Have you ever heard of an animal with a mental disorder like OCD, or PSTD? Can animals suffer from mental illness like people? Actually, after listening to a Ted Talk video of Laurel Braitman speaking on "Depressed dogs, cats with OCD-What animal madness means for us humans," I believe they can.
Dr. Laurel Braitman first started looking into this topic when her dog Oliver starting showing signs of paralyzing separation anxiety, and hallucinations. He hated to be alone, and was finally diagnosed with a canine compulsive disorder. Bernese now takes antidepressants and some anti-anxiety medications which has helped him become a more confident dog. This got Dr. Braitman thinking, so for the next seven years she began to research all kinds of animals that showed some signs of a mental or mood disorders. She shared several funny, but serious stories of animals that touched my heart.
One of the first questions that came to my mind during her video, was "how can you tell if an animal truly has a disorder?" For humans we have the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual," which is a manual basically of agreed upon mental disorders that medical professionals go by. For animals they can't talk, so we observe their behaviors, and base our decision from sterotypical disorder behaviors that we as humans are familiar with. Most people think that these behaviors in animals are all caused by humans, but as you can see it's more complicated than that. 1 in 5 Americans are taking some sort of psychopharmaceutical drug. These drugs were first tested in animals. Librium, which is a pill for anxiety, was given to cats for their meanness in the 1950's. We are now giving these drugs not for testing, but to help them in many ways. For calmness, mood swings, anxiety control, and so much more.
A great story that Dr Braitman shared was about a cat named Gizmo. Gizmo would sit at the window all day long pawing at the blinds. This sterotypical behavior of Gizmo shows OCD traits. It's obsessive, and not healthy for Gizmo to do for hours on end. What is this Cat's story? Why does it do that? Maybe the owners will never know, and is medication the answer for treatment? Another story she shared was about a cat named Ping. She was a recue, and used to live with an elderly man. One day the man had a heart attack and died while vacuuming. Ping was found in the apartment next to her owner, and the vacuum was still running. For two years after that, Ping was a scardy cat, and could not be in the house if someone was cleaning. She would hide in the closet, and was not very confident. Ping seemed to be suffering with some sort of anxiety disorder, but after years with this loving family she's actually a happy, confident cat now. It seemed to me that Ping was able to get over it's anxieties by having a stable loving and patient family.
So, if you think that your animal might be developing some sort of disorder, you're probably correct. Animals can develop behaviors or disorders just like humans at any stage of their lives. Just remember, be patient, and observe your animal. Animals don't have a voice, so you become their voice. Any information that you can give your vetranianan, will best help to diagnose your pet. Medication isn't always the answer, but it's available for those animals who need it. I loved what Dr. Braitman had to share, and I hope that more people want to be informed about this topic.
Dr. Laurel Braitman first started looking into this topic when her dog Oliver starting showing signs of paralyzing separation anxiety, and hallucinations. He hated to be alone, and was finally diagnosed with a canine compulsive disorder. Bernese now takes antidepressants and some anti-anxiety medications which has helped him become a more confident dog. This got Dr. Braitman thinking, so for the next seven years she began to research all kinds of animals that showed some signs of a mental or mood disorders. She shared several funny, but serious stories of animals that touched my heart.
One of the first questions that came to my mind during her video, was "how can you tell if an animal truly has a disorder?" For humans we have the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual," which is a manual basically of agreed upon mental disorders that medical professionals go by. For animals they can't talk, so we observe their behaviors, and base our decision from sterotypical disorder behaviors that we as humans are familiar with. Most people think that these behaviors in animals are all caused by humans, but as you can see it's more complicated than that. 1 in 5 Americans are taking some sort of psychopharmaceutical drug. These drugs were first tested in animals. Librium, which is a pill for anxiety, was given to cats for their meanness in the 1950's. We are now giving these drugs not for testing, but to help them in many ways. For calmness, mood swings, anxiety control, and so much more.
A great story that Dr Braitman shared was about a cat named Gizmo. Gizmo would sit at the window all day long pawing at the blinds. This sterotypical behavior of Gizmo shows OCD traits. It's obsessive, and not healthy for Gizmo to do for hours on end. What is this Cat's story? Why does it do that? Maybe the owners will never know, and is medication the answer for treatment? Another story she shared was about a cat named Ping. She was a recue, and used to live with an elderly man. One day the man had a heart attack and died while vacuuming. Ping was found in the apartment next to her owner, and the vacuum was still running. For two years after that, Ping was a scardy cat, and could not be in the house if someone was cleaning. She would hide in the closet, and was not very confident. Ping seemed to be suffering with some sort of anxiety disorder, but after years with this loving family she's actually a happy, confident cat now. It seemed to me that Ping was able to get over it's anxieties by having a stable loving and patient family.
So, if you think that your animal might be developing some sort of disorder, you're probably correct. Animals can develop behaviors or disorders just like humans at any stage of their lives. Just remember, be patient, and observe your animal. Animals don't have a voice, so you become their voice. Any information that you can give your vetranianan, will best help to diagnose your pet. Medication isn't always the answer, but it's available for those animals who need it. I loved what Dr. Braitman had to share, and I hope that more people want to be informed about this topic.