HOW TO DEAL WITH YOUR CAT WAKING YOU AT NIGHT
Owning a cat is a fantastic and rewarding experience. And in the end, they become more like our children than mere pets. Unfortunately, just like young children, they can keep us awake at night for various reasons. This lack of sleep often wreaks havoc on our lives, especially for those of us who have to get up early for work. So, why do cats keep you up at night? And what can you do about it? Melanie, for instance, has had cats all her life. But her new kitty, Iggy, has been leaving her exhausted at work. "He thinks it’s playtime when I am trying to get to bed. And everything is a toy, even my fingers and feet. I don’t know what to do!" If this sounds familiar, don’t start weeping. As Melanie discovered, the answer was pretty simple. She sets aside between 30 minutes to an hour for kitty playtime. Laser lights, colorful string, toy mice, whatever gets the cat worked up. Of course, as she says, "You need to be part of the play. Sometimes I run around the house with Iggy chasing me, and it works beautifully -- for both of us. At bedtime we’re both extremely tired and sleep like logs." John had a similar problem. His cat, Shadow, would always "run around like a mad thing at the most inopportune time -- from 3 to 6 o'clock in the morning. And not just running and leaping about, but yowling." It was driving John crazy. His solution? "Playing with Shadow helped, a little. But after I got him neutered he calmed down. My vet said it helps tomcats calm down, and it worked." It helps by stopping those irksome I-want-to go-on-the-prowl-and-meet-a-lady-cat hormones. The other bonus: your cat won’t start spraying in the house. And what about queens (also known as female cats)? It helps them, too. No unwanted kittens and no going into heat. Perfect. Erin had a slightly different problem with her cat, Charlie. "Working long hours meant when I got home, sometimes late at night, all I wanted to do was collapse in bed. But Charlie wasn’t having any of it. He’d not only run about, jump on me and wake me, but would also be very vocal. I don't think I had a good night's sleep for a month." Erin tried playing with Charlie; she even tried feeding him catnip. Finally she came to a realization. "He was bored all day by himself. So I got another cat. I did worry they wouldn’t get along, so I waited until I had a week’s vacation. Now, Charlie and Bella are best buds and when I get home, we play and then go to sleep." James had this to say about his cat. "Tigra was fine when we went to bed; she liked to curl up next to me. But when she’d decide to wake up and play, she was looking for a play buddy. She’d run around the room, even nipping my arm lightly to get my attention. My solution was simple: she got locked out of the room." How did that work? Well, his solution takes time, patience and determination. "She would cry and scratch at the door, but I wouldn’t give in. Eventually she would do it less and less, and now, she hardly does it at all." James says it took him almost two weeks, lots of valerian and ear plugs to make it through, but it worked. Now he gets to have Tigra with him and a decent night’s sleep. Then there's Vanessa. Her cat would always wake her at 5 o'clock in the morning; something she found was giving her dark circles under the eyes and making her less efficient at work. "Max always woke me wanting to be fed," Vanessa said. "So I simply started making sure he got his evening meal around 10 p.m., rather than at 6, as I had always done. Now I’m able to rest at night, and Max is no longer begging for food at some ungodly hour." So if your cat is keeping you up at night, take heart from these stories. It might take a little trial and error, but you should be able to find the right solution to combat your cat’s behavior. Whether it’s play, a change in dinnertime, a companion, training or even a little catnip, we know your answer is there, just around the proverbial corner.
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Dropping to the ground is "a play solicitation,” says Sharon Crowell-Davis, DVM, DACVB, who specializes in pet behavior and is a professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia. Dogs use body language, including several play solicitations, to communicate their intentions.
