Asahi Ogi

Università di Pisa | UNIPI · Department of Veterinary Sciences

Infrared Thermography (IRT) has become an assistance tool in medicine and is used to noninvasively evaluate heat elimination during and after inflammatory processes or during the recovery period. However, its application in veterinary patients undergoing physiotherapy is a field that requires deep research. This review aims to analyze the applicati...

Simple Summary Infrared thermography can indirectly assess peripheral vascular diseases because skin surface temperature depends on blood flow and heat dissipation through skin microvasculature. The present review aims to summarize and analyze the application of infrared thermography in veterinary medicine as a method to indirectly assess periphera...

Preface It is a privilege and a pleasure to introduce this scientific publication that compiles original and review manuscripts in Animal Perinatology. Veterinary medicine is advancing rapidly with the expansion of knowledge and emerging technologies. New medical specialization areas provide more precise understandings of numerous aspects of animal...

Dogs might enjoy interaction with humans, making the human-dog relationship (HDR) important and necessary for domestic dogs. This relationship has expanded into an interaction where dogs are not solely considered companion animals but “service animals” for humans with special needs such as blindness, deafness, locomotion problems, or various condit...

Milk oligosaccharides are a complex class of carbohydrates that act as bioactive factors in numerous defensive and physiological functions, including brain development. Early nutrition can modulate nervous system development and can lead to epigenetic imprinting. We attempted to increase the sialylated oligosaccharide content of zebrafish yolk rese...

Stress experienced by companion animals could impair their physical and psychological welfare, impacting their social relationships in domestic environments [...]

Mutations in the receptor expression-enhancing protein 1 gene (REEP1) are associated with hereditary spastic paraplegia type 31 (SPG31), a neurological disorder characterized by length-dependent degeneration of upper motor neuron axons. Mitochondrial dysfunctions have been observed in patients harboring pathogenic variants in REEP1, suggesting a ke...

Riders’ asymmetry may cause back pain in both human and equine athletes. This pilot study aimed at documenting in a simple and quick way asymmetry in riders during a simulation of three different riding positions on wooden horseback using load cells applied on the stirrup leathers and identifying possible associations between riders’ asymmetry and...

For centuries, the cannabis plant has been used as a source of food, fiber, and medicine. Recently, scientific interest in cannabis has increased considerably, as its bioactive compounds have shown promising potential in the treatment of numerous musculoskeletal and neurological diseases in humans. However, the mechanisms that underlie its possible...

Mutations in the EPM2A gene encoding laforin cause Lafora disease (LD), a progressive myoclonic epilepsy characterized by drug-resistant seizures and progressive neurological impairment. To date, rodents are the only available models for studying LD; however, their use for drug screening is limited by regulatory restrictions and high breeding costs...

In canines, size at birth is determined by the dam’s weight, which would probably affect the newborn’s viability due to litter size and birth order. Fetal hypoxia causes distress and acidemia. Identifying physiological blood alterations in the puppy during the first minute of life through the blood gas exchange of the umbilical cord could determine...

CLN5 disease (MIM: 256731) represents a rare late-infantile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL), caused by mutations in the CLN5 gene that encodes the CLN5 protein (CLN5p), whose physiological roles stay unanswered. No cure is currently available for CLN5 patients and the opportunities for therapies are lagging. The role of lysosomes in th...

Nutraceutical screening of human and bovine sialylated milk oligosaccharides on zebrafish as translational model for neurodevelopmental research

Welfare assessment of dairy calves is commonly conducted through the observation of their behavior and the analysis of physiological parameters. Despite the large number of studies on this topic, there is a lack of research on the possible correlation between the physiological parameters and behavior at basal level in dairy calves. For this reason,...

Animals’ facial expressions are involuntary responses that serve to communicate the emotions that individuals feel. Due to their close co-existence with humans, broad attention has been given to identifying these expressions in certain species, especially dogs. This review aims to analyze and discuss the advances in identifying the facial expressio...

Genetic variations in the oxytocinergic system, known to regulate social behavior throughout the evolution of mammals, are believed to account for differences in mammalian social behavior. Particularly, polymorphic variants of the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene have been associated with behavioral variations in both humans and dogs. In this study, w...

Autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS) is a multisystem hereditary ataxia associated with mutations in SACS, which encodes sacsin, a protein of still only partially understood function. Although mouse models of ARSACS mimic largely the disease progression seen in humans, their use in validation of effective therapies has...

This study aims to determine the effect of the weight of bitches on liveborn and stillbirth puppies from eutocic births, and physiological blood alterations during the first minute postpartum. A total of 52 female dogs were evaluated and distributed in four categories: C1 (4.0–8.0 kg, n = 19), C2 (8.1–16.0 kg, n = 16), C3 (16.1–32.0 kg, n = 11), an...

