Added by Carri Westgarth, last edited by Carri Westgarth on 15 Jun, 2011  (view change)

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Contact info:
carri.westgarth@liverpool.ac.uk
0151 795 6011

Main Research Interests


I am a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Liverpool Veterinary School.

My research focus is human-animal interactions, in particular:

  • childhood obesity and pet ownership,
  • dog walking and physical activity,
  • dog behaviour on walks,
  • dog aggression towards humans,
  • the sociodemographics of pet ownership.

Latest News

June 2011

I am pleased to announce that I have been awarded a four year Medical Research Council Population Health Scientist Fellowship for my proposal entitled "Understanding dog ownership and walking for better human health".  I will be collaborating with world renowned experts in the study of dog walking and human-animal interactions, including Prof James Serpell, Prof Garry Marvin and Dr Hayley Christian. The fellowship will begin in July 2011 and firstly I will be undertaking the Masters in Public Health at the University of Liverpool. there are exciting times ahead!

Background

I graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2002 with a First Class BSc Combined Honours (Zoology and Genetics). I couldn't decide between them so I did the best of both!

After spending a few months catching damselflies as a Research Assistant, I worked at RSPCA Halewood as an Animal Care Assistant. My interest in dog behaviour grew and I joined the charity Hearing Dogs for Deaf People as an Instructor, training dogs in obedience and soundwork and placing them with deaf recipients.

In 2005 I returned to Merseyside, this time to the Wirral, to start my PhD in the Epidemiology Group of the School of Veterinary Science, entitled "Contact between dogs, and between dogs and people" (see below).

In the meantime I continued the practical application of animal behaviour by joining the practice of Erica Peachey, to teach dog training classes and see problem behaviour cases (http://www.ericapeachey.co.uk). In 2009 I became a Full Member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (http://www.apbc.org.uk

Current Project 1 - Is pet ownership associated with childhood obesity?


Childhood obesity is major public health concern in many developed countries. In the light of the increasing childhood obesity epidemic and failure of measures taken so far to control this, new intervention means are urgently required.


Half of UK households own a pet of some type, with one in four owning a dog. A number of factors are associated with households that choose to own dogs, including families with school age children being more likely to own a dog.

This project aims to elucidate whether children that own pets, particularly dogs, have a lower weight status. We hypothesise that this may be through exercise and lifestyle factors, the emotional support that they provide, or some other measure associated with the types of families that choose to own dogs/pets. The project began in July 2008 and has recently been awarded extension funding to continue until July 2011.

Phase 1


The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC http://www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/) is a UK birth cohort, also known as "Children of the nineties".

More than 14,000 mothers enrolled during pregnancy in 1991 and 1992, and the health and development of their children has been followed in great detail ever since. The ALSPAC families have provided a vast amount of genetic and environmental information over the years. This resource is assisting scientists all over the world with research into a wide range of health problems.

Pet ownership data was collected up to age 10 years, through a questionnaire completed by the mother of the child. Number and type of pets owned was collected during pregnancy and at seven other time points.

Pet ownership data is being used to test for association with BMI at 7 yrs, DEXA at 9yrs and an objective measure of physical activity via accelerometry at 11yrs.

Phase 2

Our investigations using ALSPAC are limited by lack of information on type of dog owned, involvement of the child in walking and other pet-related activities, and attachment to the pet. Thus we have created the "Child Lifestyle and Pets Questionnaire" with which we have surved  approximately 1000 Year 5 school children from primary schools in Liverpool.

Latest Findings

ALSPAC data - These findings were presented at IAHAIO 12, Sweden, July 2010.
On first glance, dog ownership at 7yrs was associated with a slightly increased likelihood of being obese. However, after controlling for gender, maternal education and social class, plus other previously identified risk factors for obesity in this cohort (birth weight, maternal smoking during gestation, parental obesity, TV watching, and sleep duration), obesity was no longer associated with dog ownership at 7 years. This demonstrates the importance of controlling for other behavioural and environmental factors, particularly as socioeconomic status affects both pet ownership and health outcomes. It also reflects that the pet owning population is unlikely to be a homogenous group. There was no evidence for a protective effect of dog ownership against childhood obesity; if anything, families with obese children may be acquiring dogs. This study confirms that obese and overweight children own dogs, but more investigation is required to determine whether this impacts their physical activity; do they walk with their dog?

