Heat Tolerance of Siberian Husky Dogs Living in Brazil: A Case Study on the Perceptions and Attitudes of Their Owners
Tarsys Noan Silva Veríssimo,
Edilson Paes Saraiva,
Aline Cristina Sant’Anna,
Bruna Agy Loureiro,
Pavlos Vinicius do Nascimento,
Luiz Arthur dos Anjos Lima,
Maria Isabelly Leite Maia,
Larissa Kellen da Cunha Morais,
Severino Guilherme Caetano Gonçalves dos Santos,
Eduardo Henrique Santos de Lima,
Vinícius de França Carvalho Fonseca
Affiliations
Tarsys Noan Silva Veríssimo
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Edilson Paes Saraiva
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Aline Cristina Sant’Anna
Nucleus of Studies in Ethology and Animal Welfare, Departament of Zoology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora 36036-900, Brazil
Bruna Agy Loureiro
Veterinarian Medicine and Animal Science School, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador 40170-110, Brazil
Pavlos Vinicius do Nascimento
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Luiz Arthur dos Anjos Lima
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Maria Isabelly Leite Maia
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Larissa Kellen da Cunha Morais
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Severino Guilherme Caetano Gonçalves dos Santos
Department of Animal Production, National Institute of Semiarid—INSA, Campina Grande 58429-970, Brazil
Eduardo Henrique Santos de Lima
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
Vinícius de França Carvalho Fonseca
Research Group in Bioclimatology, Ethology and Animal Welfare (BioEt), Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraíba, Areia 58397-000, Brazil
The management of the thermal environment to which dogs are exposed should be included in strategies to improve their welfare. An online questionnaire was administered to 624 owners of Siberian Husky dogs residing in Brazil, with the objective of assessing their perceptions regarding their dogs’ capacity to adapt to heat, and its association with the owners’ routine care. Owners who believed that dogs are low-heat-tolerant animals were more likely to report heat response behaviors from their dogs. Overall, owners reported walk with their dogs during early morning, late afternoon and nighttime. They also reported solar radiation as the primary criteria for determining the time to walk with their dogs. However, owners who reported walking with their dogs at noon mentioned time availability as their primary criteria. In conclusion, owners perceive Siberian Husky dogs living in Brazil as being poorly adapted to heat, and this perception appeared to influence their positive attitudes towards protecting their dogs from heat stress by choosing to walk them during times with less solar exposure. However, the lack of time for owners to walk with their dogs during cooler periods can still be a risk factor in exposing the animals to extreme hot conditions.
