International meeting on Dog Welfare

The international event "Welfare assessment protocol for shelter dogs: training of the assessors" took place in Teramo on the 27^th and 28^th of February 2013. The training was attended by representatives of the University of Belgrade, the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, Vier Pfoten International, the Western Balkans Veterinary Network and by the responsible of the Zagreb dog shelter.

The IZSAM "G. Caporale", in collaboration with the Institut de Recerca i Tecnologìa Agroalimentarias of Catalonia (Spain), developed a protocol for the assessment of dog welfare in shelters: in order to ensure reliability and feasibility of this innovative tool in the European context, the protocol will be tested on a sample of dog shelters representing the different countries realities. The event was organised in order to train a panel of evaluators coming from different geographical areas, and to provide them the tools for the protocol implementation.

This initiative, held at the International Centre for Veterinary Training and Information (CIFIV), confirms the active role of the Institute in the field of companion animal welfare.