Current Project 2 - Risk factors for dog aggression towards humans


Dog aggression has major public health and animal welfare implications. Concern around the consequences and prevention of dog aggression has led to this Defra funded project, which began in September 2009.

Canine aggression is a significant public health and animal welfare issue. With an estimated annual incidence of 740 bites per 100,000 population, dog bites account for around 250,000 minor injury and emergency unit attendances each year in the UK, with a small, but none the less tragic, annual mortality.

Aggression is a common reason for relinquishment or abandonment of dogs and often results in euthanasia, either directly or because dogs labelled as aggressive are difficult to re-home.

Dr Jenny Newman is an MPhil student, co-supervised by myself and Dr Rob Christley. Jenny is conducting a systematic review of the literature relating to human-directed dog aggression. Our aim is to provide a robust review identifying the current evidence for the role of potential risk factors for aggressive dog-human interactions, with a view to informing on potential preventative strategies and identifying areas for future research.

For more information on this project please see http://www.liv.ac.uk/dog-aggression

PhD Synopsis - Contact between dogs, and between dogs and people


Dogs are popular pets in many countries. The interactions that occur between dogs, and between dogs and humans, are of interest to behavioural, welfare, psychological and social sciences. As dogs are a potential source of zoonotic infections to humans, such interactions may also impact on public health. Interactions between dogs, for example whilst walking, may also transfer infectious diseases (zoonotic or non-zoonotic) through the pet dog population. Despite their popularity as pets, there have been no in-depth studies into the contacts that occur between dogs, and between dogs and people; this thesis uses a variety of methodologies to examine these contacts.


A census-based, epidemiological study was used to investigate factors associated with dog ownership and contact with dogs, in a semi-rural community of 1278 households in Cheshire, UK. This study supported the suggestion that dogs are more common in families who have older children (6-19 years), as has been generally observed in other countries. Dog owners were also more likely to have contact with dogs other than their own, compared with those not owning a dog. A questionnaire survey of 260 dog owning households in this community found that the contacts that these dogs have, with people and other dogs, were highly variable and affected by: size, gender and age of dog; individual dog behaviours; human behaviours and human preferences in management of the dog. A number of situations were identified that may be of particular importance in relation to zoonoses, including: sleeping areas, playing behaviours, greeting behaviours, food sources, walking, disposal of faeces, veterinary preventive treatment and general hygiene.

Faecal samples were provided for 183 of the dogs and forty-six (25%) were identified, by either culture or direct PCR isolation methods, as carriers of the zoonotic pathogen Campylobacter upsaliensis. Multivariable logistic regression identified risk factors for C. upsaliensis carriage as: living with a positive dog, living in a household with pet fish, size of dog, age of dog, being fed commercially-bought dog treats, and being fed human food tit-bits (particularly the act of feeding leftovers in the bowl, although letting the dog feed directly from a plate had a protective effect). These results have implications for prevention of C. upsaliensis carriage in pet dogs and the subsequent possible transmission to people.


Social network analytical approaches were used to investigate potential networks arising amongst 214 of the dog owning households, through their utilisation of public space during walking. A high level of potential contact was demonstrated and this has implications for infectious disease transmission. Most households walked their dogs in only a few areas, but a small number visited many areas.

In addition, behavioural observational studies of focal dogs were used to investigate the interactions with other dogs, people and the environment that may occur on dog walks. Dogs were observed to interact with other dogs much more commonly than with people. A multivariable model of percentage duration spent sniffing suggested that day of observation, UK Kennel Club Breed Type and observing urination were important. Whether a dog is kept on a lead or not whilst on a walk could affect the frequency in which it interacts with other dogs and people that it meets. An experimental study of ten dogs was conducted and hierarchical multilevel modelling suggested that lead status of both dogs in an interaction is important in influencing whether or not the interaction will occur; therefore if used as an intervention for reducing disease spread, both dogs should be on a lead.

