inspiration for new ideas applied by shelter staff and volunteers. All cats should be provided with enough space to stand and sit fully upright, lie down, turn around, walk, stretch out, and retreat to a hiding area. Space requirements should allow for separate functional areas for resting, eating/drinking, elimination, and locomotion. Cats will often abstain from using a litter box placed too close to the food source, and vice versa. Many sheltered cats are maintained in spaces so small that they cannot lie or stand fully stretched or must lie in their litter boxes. Rochlitz (2002) and others have suggested that cats need at least 20 in. between functional areas to maintain adequate quality of life. Shelters wishing to house cats socially should provide (i) at least 18 ft2 of floor space per cat and the opportunity to maintain 3–10 ft of distance between themselves and other cats, and (ii) ample feeding, hiding, resting, and elimination areas to prevent monopolization (Barry & Crowell-Davis 1999; Kessler & Turner 1999b; Gouveia et al. 2011). Inter-cat aggression, withdrawal, reduction in activity, or repetitive behavior can result from cohabitating an area that is too small. Habituating cats to walk on a harness and leash (for instructions, see Virtual Pet Behaviorist 2010), addition of a perching shelf or box in cat cages, encouragement of play and exploration in a time-shared exercise area, and group-housing of compatible animals in a larger space can provide spatial enrichment. Office fostering or a “real-life room” furnished like a living room can also provide a larger (and quieter) space for animals who are used to being in a home or to acclimate those who are not. Older cats may even take turns sleeping there overnight, while cats who present behavioral or physical adoption challenges may find success meeting adopters there, away from the distractions of the shelter and competition from other adoptable cats (Figure 12.3). Figure 12.3 Office fostering provides a home-like environment, increased contact with people, and additional opportunities for enrichment. Reproduced with permission from K Watts. © K Watts. Note, however, that housing animals in incrementally larger cages does not alone ensure beneficial behavioral change or adequate quality of life. The quality of the space, not simply the quantity, is important for mitigating stress and motivating animals to move about. Cage furnishings can help motivate animals to move around in their surroundings by increasing opportunities for exploration, providing vantage points and retreat areas, and separating functional areas. If an animal can view the entire cage area without moving, it has little motivation to move to gain information and little ability to retreat from aversive stimuli. All cats, but especially those who are fearful or skittish, should have a retreat area. An area that is partially to fully hidden from view allows cats to behaviorally cope with stressors. Cats seem to prefer protection that prevents being approached from behind (Roy 1992as cited in McCune et al. 1995), and fearful cats prefer to spend their time in concealment areas or near walls. Using structures to divide up the available space can encourage cats to more fully utilize that space. Curtains, partial cage dividers, interconnected cages, hiding boxes, and draping towels or blankets over parts of a cage will give animals the option of retreating to a more protected area. A plastic carrier or Cat CastleTM that stays with the cat during its entire stay and can go home with the cat is ideal (Shelter Health Portal 2010). Note that the cage’s floor space must be sufficient to fit a hiding box and still permit the cat to assume normal laying and stretching postures and keep food, water, and elimination areas sufficiently spaced, as described earlier. Could giving cats a hiding place reduce their visibility to the adopting public? On the contrary, shelter cats given concealment areas showed a faster decline in stress behaviors after intake and were more likely to approach than cats in barren cages, may have a shorter length of stay, and readily came to the front of the cage when called (Carlstead et al. 1993; Gourkow & Fraser 2006; Kry & Casey 2007; Moore & Bain 2013). If concerns persist, strategically placed mirrors could provide visual access to the animal at all times (Figure 12.4 and Table 12.2). Figure 12.4 Retreat areas can be created in a variety of ways including commercially available cat dens (a), cardboard boxes (b), attaching a curtain to a preexisting perch (c), or hanging material outside the cage (d). Reproduced with permission from K Watts. © K Watts. Table 12.2 Retreat areas. Many cats benefit from a retreat area but consider how defensive or aggressive the cat is before choosing a type. For instance, curtains may not allow a clear view of the cat and pose a safety risk for aggressive cats. Perches can provide a vantage point while increasing and diversifying cats’ activity to include stretching, jumping, and climbing. Cats use elevated areas for observation and resting more frequently than the floor (Podbersek et al. 1991; Griffin & Hume 2006). When socially housed, submissive cats may be relegated to higher areas of the pen, so multiple elevated food and water, resting, and litter box locations are recommended for group-housed cats. Possibilities for increasing elevated areas include a plastic pet kennel with the door removed or a covered plastic litter box with bedding on top, a sturdy cardboard or plastic box with door holes cut into it (always provide two exits for cohoused cats), cat hammocks, window perches, plastic lawn chairs, small tables, shelves, and raised walkways. The Cat Castle™ is a sturdy cardboard hiding and perching structure that becomes a carrier when the cat is adopted. Elevated cat beds that fit standard shelter cages are made by Kuranda. Cats have longer periods of deep sleep on soft bedding (Crouse et al. 1995as cited in Rochlitz 2002) and seem to prefer resting on materials that offer a constant temperature (Roy 1992as cited in McCune et al. 1995). Bedding can provide comfort from hard surfaces, encourage cats to rest in an area away from their litter box, and permit digging, exploration (e.g., if food is tucked inside or under it), and hiding. Polyester fleece fabric seems to be preferred over less textured fabrics (Hawthorne et al. 1995as cited in Rochlitz 2002). Cohoused cats require widely spaced multiple beds so that they cannot be monopolized. Cats must also be provided with the ability to behaviorally regulate their body temperature to prevent discomfort and illness. As mentioned earlier, enclosed hiding and perching places and bedding are useful to provide control over exposure to drafts or heat sources. Sealed, waterproof heating pads and microwavable discs can be placed inside of cages, or heat sources can be placed under a cage for safety. However, exposure to heat and cooling sources must be optional and avoidable for the animal. Heated beds at the front of cages during adoption hours can lure cats forward for optimal viewing. Scratching is a natural and necessary behavior for cats that stretches the foot and leg muscles, removes the outer nail sheath, and creates a scent mark used for communication. Individual cat cages often lack space for a standard scratcher. Options therefore include the small, disposable cardboard Scratch and StretchTM that hangs on the cage door or regular access to an exercise area containing a scratcher. In addition to commercially available scratchers, shelters might try bricks, cement blocks, blocks of rough wood or logs, carpet remnants, or sisal rope wound around a block of wood. Cats can often be enticed to begin scratching on a scratching substrate by rubbing catnip or dangling a toy on it. Some cats rake their claws on scratchers, while others pick at the surface, so providing a variety of scratching options is ideal (Griffin & Hume 2006) (Figure 12.5). Figure 12.5 The Scratch and StretchTM cardboard scratcher can provide an outlet for necessary scratching behavior in cages where a larger scratching surface is not possible. Reproduced with permission from K Watts. © K Watts.
Environmental and behavioral enrichment for cats
Introduction
The value of a feline enrichment program
Value for the cats
Value for staff and adopters
Using enrichment to maintain quality of life
Meeting the needs of individual cats
Enrichment categories
Physical space
Cage furnishings
Retreat areas
Retreat area
Notes for use
Elevated perches
Soft bedding
Temperature regulation aids
Scratching pads
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