Animal Welfare Professionals

As we close out the year, I wanted to share some new studies published by our ASPCA research teams this past year on topics in access to care, sheltering, and cruelty. If they spark inspiration, including any learnings you'd like to consider implementing in your organization, we'd love to hear from you:

•            The Twenty Highest Priority Questions to Answer to Improve Access to Veterinary Care: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.106

Identifies key research gaps to guide future work toward the most impactful access-to-care questions

•            The Impact of Delaying Behavior Rehabilitation Onset on Fear and Outcome Measures in Dogs in a Shelter Setting: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106743

Shows that delaying behavioral intervention does not improve outcomes and reinforces the efficacy of behavior modification to reduce dog fear

•            A Retrospective, Descriptive Study of Medical Conditions and Outcomes of Cats Relinquished to an Urban, Limited Admission Shelter from Hoarding Environments: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.148

Uses shelter medical records to identify common conditions and outcomes in cats removed from hoarding situations, informing clinical planning and resource needs

•            Outpatient Gastrointestinal Foreign Body Surgeries Performed in a Nonspecialized Setting Have Good Outcomes for Dogs and Cats: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.02.0067

Shows that select gastrointestinal surgeries can be safely managed in outpatient, nonspecialty settings, expanding access to care

•            Success of Outpatient Treatment for Canine Parvovirus in a Subsidized Community Medicine Clinic in Florida: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.131

Demonstrates that outpatient treatment can be effective for parvovirus in some contexts, improving access in resource-limited settings

•            Animal Cruelty in New York City: Cruelty Cases Presented to the ASPCA in Partnership with the NYPD 2013–2022: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15050662

Analyzes a decade of cruelty case data to identify patterns that can strengthen prevention, investigation, and intervention efforts

•            Reproductive Status and Abnormal Clinical Signs After Surgery Are Positively Associated with Hemoabdomen and Autotransfusion in Cats After Ovariohysterectomy: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.06.0394

Identifies risk factors associated with serious post-surgical complications, helping clinicians to take precautions, and recognize and respond earlier

•            Cats Requiring Autotransfusion After Spay Surgery Have High Survival Rates: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.06.0395

Provides evidence that autotransfusion (using the animal's own blood for a transfusion) can be a safe and effective alternative to traditional resource-intensive transfusion from a blood donor

•            Markers of Inflammation and Infection Are Associated with Prolonged Recovery in Dogs Emaciated from Long-Term Inadequate Nutrition: https://doi.org/10.2460/ajvr.25.05.0155

 Identifies clinical markers linked to recovery time, supporting better care planning for severely neglected dogs

We're also always thinking about the next questions we need to answer to drive innovation and impact in animal welfare, so we're curious to hear your thoughts on that too: what research would you really like to see that would help your work?

As we close out the year, I wanted to share some new studies published by our ASPCA research teams this past year on topics in access to care, sheltering, and cruelty. If they spark inspiration, including any learnings you'd like to consider implementing in your organization, we'd love to hear from you:

•            The Twenty Highest Priority Questions to Answer to Improve Access to Veterinary Care: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.106

Identifies key research gaps to guide future work toward the most impactful access-to-care questions

•            The Impact of Delaying Behavior Rehabilitation Onset on Fear and Outcome Measures in Dogs in a Shelter Setting: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2025.106743

Shows that delaying behavioral intervention does not improve outcomes and reinforces the efficacy of behavior modification to reduce dog fear

•            A Retrospective, Descriptive Study of Medical Conditions and Outcomes of Cats Relinquished to an Urban, Limited Admission Shelter from Hoarding Environments: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.148

Uses shelter medical records to identify common conditions and outcomes in cats removed from hoarding situations, informing clinical planning and resource needs

•            Outpatient Gastrointestinal Foreign Body Surgeries Performed in a Nonspecialized Setting Have Good Outcomes for Dogs and Cats: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.02.0067

Shows that select gastrointestinal surgeries can be safely managed in outpatient, nonspecialty settings, expanding access to care

•            Success of Outpatient Treatment for Canine Parvovirus in a Subsidized Community Medicine Clinic in Florida: https://doi.org/10.56771/jsmcah.v4.131

Demonstrates that outpatient treatment can be effective for parvovirus in some contexts, improving access in resource-limited settings

•            Animal Cruelty in New York City: Cruelty Cases Presented to the ASPCA in Partnership with the NYPD 2013–2022: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15050662

Analyzes a decade of cruelty case data to identify patterns that can strengthen prevention, investigation, and intervention efforts

•            Reproductive Status and Abnormal Clinical Signs After Surgery Are Positively Associated with Hemoabdomen and Autotransfusion in Cats After Ovariohysterectomy: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.06.0394

Identifies risk factors associated with serious post-surgical complications, helping clinicians to take precautions, and recognize and respond earlier

•            Cats Requiring Autotransfusion After Spay Surgery Have High Survival Rates: https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.06.0395

Provides evidence that autotransfusion (using the animal's own blood for a transfusion) can be a safe and effective alternative to traditional resource-intensive transfusion from a blood donor

•            Markers of Inflammation and Infection Are Associated with Prolonged Recovery in Dogs Emaciated from Long-Term Inadequate Nutrition: https://doi.org/10.2460/ajvr.25.05.0155

 Identifies clinical markers linked to recovery time, supporting better care planning for severely neglected dogs

We're also always thinking about the next questions we need to answer to drive innovation and impact in animal welfare, so we're curious to hear your thoughts on that too: what research would you really like to see that would help your work?