Daily Mail - 03.03.2020

Daily Mail, Tuesday, March 3, 2020^ Page 45

DID YOU

healthIer happIer pet KNOW?

We f inD it hard enough to

interpret one another, so it’s

hardly surprising we often

misunderstand our pets’

signals. Why is my cat over-

grooming? Why does my dog

lunge for other dogs? How do

i get him to stop attacking

the postman?

Part of my job is to help

people understand what

their animal is trying to

communicate or why it’s

behaving in a certain way.

The other part is counselling

owners as they often find it

emotional. They feel guilty

that their pet has been

suffering, but it’s not a

blame game.

We only work on veterinary

referral. So many^ behavioural

habits come from illness or a

pain-related disorder, so it

is imperative

that is ruled

out first.

O n c e a n

an i m a l i s

referred, i will

visit them at

their home:

this enables

me to get a

fuller picture

of their habits

and situation.

i talk to own-

ers in detail;

afterwards i

make recom-

mendations,

write a report

a n d p u t a

training plan

in place. Some animals are

high risk to other animals,

their owner or themselves,

so this has to be taken

into account.

it can take several hours to

make an assessment so i tend

to see one animal a day —

mainly dogs, though more

and more cats as we begin to

understand how complex

they can be.

Often it’s ‘aggressive’ dogs.

We go back along the line

looking for the root cause:

what are the triggers? is it

anxiety-related behaviour?

(Often it is.)

i’ve had cases of dogs

attacking their owners when

they try to take them out.

On one occasion it turned

out the dog had witnessed a

firework go off in the street

and that was that; they

wouldn’t leave the house

again. They attacked the

owner in panic.

One dog was terrified of jets

and other aeroplanes flying

overhead. The family moved

to a house that happened to

be near a railway line; the

dog became terrified of

trains. The noise phobia esca-

lated to whenever they got

tin foil out of the cupboard or

clattered pots and pans.

Something like this is quite

a job to deal with. When it’s a

fear response, we tend to

look at desensitising the dog

or cat.

We use positive reward-

based methods. Lots of peo-

ple use food because it’s

accessible so quite useful. But

you certainly wouldn’t simply

wave food at a dog that’s

petrified and hope it would

work. We would gradually

build up exposure to the

stimulus and decide a suita-

ble reward.

Separation anxiety is com-

mon with dogs. first, we work

out the triggers: is it noises

outside disturbing them? is it

that they’re

in a frenzy

for the first

half an hour

and then set-

tle down?

W e u s e

cameras to

f i l m a n d

monitor the

d o g s w h e n

the owners

are out, to

assess what is

happening.

T h e n w e

start slowly:

is this dog

relaxed when

you’re not in

t h e s a m e

room but you’re still in the

house? Can they get used to

you going away and coming

back? Gradually we increase

the time you’re away.

We use a trained relaxation

pattern — can the dog lie on

the bed while you walk to the

door? We reward them for

that. We take it steadily — go

back and forth with what

they can/can’t cope with.

We then ask the owner to

go back for varying lengths

of time so the dog gets

th e m e s s a g e t h e y w i l l

come back.

Thankfully i’ve never met

an owner that’s not prepared

to go that extra mile for their

pampered pooch. Most are

utterly devoted.

n Anyone in the UK can

call themselves a

behaviourist, so look for

accreditations from APBC

(Association of Pet

Behaviour Counsellors) and

CCAB (Certified Clinical

Animal Behaviourist). They

should also be registered

with the ABTC (Animal

Behaviour and

Training Council).

How you can

learn to read

your pet’s mind

we arrived and left her there,

thinking she’d be happier.

But when we walked in she was

very distressed. She was panting

and the floor was wet because

she’d salivated so much.

We called in a behaviourist, who

set up cameras in the kitchen. We

all went out and watched her on

the screen — she was pacing, jump-

ing up at the door and chewing the

table and architraves.

She had separation anxiety and

couldn’t be left alone for a moment.

It broke my heart to see it — I

was in tears. It was very, very

distressing and I felt guilty I hadn’t

spotted it before.