The work in this thesis provides new insight into the dog-human relationship and presents information of use to those interested in reducing infectious disease transmission between dogs, and between dogs and people.

Teaching

  • Visiting Lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University - BSc Animal Behaviour. Teaching includes human-animal interaction, dog ethology and assistance dogs.
  • Visiting Lecturer at the University of Chester - BSc Animal Behaviour. Teaching includes learning theory, insight, social learning, consciousness, dog ethology, behavioural observation and basic statistics.
  • Tutor of Undergraduate Epidemiology, University of Liverpool BVSc Veterinary Science.

Publications

Wedley, A.L., Maddox, T.W., Westgarth, C., Coyne, K.P., Pinchbeck, G.L., Williams, N.J., Dawson, S. (2011) Prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli in dogs in a cross-sectional, community-based study. Veterinary Record, 168: 354

Westgarth C., Heron J., Ness A.R., Bundred P., Gaskell R.M., Coyne K.P., German A.J., McCune S., Dawson S. (2010) Family pet ownership during childhood: Findings from a UK birth cohort and implications for public health research. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 7, 10:3704-3729.

Westgarth, C., Christley, R.M., Pinchbeck, G.L., Gaskell, R.M., Dawson, S. and Bradshaw, J.W.S. (2010) Dog behaviour on walks and the effect of use of the leash. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 125: 38-46

Westgarth, C., Pinchbeck, G.L., Bradshaw, J.W.S., Dawson, S., Gaskell, R.M. and Christley, R.M. (2010) Who owns cats? – Factors associated with cat ownership in a UK community. Veterinary Record. 166: 354-357

Westgarth, C., Porter, C.J., Nicolson, L., Birtles, R.J., Williams, N.J., Hart, C.A., Pinchbeck, G.L., Gaskell, R.M., Christley, R.M. and, Dawson, S. (2009) Risk factors for Campylobacter upsaliensis carriage in pet dogs in a community in Cheshire. Veterinary Record. 165: 526 -530.

Rooney, N., Sargan, D., Pead, M., Westgarth, C., Creighton, E., and Branson, N. (2009)
Pedigree dog breeding in the UK: a major welfare concern?
http://www.rspca.org.uk/pedigreedogs

Westgarth, C., Gaskell, R.M., Pinchbeck, G.L., Bradshaw, J.W.S, Dawson, S., and Christley, R.M. (2009) Walking the dog: exploration of the contact networks between dogs in a community. Epidemiology and Infection. 137, 8: 1169-1178.

Westgarth, C., Pinchbeck, G.L., Bradshaw, J.W.S., Dawson, S., Gaskell, R.M. and Christley, R.M. (2008) Dog-human and dog-dog interactions of 260 dog-owning households in a community in Cheshire. Veterinary Record. 162: 436-442.

Westgarth, C., Pinchbeck, G.L., Bradshaw, J.W.S., Dawson, S., Gaskell, R.M. and Christley, R.M. (2007) Factors associated with dog ownership and contact with dogs in a UK community. BMC Veterinary Research 3, 5. http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1746-6148-3-5.pdf

Watts P.C., Wu J.H., Westgarth C., Thompson D.J., Kemp S.J. (2004) A panel of microsatellite loci for the southern damselfly, Coenagrion mercuriale (Odonata: Coenagrionidae). Conservation Genetics. 5: 117-119

Personal


When not walking dogs or writing about walking dogs, I play bass guitar in 'The Ukeladybirds' with fellow Leahurster, Yvette.

You will probably not be surprised to learn that I own two dogs, Jasmyn and Ben. You may be more suprised to hear that I am really more of a cat person than a dog person, thus I am also owned by Dudley the big ginger cat. Even more surprising is the most recent addition to my household, Blanco. Can you guess what he is?