What is it about?
This study aimed to look at the impact of wearing an Elizabethan collar on everyday activities of dogs and cats, as well as the impact on their overall quality of life, as observed by their owners.
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Why is it important?
Elizabethan collars are commonly recommended to prevent self-trauma in animals, particularly after surgery. They prevent animals from reaching certain sites on their body, limbs or face. For example, they may be used to prevent an animal removing its own sutures following neutering, or to prevent them rubbing their eyes after having ocular surgery. However, anecdotally, owners report that animals don't like wearing Elizabethan collars. We thought that this may be because owners observed or felt that Elizabethan collars prevented animals wearing them from doing things that they might normally do, or that they may be perceived to reduce the quality of life of the animals wearing them. Elizabethan collars play an important role, but we believe that a better understanding of the impacts (positive and negative) of these collars will allow veterinary team members to help maximise the welfare of animals wearing them.
Perspectives
For me, this study is an important contribution in the growing literature on the potential iatrogenic (treatment induced) harms of veterinary practice. Elizabethan collars are common, and we take them for granted. But as a companion animal veterinarian I kept hearing reports from owners about their animals experiencing misadventure while wearing the collar, or appearing to be "miserable" while wearing them. The aim of the literature exploring potential iatrogenic harms of veterinary care is to ensure that we can refine our practices and maximise the benefits of treatment to animals while minimising the costs. But to do that, we need to understand the costs and benefits. This was also a great opportunity to apply the technique of thematic analysis to owner responses, as qualitative data is rich in information.
Anne Fawcett
University of Sydney
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: “The Cone of Shame”: Welfare Implications of Elizabethan Collar Use on Dogs and Cats as Reported by their Owners, Animals, February 2020, MDPI AG,
DOI: 10.3390/ani10020333.
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