Compulsive Behaviour
Repetitive behaviours that become hard to interrupt and start to interfere with normal life, such as tail-chasing, spinning, flank-sucking, light or shadow chasing, persistent licking, or over-grooming. A medical and pain check comes first, since many cases have an underlying cause. Managed with enrichment, reducing stress and frustration, and sometimes medication.
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Expert guides
Pica and wool-sucking: why pets eat what they should not
Most owners who arrive at this topic do so with a specific worry: a cat who suckles the corner of a jumper, a dog who keeps swallowing socks, a kitten who has eaten a length of wool. It feels, at first, like a quirk or...
Feline overgrooming: psychogenic alopecia, or something itchier?
You have probably never actually watched your cat do it. That is the strange thing about overgrooming. One day you notice the fur on her belly looks thin, or there is a neat bald stripe down the inside of a back leg,...
Compulsive behaviour: tail-chasing, flank-sucking, light-chasing and more
Almost every dog chases its tail now and then, and almost every cat grooms for a good chunk of the day. So the question owners really bring to us is not "is my pet doing this?" but "is the way my pet is doing this a...
Boredom, under-stimulation and the role of enrichment
If your dog shreds the post the moment you turn your back, or your cat has started a 3am sprint up the curtains, it is tempting to reach for the word "naughty." It is almost always the wrong word. A great deal of the...
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