Читать книгу Animal Behavior for Shelter Veterinarians and Staff - Группа авторов - Страница 38

Pair or group housing of dogs is often recommended (Hetts et al. 1992). The presence of conspecifics can offer more social complexity—in terms of social interactions and even olfactory composition—which could decrease abnormal behaviors and mitigate stress (Taylor and Mills 2007). At the same time, social housing benefits could be confounded by increased space as well as environmental complexity. While a pilot study moving long‐term kenneled dogs from solitary to pair housing identified considerable individual variation, behavior observations generally supported social housing (Grigg et al. 2017). Socially housed dogs showed less active vigilance and a trend toward a reduction in repetitive jumping and pacing as well as a reduction in barking. While aggression or fights are offered as reasons against group housing, these concerns have not been substantiated (Mertens and Unshelm 1996). At the same time, individual dog considerations—such as a history of or observed aggression—and shelter‐level features—such as organizational philosophy, facility design, and operation and monitoring capabilities—also factor into social housing decisions.