“One of [these solicitations] is to just drop to the ground, and one of them is what we call a play bow where the fore quarters go down and the hind quarters are sticking up in the air,” explains Dr. Crowell-Davis. “Another is to raise one fore paw either while standing up or in the play bow, and wave it at the other dog — those are all forms of inviting the other dog to play.” Learning to Socialize Problems can arise when another dog doesn’t recognize the meaning behind the gesture. “Both dogs and cats are social species, and this means they’re born with the capacity to learn the appropriate species-specific social behavior and appropriate social responses of their species, but they’re not born knowing all of it,” says Dr. Crowell-Davis. Due to this learning curve, Dr. Crowell-Davis stresses the importance of puppy socialization classes and ensuring that your puppy has pleasant experiences with others of its species early and often. A dog that lacks significant social experiences may be clueless about what a play bow means and could respond with fear, and may even attack the dog that has performed the play solicitation. “But if you have dogs that have grown up with other dogs and have learned dog signaling, dog language and dog etiquette (a dog knowing that if one dog does this, I’m supposed to respond that way), then when one dog does a play solicitation, the other dog would know to play back if they feel like playing.” Or, she adds, maybe the dog doesn't feel like playing, in which case he’ll ignore the play bow or just lie down. Another potential source of conflict arises when, for example, there is a juvenile dog in the house who likes to play a lot and an older dog who’s fine playing sometimes but not always. “We might have the younger dog coming up and soliciting the older dog, and sometimes the older dog will play and other times it’ll just stare," says Dr. Crowell-Davis. "The younger dog has to learn to back off.” WASHINGTON, (AFP) - Dogs show jealousy when their owners spend time with what appears to be another dog, suggesting that the emotion may have survivalist roots, US researchers said Wednesday.
Scientists tested 36 dogs and their owners with an experiment in which the owners were told to play with three separate objects in front of their dog. One of the objects was a toy dog that barked and wagged its tail when a button on it was pushed. The owners were told to play with it as if it were a real dog for one minute. They were told to do the same in the next phase of the experiment with a toy jack-o-lantern pail, acting as if it were a dog and playing with it. Finally, they were asked to read aloud a pop-up children's book that played a song, as if they were telling the story to a small child. Certain dog behaviors were much more common when owners played with the toy dog versus the other objects, the researchers found. For instance, dogs more often snapped, pushed their owners, pushed against the object and tried to get in between the owner and the toy dog than they did with the other toys. The dogs were about twice as likely to push their owner (78 percent of dogs did this) when he or she was playing with the toy dog than when the interaction involved the jack-o-lantern (42 percent). Just 22 percent did so with the book. About 30 percent of the dogs tried to get between their owner and the toy dog, and 25 percent snapped at the stuffed canine. The dogs came from a range of breeds, including dachshund, Pomeranian,Boston terrier, Maltese and pug. Almost half of those in the study were mixed breeds. The research, led by Christine Harris and Caroline Prouvost from the University of California, San Diego, is published in the journal PLOS ONE. "Our study suggests not only that dogs do engage in what appear to be jealous behaviors but also that they were seeking to break up the connection between the owner and a seeming rival," Harris said. "We can't really speak to the dogs' subjective experiences, of course, but it looks as though they were motivated to protect an important social relationship." While dog might be man’s best friend, that puddle on the floor sure isn’t. If your new housebroken puppy or rescued dog occasionally pees on the floor for no fathomable reason, then you might have a dog with submissive/excitement urination issues.So what should you do if you think you have a dog with an excitement or submissive peeing problem? First off, take your dog to the vet to rule out other reasons for the inappropriate peeing. If you receive the all clear from your vet, how do you know which problem your dog has?
