Pet Love: Understanding Pet Disorders

Pets are like humans. They also experience various disorders like humans do either be psychological disorder, genetic disorder, mental disorder or digestive system disorders. Understanding pet disorders is then a crucial involvement in our furry friend’s life.

Identifying digestive system disorders is done by simply looking out to the symptoms including excessive drooling, loss of appetite, constipation, diarrhea, vomiting or regurgitation, bloating and abdominal pain, bleeding, and dehydration. The disorder are mostly caused by bacterial or viral infection such as parvovirus and coronavirus. It is highly recommended to go to the vet for effective treatments.

Genetic disorder however, goes  back to the genetic history of the pet. Genes are accountable for some serious genetic disorders. Rhodesian ridgeback genes, canine Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency (LAD) and stationary night blindness are common examples of genetic conditions of dogs. Besides, mental or neurological disorders are said to be the scariest disorder as it affects the brain, spinal cord and nerves of the pets. Animals with this disorder suffer from seizures, epilepsy, head tilts, tremors or blindness.  

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There are three (3) most common psychological disorders in pets namely obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), separation anxiety and, excessive fears and phobias. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder for canines and felines is known to be the excessive repetition of behaviour or action like excessive grooming, pacing, licking, tail-chasing, flank/fabric sucking, chasing shadows or reflection and snapping insects. Vets believe that these behaviours are used as coping mechanisms to reduce stress, anxiety, boredom, and confinement. Moreover, separation anxiety includes excessive vocalisation, house soiling, panting/drooling, destructiveness, anorexia, pacing and escaping.

The anxiety is often caused by lack of prior habituation to separation or to changes in the owner’s routine especially when there’s an excessive attention and affection given to them. Animals like dogs are very social and they easily experience stress or anxiety whenever they feel abandoned. In addition, excessive fears and phobias also called as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be one of the challenging psychological disorders because of the distinct behaviour – aggression.  Post-traumatic stress disorder can be identified if the pet shows symptoms of drooling, shaking, panting, elimination, loss of appetite, inactivity and escaping behaviour. This disorder is the result of extreme exposure to fear-eliciting stimuli.

Understanding pet disorders and how to treat them are 2 of the key roles we’re playing as ‘parents’ to them. Furthermore, interventions for the psychological disorders of the pets are highly significant. Treatment programs are designed depending on the underlying causes. For pets with OCD, it is important to relieve the stress, boredom and conflict, and to structure a healthy routine for the pet by simply giving them adequate amount of exercise. Also for pets suffering from separation anxiety, it is advisable to reduce the attachment, affection and attention prior and upon return of the owner. Additionally, systematic desensitisation and counter-conditioning are known to be the most successful treatment programs for pets with PTSD and separation anxiety. Flooding or exposure for prolonged period of time to the fear-evoking stimulus at full intensity can be a great technique as well to help pets with PTSD.