Behaviour / Dog Behaviour Solutions / Medications to cure panicking pets

Medications to Cure Problem Pet Behaviours

'Smart' medications make the treatment of problem behaviours in pets easier and safer.

Anxiety disorders in pets are far more common than many people recognise. Dogs which are sensitive to noises such as thunderstorms and others that are unmanageable when their owners leave them, are showing behavioural disorders which could respond well to new 'smart drugs'.

Cats that are anxious and that spray urine around the home, that are aggressive or that show compulsive behaviours which could including over-grooming could also benefit.

Many people ask why you need to medicate an animal for a behavioural problem. Can't the animal be 'trained' to make it behave?

Medications are just one part of a 4-step plan for a behaviour remedy, and they need to fit a formal assessment and diagnosis.

When we help you with your pet's behaviour will consider the following 4 points of therapy:-

1. Is there a medical condition that is causing, or contributing, to the behavioural problem?
2. Can your pet learn to ‘be good’ and if so, how can that be achieved?
3. How is your pet's behaviour best managed? (which usually means ‘avoided’ – an important step for aggressive behaviours which are risk-laden)
4. Is a calmative needed? If so they can include:-
1. Homeopathic preparations
2. Pheromones such as Adaptil and Feliway
3. Medications
4. And other calming strategies such as massage.

So, ‘training a pet to behave’ is only one part of a behavioural plan, as is the choice to use medication.

Medication is rarely used in its own, just as training is rarely used on its own.

Further, just like humans, some animals cannot learn to ‘switch off’ the moods that worry them.

Anxious animals are often so aroused that it is impossible for them to learn how to act differently. The story is much the same with cats except that cats are much more difficult to train ‘to be good’.

So, medications can make a pet calmer so that training and other strategies are more effective.

What Type of Medications are Used?

We have a broad range of medications at our disposal and choosing the correct medication can be a complex decision.

Nowadays, the use of tranquilisers and sedatives is uncommon due to side-effects.

Instead, modern medications are mostly side-effect free and are quite ‘smart’ in the way they change a pet’s mood for the better.

To keep it simple, medications can be divided into two groups:-

1. The quick-acting - ‘use when you need it’ group
2. The slow-onset daily medications

Quick-acting ‘When you Need it’ Medications

There are several candidate medications in this group. They are implemented when a problem can be predicted and are generally given before the problem arrives.

Examples:-

• Thunderstorms can be predicted using weather radar software. Giving a ‘when you need it’ medication when the storm is an hour away can be useful
• Fireworks are a ‘night-time only’ event and are usually quite predictable – New Year’s Eve is a typical example.
• Separation distress that occurs only as you leave (and that does not last for the whole day) can benefit from a ‘when you need it’ medication
• If it does last for the whole day, a slow onset-long term medication is often better.
• Distress that occurs when you walk or drive your dog is another example.

The Slow-onset Daily Medications

Slow-onset, daily medications are very commonly used and are amongst the most effective medications for pet behavioural disorders.

Mostly, this group is characterised by the medication taking 2 – 4 weeks to show benefit.

They are used long-term – usually at least 2 months and often a lot longer. Sometimes they are needed ‘for life’ if the continued need is proven through recheck consultations.

Typically, medications from this group are used when the pet’s behavioural problem is not predictable, when it occurs several times per day, and/or when a pet’s quality of life and welfare scores are adversely affected.

Examples:-

• Separation -related distress where the pet is anxious or panicking for the duration of an owner’s absence – typically 10 hours a day, five days per week.
• Noise-related disorders where the noise cannot be predicated or eliminated (e.g. nailing guns in a newly-developing suburb, or gunshots from a nearby rifle range).
• Many forms of aggression which cannot be predicted (other forms of behaviour management would be vital).
• Impulsive, hyperactive and highly aroused states.
• Compulsive and self-injurious behaviours.
• Anxiety in cats caused by territorial challenges from uncontrolled roaming cats

If you are considering that your pet would benefit from a medication approach for his or her behaviour, we can help by creating a behaviour management plan and will help you to decide if a medication approach is part of that.

If you have not done so already, please "tell us what's happening" by completing a behaviour assessment form that you will find linked in the menu above.