Pet Stress and Pet Behavior Problems

September can be a sad time for pets that have enjoyed the companionship of kids who were home for the summer. Is your pet sad and lonely at home now that your kids have returned to school? A regular predictable schedule for play, petting, attention, grooming and exercise and providing fun activities for pets while you’re out can all alleviate a pet’s stress from separation anxiety, loneliness and boredom.

Kids can:

• Pet, walk or play with pets before school.
• Avoid long sad good byes with pets when they leave for school.
• Provide afterschool petting, extra exercise and playtime.
• Hang out with pets while doing homework and reading.

Adults can reduce pets’ loneliness and boredom:

• Provide lots of extra exercise, a long walk and play time before or after work, or during the day if possible. A well-exercised pet will have less stress and might be grateful for quiet sleeping time after morning exercise.
• Hang out with your pets while you do houses chores, read, watch TV, or work on computers. Take dogs on errands.
• Change the pets’ environment to make it more fun and entertaining:
  • Great toys such as chew toys, and treat toys for dogs, hanging mouse or feather toys, clawing posts and treat toys for cats, and an ever-changing assortment toys and treats for birds.
  • Hide treats inside toys, boxes, old shoes for pets to find.
  • Hang bird cages near windows and install wide shelves or ledges for dogs and cats to sit and watch the world outside their windows.
  • Pet furniture is commercially available and includes ramps, houses and comfortable pet beds.
  • Some pets like to watch other animals on TV so let you pet tune into Animal Planet or a nature channel, or watch nature DVD’s.
  • Hire a dog walker or pet companion, a neighbor, or a part-time student to visit your pet and provide companionship and exercise.
  • Daycare centers are available for dogs and might be just what your dog needs for socialization and training as well as companionship.
  • A creative work situation might work for you and your pet. Some pet owners are now permitted to take dogs to “pet-friendly” businesses and offices. Other pet owners are working and telecommuting from home.
  • Consider getting a companion animal for your pet. Dogs tend to be highly social and get along with other dogs as well as cats. Dogs, cats and birds can enjoy watching aquarium or caged pets such as hamsters, gerbils or guinea pigs. Cats love watching safely caged birds and birds are stimulated by keeping an eye on natural predators.

You can read more about pet separation anxiety at:

http://www.petstress.com/environment/anxiety.php

A PetStress Facebook Page fan asked us what she could do to make her “super-needy” dog stop whining when she closed the door to use the restroom, and commented “It seems I should have a LITTLE peace and quiet…”

Here are some ideas for dealing with “super-needy” dogs with separation anxiety:

1. Deal with attention seeking behavior. Provide high quality attention, petting, grooming and playtime at predictable structured times.
2. Create opportunities for independent play with fun toys for the times you’re not providing attention or are absent. Put the toys a distance away from where you are or in a separate room. The toys with hidden treats that are time-released or require chewing are especially good for keeping dogs busy and happy.
3. Maintain a calm atmosphere when arriving or departing, putting the dog in a separate room, or closing a door. Don’t make a big fuss over the dog when you depart or return, and don’t pay attention to the dog for at 15 minutes before you depart.
4. Train your dog to “Sit” and “Stay” without whining. Plan to practice every day when your dog is relaxed and a little hungry, and keep treats on hand. Keep it fun and stop while it’s still fun.
5. Practice leaving the dog alone, having him stay in another room, or closing the door for increasing intervals of time.
6. Desensitize the dog to your absence or departure behavior by closing a door for just a moment, jingling keys or putting on your coat when you’re not going out, or leaving through one door and returning immediately through another door.

If the problem persists, consider hiring a qualified dog trainer to work with you and your dog in your home.

It’s Labor Day Weekend and many of us are looking forward to relaxing as well as enjoying outdoor parties with friends and family.

Summer cook outs and parties have their own special hazards for pets, so take precautions to keep your pets safe this weekend.

• Prevent pets from eating platters of uncooked meats, hot foods or human foods that are dangerous for pets.
• Keep pets from getting close to the grill to prevent burns from the grill or from hot foods.
• Keep lighter fluid, lighters, charcoal away from pets.
• Keep pets on leashes where they will not pose a tripping hazard.
• Use pet gates in houses and garden fences to prevent pets from getting lost.
• Appoint someone to be responsible for keeping the pet away from the food and prevent them from getting lost.
• Enlist the support of guests and family members in preventing pets from eating the wrong foods.
• Keep pets on their regular schedule for meals and exercise.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!

Do you look like your pet?

Have you noticed a resemblance between owners and their pets? Are they not quite twins but you know they belong together?

The NY Times wrote about recent studies supporting the idea that owners could be matched with their pets more often than would be possible randomly. Recent studies found subjects could often correctly match dog owners with their pets if the dogs were purebreds. Subjects said they attempted to match owners and dogs based on similar personality traits as indicated by facial expressions rather than by physical features.

I love taking photos of owners and their pets and it’s especially fun when there is even a little similarity in their appearance or facial expression. I’ll be sharing more of my “not quite twins” photos occasionally here on the blog, and I’d love to post your photos of owners with pets too! You can submit them by clicking on this link:

http://www.petstress.com/play/petphotoalbum_submitphoto.cfm

You can enjoy the NY Times article here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/11/health/11really.html?partner=rss&emc=rss