If your pooch doesn’t pee when you’re in a dominant position (i.e., looking your dog directly in the eye, bending from the waist, greeting your dog face on), then chances are your dog is suffering from an excitement issue. If the dog does pee when you arrive home, when you’re in a dominant position, or when it is in trouble, then it’s probably a submissive issue. Either way, the situation can be remedied. Submissive Peeing Submissive dogs pee when they are greeted, when someone approaches, when they are punished, and when there is a history of rough treatment or punishment after peeing; this is common in rescued dogs. This is also a common reaction with shy, anxious, and timid dogs. To fix this problem, avoid scolding or yelling at your dog after it has peed. Instead, try building its confidence by teaching it simple commands (sit, stay, come), and reward your dog after each success. The same applies with teaching simple tricks (roll over, fetch); go with the reward and praise route. You will also want to approach your dog in non-dominant postures. Avoid direct eye contact, approach from the side, and crouch down to your dog's level. When patting your pooch, go for under the chin rather than the top of the head. Keep all greetings low key, and when the dog does pee, simply clean it up without fuss and go away. Do not forget to reward and praise your pup when it pees in the appropriate place. Excitement Peeing The good news for you is this usually happens to puppies under one year of age, and they will usually grow out of it. The bad news is it’s not going to happen overnight. These are the dogs that pee while playing, when you come home, or when people visit. To help your puppy with this issue (and save that very expensive rug you just bought), try keeping all playtime outside, or on a specially prepared area of newspaper and puppy pads. This way, if there is a little accident due to over-excitement, it doesn't have to be a big deal. When there is an accident, just as with submissive peeing, do not reprimand or punish your pup. Simply clean it up quietly and leave the puppy (or dog, if this is happening with an older dog) alone. Give your puppy treats when it pees in the correct place, and keep all greetings to a minimum. You may even want to ignore the dog when you arrive home. Does this seem cruel? It's not really, as it gives your pooch a chance to calm down on its own. Ask guests to do the same. When the dog pees while out on walks, give it praise and treats. The same goes for when the dog pees in designated areas (which is not the rug or the designer bedspread). All these things should not only help your pooch break its habit of peeing when excited, but will also help you to cultivate a calmer, more confident dog. So good luck with your dog. And remember, patience and perseverance will always pay off. Treating Compulsive Dog Behaviors
On a more serious note......can dogs have OCD? Not really, but they do get compulsive behaviors. What is the difference? Obsessive compulsive behaviors include obsessive thoughts, which don't apply to dogs since we can’t know what they are thinking. Instead, in dogs, these disorders are called compulsive disorders. Here are some other important insights into this curious dog behavior we call compulsive disorders…
What are Compulsive Disorders?
Compulsive disorders (obsessive compulsive disorder, OCD) occur in dogs, although not with great frequency. These behaviors are exaggerations of normal dog behaviors. They are exhibited for longer than expected periods of time, are repeated out of context, and in situations in which they would be considered abnormal.
Common dog behaviors which can be classified as compulsive include spinning, tail chasing, fly biting, light chasing, barking, chewing, staring into space, sucking on a toy, or sucking on a part of the body.
What Causes Compulsive Disorders in Dogs?
Compulsive disorders are caused by conflict, stress and/or frustration. With each stressful event that your dog encounters, there is a release of neurotransmitters involved with the stress response. When a dog is frustrated or stressed, he may start to perform a normal behavior such as holding a toy in his mouth in order to relieve that stress. If holding the toy in his mouth actually reduces the neurotransmitters involved with the stressful event, the dog is likely to perform that behavior again when he is stressed. For some dogs, this behavior becomes ritualized and repetitive because of the intense reward that is associated —reduction of the physiologic feeling of stress or frustration.
Over time, compulsive behaviors progress and get worse. Dogs often start to perform the compulsive behavior with any stressful event, not just the original inciting situation. The behavior can take over the dog’s life replacing normal sleep and feeding habits. It can cause injury to the dog as the impulse to perform the particular behavior becomes stronger and stronger. Dogs that chase their tails often end up mutilating the tail requiring amputation, while dogs that suck on themselves frequently cause skin infections. Sometimes, what appears to be a compulsive behavior is actually an attention seeking behavior. Even behaviors which start as a frustration related behaviors can be rewarded inadvertently when owners pay attention to the dog when he performs the behavior. For example, if an owner yells No!, that is still regarded by the dog as attention and can perpetuate the behavior.
If you think that your dog exhibits a behavior for your attention, try the following tests. First, videotape your dog when you are not home to see if and when the behavior occurs in your absence. Next, try walking out of the room the next time that your dog performs the behavior. If he does not perform the behavior in your absence, your attention or presence is most probably a part of the problem.
