What are the most prevalent welfare issues for pet small mammals?

Simple Summary

The welfare of pet small mammals is an understudied, but growing research topic in the UK and Europe. We used a questionnaire to poll the opinions of experts about the prevalence and severity of multiple welfare concerns, for each of the eight most common species (rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, rats, mice, chinchillas, degus, and gerbils). Using their ratings, we derived a welfare impact scale and compared the opinions of different professionals across different countries. There were a large number of issues raised for all species. Small housing was the welfare issue rated as the most impactful for seven of the species, whilst for rats it was respiratory disease. Inappropriate diets also figured prominently for all species. Opinions varied between professionals, for example veterinary nurses rated a variety of welfare issues as more prevalent than did veterinary surgeons. Efforts can now be directed towards addressing the most impactful issues for each species. Many owners are currently not meeting their companion animals’ welfare needs and so improved education and regulation is required, as well as greater availability of larger housing and appropriate diets. By concentrating efforts on these issues, we believe maximum welfare improvement can be achieved.


Abstract

The welfare of pet small mammals is an understudied, but growing research topic in the UK and Europe. We surveyed European veterinary experts who each rated severity and prevalence of a large number of issues in the eight most common species. Overall, 46 responses were obtained. We calculated the mean expert’s ratings for severity and prevalence of each issue, which were multiplied together to create an overall impact score. We then ranked issues from most to least impactful for each species. The most impactful welfare issue was perceived to be small housing for all the species apart from the rat where the main concern was respiratory disease. Where comparing veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses, rating differed significantly on numerous issues. Veterinary nurses generally rated welfare issues as more prevalent than veterinary surgeons. UK respondents also rated numerous issues as more severe and prevalent than non-UK respondents. Better guidance on, and increased availability of, affordable large housing is likely to greatly improve small mammal welfare.