Lend a Paw: Help scientists design a cat behavior questionnaire

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Those in the field of canine behavior and cognition see the word “C-BARQ”, and that means something to us. We know it is not short for “See Spot bark.” Instead it stands for Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire — a questionnaire providing dog owners and dog professionals with standardized evaluations of canine temperament and behavior. The current version has 101 questions which describe the different ways dogs typically respond to common events, situations and environmental stimuli.

Dog Behavior Questionnaire
The C-BARQ was developed by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for the Interaction of Animals and Society under Dr. James Serpell, editor of the highly regarded book, The Domestic Dog its Evolution, Behaviour and Interactions with People. (Yes, this book should be on your shelf).

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Many dog behavior and cognition studies incorporate the C-BARQ because it has been tested extensively for reliability and validity; type "C-BARQ" into Google Scholar, and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Cat Behavior Questionnaire

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Now the C-BARQ is getting a friend, and of course it’s a cat behavior survey! I’m not sure what the cat questionnaire's acronym will be, maybe the F-BARQ, but that sounds a bit odd. F-MEOW might be more appropriate — Feline Model for Eating on Waterskis. 

Serpell and his colleagues are in the initial stages of developing this standardized questionnaire to assess cat behavior, and they need help — lots and lots of help! 

This cat behavior questionnaire will lay the groundwork for future work, but first, they need many people to complete the questionnaire and ensure the final version does a good job assessing cat behavior. Cat owners anywhere in the world can help by completing this short, 15-20 minute survey about their cat.

(Complete the PennVet Cat Behavior Survey)

'Things My Cat Broke' Contributed
I completed the survey for Josh, the cat behind the new Tumblr page, Things My Cat Broke. In fact, Josh just updated his page this week. Take a look!

In Conclusion

~ Live with a cat?

~ Have 15 minutes?

~ Help validate and standardize a questionnaire about cat behavior.

~ http://pennvetmed.catbehaviorsurvey.sgizmo.com/s3/

And now, back to dogs...