Behaviour
Are you surprised to read an article on behaviour written by a vet?
Historically we, as a profession, have been cautious of the many people practising horse whispering, dog psychology or cat charming. Vets have declined to step into a territory that is largely qualitative and individualised. However, more and more often you will see a partnership between the traditional veterinary practises and people who specialise in the treatment of behaviour issues in animals so perhaps including it in the A-Z isn't so strange.
I must stress that these observations on behaviour in animals are entirely my own experience and are not intended to be scientific!
Not long after I qualified and was working at a practice based in Tooting and Wimbledon, a young boy brought in an Indian Python. The snake had a very unusual skin condition and my friend who had trained with me, and was making a career in zoo medicine, saw the snake.
He diagnosed a parasitic disease in a mistaken host. The result was hospitalisation of the snake, which was about 2 and a half feet long! After three days of treatment the snake was ready to go home. It had not been a model patient, hiding in the corner of the cage, resisting handling, and fearful.
However, when the little boy came to collect the snake there was a complete change in behaviour. It relaxed, uncurled and wound around the boy's neck and arm in a way that suggested recognition and affection! Am I being fanciful that a young boy and a snake could have a closely bonded relationship?
I have heard many stories of visitors to Woodgreen Animal Shelters who felt that they were chosen by a dog or cat. What makes an animal do that? Is it smell? We see many dogs that are timid in the presence of men. Is it body language? Certainly animals' senses must be more acute than ours in certain areas.
My own feelings are that animals are just as much individuals as people. Even on farms a good farmer can relate the foibles and habits of individual cows.
I worked with a nurse in London who had a Sheltie. The nurse had bred quite a number of show dogs but this was the most successful. I had not really understood how a judge was able to decide on "best in show". But this little dog was bright, inquisitive and could even be described as a show off!
So animals are individuals and have personality. "You must be mad" I hear the cynics say. If they are like people then their abnormal behaviour is just as complicated as abnormal human behaviour. This makes their treatment difficult.
Some dogs love going to see the Vet. Most hate it! I worked in a Practice in South London that lay between Wandsworth and Clapham Commons. Most dogs had a daily walk on one of the Commons and for our nervous patients we suggested that they walk past the surgery daily (some hated walking down the Street) and every day we gave the nervous dogs a biscuit, often outside the building. This helped them lose the phobia of approaching the Vet's. This is what the behaviourists call 'behavioural modification' in its simplest form. For complicated abnormal canine behaviour treatment is often lengthy and time consuming.
One important aspect is to understand that play and human attention are as important to most dogs as food treats. If a nervous dog growls at someone - such as the Vet in the surgery - it is no good patting the dog and trying to reassure it - this only reinforces the behaviour. Mind you it is no use hitting the dog either. Simply ignoring the dog can in most cases let it know that it has to learn to behave differently; especially when it wants the owners' attention.
I seem to have written a lot about dogs. Cats are very different but just as complicated.