Behavior represents the integration of functions of all the organs in the body. All behavioral disorders are divided into manifest (aggression, competitive disorders, and disobedience) and causative. Causative behavior is divided into primary (mental, emotional, psychogenic disorders), secondary (behavioral disorders caused by health problems), and behavioral disorders of older dogs and cats.
Behavioral disorders represent changes, disorders, and pathological behavior that lead to deviation of animal physiological behavior. These deviations of physiological behavior can harm the owner, other people, other animals, and even the animal that manifests such forms of behavior.
Disorders in behavior resulting from medical problems can arise as a result of infectious diseases, neurological disorders, diseases and sensations of the nervous system, diseases of all organic systems, endocrine disorders, deficient nutrition, or poisoning.
Behavioral disorders of dogs
Fear and behavioral disorders similar to fear include anxiety, fears, and phobias from well-known and unknown people and dogs, and visual phobias (dogs try to catch the shadow).
Stereotypes and compulsive disorders may be exhibited by the animal sucking the caudal parts of the body, biting the tail and the paws, stereotypical movement on a circular or spiral path in the form of an eight, repetitive or sudden jumping, repetitive playing with the water surface, or a stiff look.
Defecation and urination disorders consist of urinating and defecating due to disobedience, urination due to anxiety and excitement, marking the territory by urinating, incontinence urination due to some medical conditions. Incontinence can arise due to some neurological diseases, bladder atony, chronic inflammation of the bladder, neoplasia, prostate disease, or after operative procedures on the bladder.
Aggression is due to pain, fear, social status (hierarchical aggression), advanced age, and possessiveness. They may also be territorial, protective, or have hereditary aggression. If your pet is aggressive and you are not sure about the cause, get help from experts. Until the situation is addressed, collars and a leash can serve as a temporary solution.
When your pet is not responsive to commands it may be a result of hearing impairment. This can happen in cases of illness and damage to the ears, or deafness.
Behavioral disorders of cats
Fear and conditions similar to fear include anxiety and phobias. Examples are fear of dogs and other animals and fear of people. Fear may be triggered by stimuli such as auditory, visual, olfactory and tactile. Anxiety is also characterized by excessive attachment to the owner and failure to accept other cats in the house.
Examples of compulsive disorders in cats are hyperesthesia, alopecia, excessive self-cleaning, and auto-mutilation. These changes may also occur in cases of injuries induced by foreign objects, parasitic infestation, endocrine disorders, and allergies. Hyperesthesia or “twitchy cat syndrome” is a condition which is characterized by seizures. This causes shivering from shoulder to the tail.
Psychological urinating and marking of the territory may be due to fear from the regular place for urination and defecation, organic disorders, psychogenic marking of the territory by rubbing the head of the object, furniture or people and psychological scratching of objects or surfaces for marking territory (destructive scratching). In cats, urinating disorders can also occur due to numerous diseases of the urinary tract.
Knowing the physiological behavior is important for the successful treatment of behavioral disorders, the recognition, and diagnosis of organic diseases that cause behavioral disorders, as well as the appropriate procedure for the animal during the clinical examination.