Any pet’s negative behavior can create an environment of stress and anxiety in a family and cause dissatisfaction in the relationship between pet and owner. Malta Animal Hospital offers support and guidance for pet owners in addressing behavioral and training concerns.
PET BEHAVIOR AND TRAINING
Soiling in the house, destruction of property, aggressive behavior and biting, or refusing to respond to commands are all behaviors that leave pet owners frustrated and unhappy. Identifying the cause for such behaviors is essential to successful treatment.
Our approach is to first determine if inappropriate behaviors are due to physical issues such as a urinary tract infection, intestinal parasites, or even pain resulting from an injury or illness. In many cases, the first indicator of a medical problem is a change in the animal’s behavior. Treating the illness or injury eliminates the negative behavior in most cases.
Our approach is to first determine if inappropriate behaviors are due to physical issues such as a urinary tract infection, intestinal parasites, or even pain resulting from an injury or illness. In many cases, the first indicator of a medical problem is a change in the animal’s behavior. Treating the illness or injury eliminates the negative behavior in most cases.
We offer a variety of options to treat stress-related issues, including drug therapy. For example, a pet that responds with fear or anxiety to storms and loud noises may require drug therapy combined with consistent behavior modification techniques over a period of time to reduce or eliminate this response.
BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION AND OBEDIENCE TRAINING
Training concerns include the inadvertent reinforcing of inappropriate responses by pet owners, such as offering treats whenever a pet barks. Suddenly the animal is barking excessively and the owner is confused.
In cases like these, simple techniques for basic training can be used to help pet owners and, as a result, enhance the human–animal relationship. We provide counseling regarding the treatment of more challenging problems as well, including:
- Separation anxiety
- Chewing
- Spraying
- Inappropriate elimination
- Scratching
- Coprophagy (eating fecal matter)
- Aggression
We work with you to identify the cause of such behavioral concerns. Our veterinary team offers solutions to help restore a positive relationship between you and your animal companion.
We hope to identify any newly developed troubling behaviors at the regular wellness visits. However, if a behavior arises between visits, contact our veterinarians to formulate an appropriate response.
ONLINE RESOURCES FOR ADDRESSING PET BEHAVIORS
- The AAHA Healthy Pet website provides help in preventing or addressing problem behavior in pets.
- Petfinder offers articles and videos for pet owners with basic dog and cat training techniques.