9 Miscellaneous Behavioral Disorders

Dogs

Jumping up on owners or visitors, failing to come when

called, and running away are minor behavior problems that
nevertheless may strain the owner–dog bond. Tail chasing,
light chasing, circling, and digging for imaginary prey appear
to be compulsive problems. Phobias, especially fear of
storms, are often a serious problem. Destructive chewing
behavior caused by oral exploration, escape attempts, or
separation anxiety are common complaints of owners. All
these problems are dealt with in the veterinary clinical
behavior textbooks.

Separation anxiety

Separation anxiety is a major problem for dogs and their

owners. The dogs may bark, urinate, defecate, salivate, chew,
or claw at the walls or doors that restrain the animal. The risk
factors for separation anxiety are being a male, especially an
intact male, having a single female owner or several females
in the household, acquisition from a shelter, playing with the
dog within 30 minutes of the owner's return. Dogs that yawn
or stretch when their owners return are at lower risk for
separation anxiety, presumably they have been sleeping while
the owner was away.[14,43,58] Psychoactive medication and
behavior modification can be used to treat the
problem.[22,23,33]

Cats

555