Some dog breeds are predisposed hereditarily to certain compulsive behaviors. For example, Bull Terriers and German Shepherds are commonly seen for tail chasing. Labrador Retrievers exhibit oral compulsive behaviors such as pica, whereby the dog is driven to pick up any object and eat it. Doberman Pinschers are well known for flank sucking, whereby the dog holds and sucks on the skin of the flank for long periods. The best way to know if your dog is predisposed to a certain type of behavior is to speak to your veterinarian about your breed’s genetic predisposition. Then, if possible, speak to the owner of your dog’s parents to learn of their behavior.
How Do You Treat Compulsive Disorders in Dogs?
The first thing to do if you think that your dog has a compulsive disorder is to go to your veterinarian for help. Because medical conditions can cause signs similar to compulsive behaviors in dogs, it is extremely important to rule out medical diseases such as neurologic, endocrine, gastrointestinal, and orthopedic disorders. Your dog should receive a thorough physical examination as well as screening labwork before considering treatment for a compulsive disorder.
If your dog is completely healthy and is free of pain, he may have a compulsive disorder. Compulsive disorders are treated with medications to lower arousal and conflict as well as behavior modification to give the dog an alternate coping strategy outside of the compulsive behavior. Treatment is often prolonged and continues for the life of the dog. If your dog is diagnosed with compulsive disorder you can expect some ups and downs in treatment and in your dog’s behavior. Often chronic cases are referred to a board certified veterinary behaviorist for treatment. The best thing that you can do for your dog if you suspect a compulsive disorder or if your dog repeatedly displays any behavior, even if it seems harmless now, is to seek help from your veterinarian. When compulsive behaviors are treated early and quickly the prognosis is much better than if they have progressed to a chronic state. Clawing/scratching is one of those undesirable behaviors that can get a cat in trouble, especially when the item the cat decides to shred is the owner’s expensive couch or carpeting. Often, this behavior results in a frustrated owner and the cat ends up being tossed outdoors or even surrendered to the local shelter. However, that doesn’t need to be the case.
Cat owners do need to realize that, even though the behavior may be irritating to us, it’s a perfectly normal behavior from the cat’s perspective. Cats claw for many different reasons. They mark their territory that way, using both visual and chemical messages. They also scratch to sharpen their claws, helping to keep those claws in tip-top condition. Clawing is used a means of stretching muscles to keep them healthy and supple as well. Scratching is a basic need for all cats. Your cat is not clawing your furniture out of spite or vindictiveness. He (or she, as the case may be) is clawing because he’s a cat. Fortunately, there are some things that you can do to discourage your cat from using your furniture as a scratching post. Here are some tips.
Once your cat is regularly using the alternative scratching surface, you can slowly move it (a short distance at a time) to a more acceptable location, if desired. You can also remove the runner or whatever deterrent was used to make the original area unattractive to your cat. Households with more than one cat will require a separate scratching area for each cat. Scratching surfaces are an essential basic need for the feline and your cat may not want to share. There may be additional help in the future in the form of a pheromone product that simulates the pheromone released from glands in your cat’s feet (called the plantar pad glands) during the clawing process. These pheromones are used as a chemical marker and serve as a means for your cat to tell the world that your home is his territory. A recent study funded by a grant from the Winn Feline Foundation looked at a synthetic version of this pheromone (named the feline interdigital semiochemical, or FIS) and found that “the presence of FIS can influence and prime the location for this important feline behavior (scratching). It also gives specific, long lasting information to other cats. Using the semiochemical approach can modify the choice of areas selected spontaneously by cats. In the future, it could be used as a preventative measure for a cat arriving at a new home or control or change inappropriate scratching behavior.” Transform your pooch from troublemaker to the best-behaved pet on the block with these simple steps.
Woof woof! Your dog may bark to alert you to danger or to just say hi. But constant barking can be a problem. Here's how to keep the peace.
