Every insight here is traced back to a real, peer-reviewed paper — with its evidence level, study type, and limitations shown plainly. None of it is for diagnosis or treatment decisions; it's here to inform you and your conversations with your veterinarian.
A 2026 paper used dogs as a companion-animal model to study how behaviour and environment relate to obesity risk. PAWai helps you track patterns — your vet guides care.
A 2026 multicentre field trial studied a novel chewable tablet for preventing heartworm disease in dogs. PAWai translates what the paper covers — without telling you what to give your dog.
Omega-3 products are everywhere in joint-care marketing. PAWai’s Knowledge Engine topic on canine osteoarthritis focuses on honest limits: educational context only, then your veterinarian.
A UK study of over 185,000 anaesthetics found death risk of about 1 in 601 dogs and 1 in 419 cats, falling to 1 in 1,849 and 1 in 895 in healthy animals — with most deaths after the procedure.
A 2022 study of 15,019 companion dogs found the odds of canine cognitive dysfunction rose 52% with each additional year of age, and were 6.47 times higher in dogs their owners described as not active.
A UK study of 1,000 cruciate rupture cases found higher odds in middle-aged and neutered dogs and in three particular breeds — and in insured dogs, which reveals as much about diagnosis as about disease.
In a 2021 survey where owners tracked litter box use for a week, 42% of cats with chronic kidney disease passed a stool less than once a day, compared with 15% of apparently healthy cats.
In a study of 50,787 middle-aged dogs, overweight dogs had a shorter median life span than dogs in normal body condition — in every one of the 12 breeds examined.
A study of 22,333 UK dogs found 7.30% were diagnosed with ear disease in one year, with breed and ear shape the strongest predictors.
In 985 dogs followed to 21 months, 96.7% of owners reported at least one problem behaviour and 82.3% had used aversive training methods — with online puppy classes the sole protective factor identified.
In 188 healthy dogs, grain-free and grain-inclusive diets produced no differences on ultrasound or in taurine — but a marker of heart-muscle injury was higher in the grain-free group.
In a 2020 study of 905,543 UK dogs, exercise triggered 74.2% of heat-related illness events, while confinement in a hot vehicle accounted for 5.2%.
In a 2015 study of 89 French Bulldogs assessed with objective airway testing, 60% of owners failed to recognise brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in dogs the grading identified as affected.
A 2023 study of 1,262 cat caregivers across 66 countries found their total pain scores on a facial-expression scale were not significantly different from those given by veterinarians.
In a 2023 blinded study of 57 cats, those whose owners had noticed early mobility changes had significantly higher pain and joint scores on examination — and 14 times the odds of bilateral disease.
In a 2019 study of pruritic dogs, showing owners their previous itch score before they rescored raised agreement with their own perception of change from 79% to 96%.
A 2021 study of 22,333 UK dogs recorded periodontal disease in 12.52% over one year — while examinations of anaesthetised dogs report 44% to 100%, showing how much goes undiagnosed.
In the REVEAL study of 1,730 cats, 30.5% of those with preclinical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy developed heart failure or a clot — a disease that produces almost no signs an owner can observe.
In a 2019 study of 101 cats with lower urinary tract disease, 58.1% of those with a known diagnosis had a recurrence — and 14 cats had a different underlying cause at a later episode.
In a 2023 study of 477 cats with diabetes, 29% of treated cats achieved remission, and remission was associated with a better quality of life for the cat.
In 462 untreated hyperthyroid cats, median weight had fallen from 5.45 kg one to two years earlier to 4.36 kg at diagnosis — yet only about a third looked underweight, while 77% had lost muscle mass.
Compared with video of what dogs actually did after their owners left, owner questionnaire scores correlated only moderately — and best for the behaviours that leave visible traces.
Among 646 bereaved dog owners, 83% of dogs were euthanased — most often because of pain or suffering (48.5%), then poor quality of life (24.8%).
In one 2024 study of 123 young dogs, researchers found radiographic signs of osteoarthritis in nearly 40% of dogs screened — and most owners didn't notice.