Why behaviourists work on vet referral

Do you feel grumpy or agitated when you feel pain?

Its no surprise that the answer to that will be yes for us, and also yes for our pets. However, we can explain to people that we are feeling under the weather, take some pain relief and retreat for a while until we feel better. Animals can’t tell us, and they are extremely stoic as pain makes them vulnerable, therefore they often hide it and we are none the wiser until our dog has bitten us or another dog, or our horse has thrown us off.

Did we see it coming? Often no. Unless they are obviously lame, we often miss pain signs. It isn’t because we are bad owners or don’t care, its because they hide it so well. And then there are hormones…they have a huge impact on behaviour as we all know!

So it is only ethical that a behaviourist speaks to your vet, checks your pets vet history and asks for a referral. Otherwise you could be on an expensive journey that goes nowhere, pain has to be ruled out to ensure you and your pet get a better service.

Vets and behaviourists often work together, they are usually more than happy to refer on to an appropriately qualified behaviourist. This multi disciplinary approach is not just for pain issues, an anxious or fearful or hormonal dog may need some medical help.

Here is a link to an excellent article on the link between pain and behaviour in dogs written by Clinical Animal Behaviourists Danielle Beck and Gemma Stephen Behavioural indicators linked to clinical conditions - Veterinary Practice (veterinary-practice.com)

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