Dogs bark to communicate with each other and with their owners, but sometimes all that barking can get out of hand. Constant barking can fray a family’s nerves and create turmoil in a neighborhood. But keep in mind that your dog is trying to tell you something by barking. Before you quiet him down, you will first need to figure out what he's trying to say. What’s Behind the Barking? These are some of the reasons dogs bark:
Tips to Get Your Dog to Stop Barking There are a lot of stop-barking devices available on the market. The most commonly known are bark collars that deliver an electric shock, high-pitched squeal, or stinging spray of citronella mist whenever a pet dog barks. Other devices include ultrasonic emitters that are placed in a room and activated by barking and muzzles that keep the dog’s jaws held shut. These devices may offer a short-term fix, but they do nothing to address the underlying cause of your dog’s barking. Eventually, the problem may surface through other behavioral problems, as your dog continues to try to communicate his need or problem to you. A dog prevented from barking caused by separation anxiety may instead take to destroying furniture or urinating indoors when his owner is away. The devices also can be inhumane. Any dog’s bark can set off a bark collar or ultrasonic device, meaning your dog may end up receiving punishment for another dog’s behavior. Also, a muzzle will keep a dog from being able to eat, drink, and cool off through panting. For these reasons, an owner frustrated by his dog’s barking is better off using some simple tricks to head off the behavior or taking the time to train the dog out of the behavior. Try these tips:
Training can be a lengthy process, but in the end you will improve your relationship with your dog and be better able to make sure his needs are met. Does your pooch get uneasy when he's left home alone? He could have separation anxiety....here's how you can help:
Dogs with separation anxiety are usually overly attached to or dependent on one or more family members. They become extremely anxious and show distress behaviors of vocalization, destruction, house-soiling, or inactivity when separated from the owners. Many of these dogs begin to show signs of separation anxiety as the owners prepare to leave. They often salivate or pant profusely, vocalize, eliminate, refuse to eat, and become destructive. Some dogs simply become quiet and withdrawn. Most dogs with separation anxiety also tend to become overly excited when the owner returns. Because the underlying problem is anxiety, treatment includes reducing all forms of anxiety before the owner leaves, at the time of departure, and when the owner returns. In addition, the dog must learn to accept progressively longer periods of inattention and separation while the owners are at home. During initial retraining, it’s usually best to find an alternative to leaving the dog alone while you are gone, to prevent damage and vocalization problems. Retraining involves developing a routine so that your dog settles down and relaxes before he is rewarded with attention. In other words, use the very rewards that your dog is seeking to teach independent behavior and relaxed times away from you. Until you can get your dog to settle and relax without attention when you are at home, he is unlikely to settle when you leave. Formal retraining should be directed at teaching your dog to remain on his mat or dog bed, or in his dog crate or den area for progressively longer periods of time. During these training exercises, try to keep him as calm and relaxed as possible. Activities that you consistently do before you leave (eg, jangling car keys, grabbing a purse, opening the garage door) signal or cue the dog that you’ll be leaving soon. Anxiety can be greatly reduced by preventing the dog from hearing or seeing any of these cues and by training him that these cues no longer predict a departure. One way to do this is to go through your pre-departure routine, but then remain at home. This is especially good to do when the dog is relaxed or otherwise occupied, so that the dog will learn that the usual cues are no longer a signal that you are necessarily going to leave. As you depart, your dog should be kept busy and occupied, and preferably where he cannot see you, so that there is little or no anxiety. Giving special food treats in a kong or dog bones that have been saved for departures (and mock departure training sessions) can help keep the dog distracted and busy while you leave. Be certain that the distraction devices last as long as possible so that your dog continues to be occupied until you have left and been gone for a while. Although medications can be useful during initial departure training, they do not improve separation anxiety. A solid program of retraining is needed to help your dog become more independent and well behaved when away from you. Q&A Dogs with separation anxiety are usually overly attached to or dependent on one or more family members, so that the dog becomes extremely anxious and distressed when these persons leave. This distress often takes the form of vocalization, destruction, house-soiling, or inactivity.
