Separation Anxiety
Many pet parents complain that their animals become destructive or disruptive when they are left by themselves. Dogs may urinate, defecate, chew furniture, dig up holes in your garden and even try to escape. These can be signs of stress. When these signs are supplemented by distress behaviours, like drooling and appearing anxious when their owners prepare to leave then it is indicative that the animal has separation anxiety.
Noise Phobias
These noise aversions are widespread and estimated to affect a third of all dogs. One traumatic and upsetting experience or repeated exposure to frightening sounds can cause illicit responses that can vary from mild fear to acute phobic reactions. Numerous animals experience fear during firework season, thunderstorms, and loud sounds. Animals may portray mild fear by panting, pacing and will want to hide away. Phobic responses may be shown if the animal panics, tries to escape, becomes destructive and appears extremely agitated.
Coprophagia – the eating of stools
Inappropriate Elimination
Cats can eliminate outside their litter boxes for several reasons. Some because of a cats’ natural tendencies and others with the situation they find themselves in, though often both factors work in tandem. The four main causes of feline inappropriate elimination are litter box aversion, urine marking, hormonal issues and medical problems.
Aggression
Animals will rarely choose to attack others for the basic reason that it lessens their chance of survival. Many will display defensive aggression, others offensive aggression and some predatory aggression. Most people may believe their pet is reactive and aggressive but, their pet may be trying to communicate that they are fearful. It is important to rule out any medical conditions as pain would be a precursor to aggression.
Continual Barking
Dogs bark to communicate as to how they are feeling. They may be bored, threatened, frustrated, fearful or may just want something, and be happy and excited. By adjusting the environment, counter conditioning and desensitization and providing them with relevant mental stimulation and physical exercise, barking can be reduced.
Fearfulness
There are many situations where animals display their fearfulness. They may be frightened of going to the vet, being groomed, getting into a car, going outside, coming inside, having their nails cut, meeting other pets; the list goes on. This may be genetic or owing to having had a prior traumatic experience. No animal should be punished for showing this behaviour as it will only make them more fearful and may escalate the problem.
Inappropriate Mounting
This can lead to a dog inappropriately mounting or “humping” inanimate objects such as plush toys and pillows or a human’s arm or leg or even other animals. When dogs do this to a human, the behaviour is not sexual in nature. It may be a sign of stress, anxiety or how the dog communicates he wants attention. If he tries to mount another animal, the dog is aroused or anxious and mounting may be triggered as they play. It is rarely a dominance issue. Intact males and intact “in-heat” females may show inappropriate mounting as sex hormones play a role. Owners may have even noticed that the behaviour continued for some months after neutering or spaying.
All medical conditions need to be ruled out. Please speak to your Vet to ensure it is a behavioural issue and not a medical one.
Digging
Some dogs are born to dig, it’s in their DNA and encourages play and exploration. Some dig for shade, others to catch prey and others just love burying and uncovering the treasures they have hidden. As we don’t want to discourage natural behaviours, suitable solutions are needed to ensure that the dog receives enriching daily routines, with or without their owners.
Compulsive Behaviour
Often dogs will chase their tail continuously or obsessively lick themselves. Cats show this compulsive disorder by grooming excessively or pica. The cycle of the obsessive behaviour in animals is akin to that which is found in humans.
Important Note
Please note – Some behavioural issues may be caused by underlying medical conditions such as illness or pain. It is important to ensure that your veterinarian has ruled out any possible medical issues. We will ensure, with your permission, that we work together with your veterinarian to ensure your companion animals are healthy and happy ones.