In recent years, many studies on the role of oxytocin (OXT) in the onset of parental care, regulation of social bonding, and modulation of the emotional state have been published. However, its possible regulation of maternal behavior in lactating dogs has not been investigated yet. For this reason, the present study aimed at assessing potential cor...

The use of animal models in biology research continues to be necessary for the development of new technologies and medicines, and therefore crucial for enhancing human and animal health. In this context, the need to ensure the compliance of research with the principles Replacement, Reduction and Refinement (the 3 Rs), which underpin the ethical and...

Based on the current knowledge, adult dogs are able to establish an attachment bond towards their owners and puppies are able to establish an attachment bond towards their mother. The aim of the current study was to assess whether dog attachment to people already exists in puppies. Fourteen 2 months old puppies were tested in the Ainsworth Strange...

This pilot study aimed at investigating how salivary oxytocin levels are affected by human interaction and isolation in eight guide dogs (six Labrador retrievers and two golden retrievers; four males and four females, 21.87 ± 1.36 months old) just before assignment to the blind person. Each dog engaged, at one-week intervals, in a positive (5 min o...

A growing body of research has recently focused on the use of psychoactive medication for the short-term management of specific fear and anxiety in pet cats and dogs, i.e. triggered by well-identified and predictable stimuli. Such medications are used short-term and administered as needed to prevent the symptoms of fear and anxiety associated with...

Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) and hereditary ataxia (HA) are two groups of disorders characterized, respectively, by progressive dysfunction or degeneration of the pyramidal tracts (HSP) and of the Purkinje cells and spinocerebellar tracts (HA). Although HSP and HA are generally shown to have distinct clinical-genetic profiles, in several cas...

This study investigated the effects of two feeding enrichment programs on the behaviour of a captive pack of European wolves (Canis lupus lupus) and their correlation with both zoo visitors’ interest towards the exhibit and their overall perception of the species. Behavioural data (exploration, stereotypies, social interactions, activity/inactivity...

Aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a carbohydrate-based diet on serotonin blood concentrations in phobic dogs. For this study were recruited, from a public shelter, three dogs (2 neutered females and 1 male), weighing between 15 and 30 kg and living in the shelter for more than six months. Dogs received by a veterinary behaviorist a d...

Aim of this study was to evaluate the plasma ratio between L-tryptophan (TRP) and five large neutral amino acids (isoleucine + leucine + phenylalanine + tyrosine + valine) (5LNAAs) after a single meal with high carbohydrates level. Five female Labrador Retrievers were involved. Each dog was fed three different meals: M1 (a mix of puffed rice, mince...

Veterinarians are an important source of information about animal care for owners. They provide general advice about topics important to an animal’s well-being, such as appropriate training, exercise and nutrition. Veterinary behaviorists, when dealing with undesired or abnormal behaviors, also perform an assessment of pet welfare and an evaluation...

A 5-year-old neutered female Maremma sheepdog, probably crossed with a Retriever, was examined due to a severe phobia of thunderstorms and loud noises. Adopted in late summer, she immediately presented signs of thunderstorm phobia and nocturnal awakenings. For this reason, the owners immediately turned to a veterinary behaviorist, who recommended b...

These proceedings contain oral and poster presentations from various experts on animal behaviour and animal welfare in veterinary medicine presented at the conference.

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether brachycephalic breeds selected for companionship or for utility behave differently for the attention paid to the owner in two insoluble problem-solving tasks. Eleven adult dogs, 5 belonging to companion breeds and 6 belonging to breeds selected for utility were involved. The study consisted of two behav...

Studying the signaling of domestic dogs is crucial to have a better understanding of this species. The aim of this study was to scientifically assess if the behaviors called calming signals have a communicative and a calming function (i.e., de-escalating the aggressive display in the other dog).

The aim of this study was to assess whether one month's stay in a shelter causes any behavioral change in the guest dogs. Fifteen crossbreed dogs were video-recorded for twenty minutes in their boxes once a week for five times, starting from the third day after admittance to the shelter. A significant reduction was observed in the frequency of dozi...

The aim of this study was to survey the relationship between children and their dogs and the causes of dog's aggressiveness towards them. A 34-item questionnaire divided into three sections was administered to 152 parents of 1 to 6 year old children owning a dog. It emerged that 8.6% of dogs showed signs of aggressiveness towards the family's child...

In Italy, a specific law (281/1991) establishes that shelter dogs cannot be euthanized unless dangerous or affected by severe or untreatable diseases. The result of this 'no-kill' policy is that some dogs are kept in shelters for their whole lives. Aim of the research has been to realize a test for adoptability evaluation of shelter dogs, subjectin...