Behavioral Problems in Cats
It is normal for cats to scratch things. They do this to sharpen their claws and exercise their feet. It is also normal for cats to spend a lot of time licking themselves, since this is how they clean themselves. When cats scratch or lick the wrong things and do not respond to discouragement, they are diagnosed as having a destructive behavior problem. Not all destructive behavior is the same, however. When a cat scratches on the wrong things but does not have any other symptoms, this is usually a primary destructive behavior. Conversely, cats that spend too much time licking or scratching at things likely have a secondary destructive behavior. Both types of destructive behavior can lead to problems with other organs, such as the stomach and intestines, if left untreated. Symptoms & Types of Destructive Behavior
Your veterinarian will need a complete medical and behavior history so that patterns can be established, and so that physical conditions that might be linked to the behavior can be ruled out or confirmed. Things your veterinarian will need to know include when the destruction first started, how long it has been going on, what events seem to set off the destruction and whether or not your cat is alone when the destruction takes place. It is also important to tell your veterinarian whether the destruction has gotten worse, better, or remained the same since it was first noticed. During the physical examination, your veterinarian will be looking for signs that your cat has a medical problem, which might be causing the behavior. A complete blood count, biochemical profile, and urinalysis will be ordered. These will tell your veterinarian whether there are any problems with your cat's internal organs which might be causing the behavior. A blood thyroid hormone level may also be ordered so that your veterinarian can determine if your cat’s thyroid level is low or high. Sometimes, imbalances of thyroid hormone can add to destructive behavior. If your cat is eating items that are not food, a condition referred to as pica, your veterinarian will order blood and stool (fecal) tests to specifically test for disorders or nutritional deficiencies that would lead to pica. The results of these tests will indicate whether your cat is able to digest its food properly and is absorbing the nutrients that it needs from the food. If your cat is older when these behavioral problems start, your veterinarian may order a computed tomography (CT) scan or a magnetic resonance image (MRI) of your cat's brain. These tests will allow your veterinarian to visually examine the brain and its functioning ability, making it possible to determine if there is a brain disease or a tumor that is causing the behavior problems. If no medical problem is found, your cat will be diagnosed with a behavioral problem. Treatment for Destructive Behavior If a medical problem has been confirmed, that problem will be treated first. Usually, treating the illness will resolve the behavioral problem. If your cat does not have a medical problem, your veterinarian will develop a plan to treat your cat's behavior problem. In most cases, a combination of training and medication will be necessary. Medication alone does not usually solve the problem. For primary destructive behaviors, your veterinarian will help you to come up with a plan for directing your cat’s destructive actions towards objects that are appropriate. This will help you to train your cat to scratch on the things that you approve of, and prevent your cat from scratching on the things you do not want destroyed. While you are in the process of teaching your cat what it can and cannot scratch, plastic covers can be used to keep it from destroying your furniture. Treatment of secondary destructive behaviors will involve a combination of medications and training. Your veterinarian may choose to prescribe an anti-anxiety medication to help your cat respond more quickly to the training. You and your veterinarian will also develop a training plan to help your cat learn how to behave in a more appropriate way. Once your cat has learned not to destroy things, you may be able to stop the medication. However, some cats need to be medicated for anxiety for some time to help them to get over their destructive behavior. When you first start the training and medication program, your veterinarian will want to talk with you frequently to make sure that things are going well. It is important that you give medications exactly as directed by your veterinarian. If your cat has been prescribed medication, your veterinarian may want to follow-up with complete blood counts and biochemistry profiles to make sure the medications are not adversely affecting any of your cat's internal organs. Make sure that you do not give any other medications to your cat while it is under the veterinarian's care unless you have first consulted with your doctor. It is most important that you be patient with your cat while it is learning not to be destructive. This can be a slow process and may take several months or more. Some cats have more anxiety and reluctance to learn new behaviors and may need long term medication and training. Prevention of Destructive BehaviorIt is important to start training early with kittens, teaching them what they can and cannot scratch or claw on. During the training phase of your cat's growth, plastic covers can be used to keep it from damaging your furniture and rugs. It is also important to watch your cat carefully for any changes in its behavior. Treating medical or behavioral problems early makes them easier to treat and less likely to become habitual. |
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