The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues?
Managing relinquished/stray dogs is a significant socio-economic and ethical challenge necessitating structured policies to ensure animal welfare and integration into society. Critical to successful rehoming is careful assessment of a dog’s temperament/behavior and appropriate matching of a dog to a...
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Veterinary Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/5/497 |
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| author | Laura Contalbrigo Elizabeth A. Walsh Lieve L. Meers Daniele Benedetti Marta De Santis Emma Bassan Simona Normando |
| author_facet | Laura Contalbrigo Elizabeth A. Walsh Lieve L. Meers Daniele Benedetti Marta De Santis Emma Bassan Simona Normando |
| author_sort | Laura Contalbrigo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Managing relinquished/stray dogs is a significant socio-economic and ethical challenge necessitating structured policies to ensure animal welfare and integration into society. Critical to successful rehoming is careful assessment of a dog’s temperament/behavior and appropriate matching of a dog to an owner. Shelter dogs’ involvement in canine-assisted interventions (CAIs) provides a potential avenue for rehoming through appropriate dog educational programs. CAIs consist of structured interactions between dog and clients targeted at specific groups with physical/psychological/emotional impairments in various settings. However, there is a lack of standardized protocols for assessing shelter dogs’ suitability for CAI, raising ethical concerns regarding selection/training practices. This study explores the ethical dimensions of rehoming shelter dogs for CAI, employing a philosophical framework considering the responsibilities of humans/veterinarians toward companion animals and how societal perceptions of human–animal relationships impact decision-making in this context. An ethical matrix is applied to evaluate the implications of rehoming decisions on canine and human interests. Our findings highlight the need for a balanced, responsible approach that respects the individuality of dogs while promoting their potential roles in human society. Ethical guidelines for the selection and training of shelter dogs for CAI could enhance their welfare, improve adoption rates, and reinforce the value of the human–animal bond. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2f81ddc47ed84d779a33298733ade7aa |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2306-7381 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Veterinary Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-2f81ddc47ed84d779a33298733ade7aa2025-08-20T01:56:42ZengMDPI AGVeterinary Sciences2306-73812025-05-0112549710.3390/vetsci12050497The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues?Laura Contalbrigo0Elizabeth A. Walsh1Lieve L. Meers2Daniele Benedetti3Marta De Santis4Emma Bassan5Simona Normando6National Reference Centre for Animal Assisted Interventions, Viale Dell’Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, ItalyCork Pet Behaviour Centre, Clonakilty, P85 YF58 Cork, IrelandBIAAT Foundation, Stadsplein 100/12, 3600 Genk, BelgiumLocal Health Unit Rome 6, Via Borgo Garibaldi 12, 00041 Albano Laziale, RM, ItalyNational Reference Centre for Animal Assisted Interventions, Viale Dell’Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, ItalyNational Reference Centre for Animal Assisted Interventions, Viale Dell’Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, ItalyDipartmento Di Biomedicina Comparata E Alimentazione, Agripolis, University of Padua, Viale dell’Università m16, 35020 Legnaro, PD, ItalyManaging relinquished/stray dogs is a significant socio-economic and ethical challenge necessitating structured policies to ensure animal welfare and integration into society. Critical to successful rehoming is careful assessment of a dog’s temperament/behavior and appropriate matching of a dog to an owner. Shelter dogs’ involvement in canine-assisted interventions (CAIs) provides a potential avenue for rehoming through appropriate dog educational programs. CAIs consist of structured interactions between dog and clients targeted at specific groups with physical/psychological/emotional impairments in various settings. However, there is a lack of standardized protocols for assessing shelter dogs’ suitability for CAI, raising ethical concerns regarding selection/training practices. This study explores the ethical dimensions of rehoming shelter dogs for CAI, employing a philosophical framework considering the responsibilities of humans/veterinarians toward companion animals and how societal perceptions of human–animal relationships impact decision-making in this context. An ethical matrix is applied to evaluate the implications of rehoming decisions on canine and human interests. Our findings highlight the need for a balanced, responsible approach that respects the individuality of dogs while promoting their potential roles in human society. Ethical guidelines for the selection and training of shelter dogs for CAI could enhance their welfare, improve adoption rates, and reinforce the value of the human–animal bond.https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/5/497ethical matrixshelter veterinarianscanine-assisted interventionselection and training in CAIethical guidelines for CAIbehavioral assessment |
| spellingShingle | Laura Contalbrigo Elizabeth A. Walsh Lieve L. Meers Daniele Benedetti Marta De Santis Emma Bassan Simona Normando The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? Veterinary Sciences ethical matrix shelter veterinarians canine-assisted intervention selection and training in CAI ethical guidelines for CAI behavioral assessment |
| title | The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? |
| title_full | The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? |
| title_fullStr | The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? |
| title_short | The Selection and Training of Shelter Dogs for Involvement in Canine-Assisted Interventions: What Are the Ethical Issues? |
| title_sort | selection and training of shelter dogs for involvement in canine assisted interventions what are the ethical issues |
| topic | ethical matrix shelter veterinarians canine-assisted intervention selection and training in CAI ethical guidelines for CAI behavioral assessment |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/5/497 |
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