The behaviourist gave me a

training programme and started

working with us. First, I’d stand in

front of her while she was in her

basket, telling her to ‘stay’ then

taking one step back and giving

her a treat if she did. Once she

always stayed, I had to tell her to

‘stay’ then step to the side and

give her a treat if she obeyed.

Then I took two steps back, then

three, then four, then I turned my

back on her, then I got out of

the door. I’d do it for five minutes,

ten times a day.

I became quite introverted and

depressed. I couldn’t leave the

house unless my husband — we’re

both retired — was at home, so I

lost a lot of my social life. Thank-

fully our Agria pet insurance

picked up most of the bill for the

behaviourist, which cost £800.

Eventually it got to the point I

could leave the house for an hour

or two, and once we left her for

four hours and she was all right.

It’s taken eight months of hard

work to get there but it’s worth it.

She’s adorable.

eMMA MiLne’S VeRDiCT:

SEpArATIOn anxiety is a big

problem in dogs for many complex

reasons. It’s lovely to hear from

such a dedicated owner who put in

the effort to help their pet through

it. Behaviour problems can be hard

work for all concerned but the

results can be well worth it.

tHe neiGHBourHood

Bully upsets H er

Rio TURone, 24, a social

worker, lives in Ware, Herts,

with her boyfriend Alex

McCready, 27, a technician.

They have a one-eyed cat called

Mulan, who is three years old.

I’vE had Mulan since she was

a r o u n d f o u r

m o n t h s o l d.

She was a stray taken into the

vets where my sister worked. I

wasn’t a cat person, but thought

I’d meet her and I immediately fell

in love. She was quite timid, but

she was also very loving and always

wanted to be held.

At the end of last year, I noticed

that the hair on her belly was very

short, not fluffy. It looked like she’d

been over-grooming. The vet told

me to keep an eye on her.

Then, in October, she was bitten

on the bottom by a neighbourhood

cat and developed an abscess.

Since then, her grooming got much

worse — on her legs, her stomach,

wherever she can get to — and she

doesn’t go outside. If she needs the

toilet, she’ll pop out but come

straight back in.

We tried a pheromone plug-in

spray and kept to a strict routine,

but it didn’t work — so in January,

we went back to Medivet in

Stansted Abbott.

T h e v e t t h o u g h t M u l a n’ s

problems were behavioural: some-

thing was upsetting her and she

felt stressed. I think she’s scared of

the cat who bit her.

The vet recommended we put

her on some special food by royal

Canin called Calm, which contains

very mild substances that help

reduce anxiety.

She’s been on it now for a fort-

night and she’s definitely a lot

calmer. She still over-grooms but

we’re hoping that, with time,

she’ll continue to improve.

eMMA MiLne’S VeRDiCT:

nEIghBOurIng cats can be a

huge cause of stress — as can cats

in the same house. It’s good the

food is working. If your cat can see

cats in the garden, even closing

curtains or blinds can help.

anxiety. Remarkably, within a week of taking

this drug she’d calmed down. The manic

chewing stopped and she wasn’t trying to

get out of the garden all the time.

i’d never have thought it would be that

simple. in fact, i’m a bit fearful of taking her

off the drug, which costs about £30 a month,

because if i forget it for a couple of days, i

see the old behaviour creeping back.

But now she’s a lovely dog to be around!

emma milne’s Verdict: Rebecca makes

an excellent point here about pain. There

are many cases of behaviour problems

related to pain, something long-backed

breeds such as dachshunds can be very

prone to.

antidepressant stopped tHe constant cHewinG

The plug-in

cure for

scaredy cats

... and therapy

for lonely dogs

new-found

confidence:

After treatment,

Lucy is transformed

THese days, animal behaviourists are in high demand

for animals suffering from aggression, self-mutilation,

oCD-like behaviour, anxiety and noise phobias. Here,

KARen WilD, a pet behaviour counsellor and author

of Being A Dog, reveals a typical day...

Border Collies are super-smart, with some capable of

understanding up to 200 words. Other clever breeds include

poodle, German shepherd, golden retriever and Doberman.

Picture: DAMIEN McFADDEN