Demographic Change Across the Lifespan of Pet Dogs and Their Impact on Health Status
Demographic Change Across the Lifespan of Pet Dogs and Their Impact on Health Status
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DOI：
10.3389/fvets.2018.00200
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发表时间：
2018-08-23
影响因子：
3.2
通讯作者：
Kubinyi, Eniko
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Wallis, Lisa J.;Szabo, Dora;Kubinyi, Eniko
虽然狗的预期寿命比人类短6到12倍，但人口统计数据（e。例如，在一个实施例中，狗的生活条件）仍然可以随着年龄的增长而发生很大的变化，这与人类相似。尽管狗是人类健康的一个特别好的模型，而且人口中老年狗的数量与老年人的数量平行增长，但以前很少有人试图用统计学方法描述人口变化。我们利用一个在线问卷调查，以检查年龄和健康的狗，主人和狗的人口统计学在一个横截面匈牙利样本之间的联系。单变量分析的结果显示，20的27个人口统计学变量测量6个狗的年龄组之间存在显着差异。我们的研究结果显示，纯种犬在较年轻的时候就出现了健康问题，并且可能比混合品种更早死亡。年龄最大的犬组（>12岁）的纯种犬数量少于混合犬，混合犬样本的平均年龄高于纯种犬样本。老年狗更经常被归类为不健康，很少有“正常”的身体状况评分，更经常接受药物和补充剂。他们也更经常是男性，绝育，遭受健康问题（如感官，关节和/或牙齿问题），与主人的活动/互动/培训较少，并且更有可能经历一次或多次创伤事件。令人惊讶的是，最年轻的年龄组包含更多的纯种犬，更经常喂生肉，并且拥有29岁以下的主人，反映了年轻主人的新趋势。一生中经历过一次或多次创伤事件的狗的高患病率（超过样本的40%）表明，通过告知主人创伤的最大风险因素并提供干预措施来减少创伤，可以改善福利和健康。影响。经历多个生活事件，如在收容所度过的时间，更换主人，创伤性损伤/长期疾病/手术，迷路和家庭结构的变化增加了主人报告他们的狗目前表现出他们归因于先前创伤的行为迹象的可能性。
Although dogs' life expectancies are six to twelve times shorter than that of humans, the demographics (e. g., living conditions) of dogs can still change considerably with aging, similarly to humans. Despite the fact that the dog is a particularly good model for human healthspan, and the number of aged dogs in the population is growing in parallel with aged humans, there has been few previous attempts to describe demographic changes statistically. We utilized an on-line questionnaire to examine the link between the age and health of the dog, and owner and dog demographics in a cross-sectional Hungarian sample. Results from univariate analyses revealed that 20 of the 27 demographic variables measured differed significantly between six dog age groups. Our results revealed that pure breed dogs suffered from health problems at a younger age, and may die at an earlier age than mixed breeds. The oldest dog group (>12 years) consisted of fewer pure breeds than mixed breeds and the mixed breeds sample was on average older than the pure breed sample. Old dogs were classified more frequently as unhealthy, less often had a "normal" body condition score, and more often received medication and supplements. They were also more often male, neutered, suffered health problems (such as sensory, joint, and/or tooth problems), received less activity/interaction/training with the owner, and were more likely to have experienced one or more traumatic events. Surprisingly, the youngest age group contained more pure breeds, were more often fed raw meat, and had owners aged under 29 years, reflecting new trends among younger owners. The high prevalence of dogs that had experienced one or more traumatic events in their lifetime (over 40% of the sample), indicates that welfare and health could be improved by informing owners of the greatest risk factors of trauma, and providing interventions to reduce their impact. Experiencing multiple life events such as spending time in a shelter, changing owners, traumatic injury/prolonged disease/surgery, getting lost, and changes in family structure increased the likelihood that owners reported that their dogs currently show behavioral signs that they attribute to the previous trauma.