Veterinary Medicine - April 2008 - (Page 207)

iors such as these have been referred to as stereotypies, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and compulsive disorders. To clarify the terminology used here, a set of de nitions for these and related terms are presented in Table 2. In clinical practice, it is probably easiest to think of the term stereotypy as a description of a behavior and compulsive disorder as a diagnostic term. Compulsive disorders in dogs are thought to initially be brought on by situations of anxiety, con ict, or frustration and then, over time, to be shown outside of the original context.2,15 No one has yet determined exactly how long it takes for a repetitive behavior to develop into a compulsive behavior, but it is probably not a brief period. No set diagnostic criteria for compulsive disorders are available.15 The diagnosis is based on the history and presenting signs and is reached after medical conditions and other behavior disorders, such as displacement or redi- rected behaviors, have been ruled out or treated. In my experience, displacement behaviors and redirected behaviors occur much more frequently in companion dogs than compulsive disorders do. However, ultimately, recognizing that a dog is experiencing anxiety, con ict, or frustration in its environment is much more important than determining whether the behavior is a true compulsive disorder. Attempting to determine the source of the anxiety, con ict, or frustration is critical to developing an appropriate treatment plan as outlined below. The behavior of a dog experiencing anxiety or con ict may include licking its nose and lips repeatedly, yawning, shaking its head, or pacing, in addition to the more obvious signs such as cowering with its head and tail tucked and attempting to hide. Anxiety may also be accompanied by increased heart and respiratory rates, salivation, and dilated pupils, although these signs may be dif- cult to differentiate from those shown by many animals anxious about being in the veterinary clinic. Situations that may lead to anxiety, con ict, or frustration include insuf cient stimulation, alterations in routine, inconsistency of owner interactions such as improper use of punishment, the addition or departure of family members including other pets, and intense or recurrent fear-provoking events.2 In addition, since temperament plays an important role in the development of anxiety-related behavior problems, veterinarians should learn to recognize the signs that a dog has a fearful or anxious temperament. Keep in mind that multiple causal factors play a role in the development of many behavior problems, and anxietyrelated and compulsive disorders are no different. Often, the situation or medical condition that elicits a problem is not be the same one that maintains it,2 making http://www.zoologix.com http://www.zoologix.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Veterinary Medicine - April 2008

Veterinary Medicine - April 2008 Contents Letters Leading Off The Veterinary Medicine Interview: Dr. Barrak Pressler Idea Exchange Help! My Dog Licks Everything An Update on Anaplasmosis in Dogs CE Form Advertiser Index Marketplace/Classifieds Mind Over Miller

Veterinary Medicine - April 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.