Behavioural Counselling

You might have noticed changes in your pet’s behaviour recently that make it harder for you to interact with them. If your pet isn’t behaving like they usually would, it could be a sign of an underlying health issue or other concern. Behaviour counselling helps us identify the cause of your pet’s behaviour and provide you with tools to support them.

Why isn’t my pet acting like themselves?

Sometimes problematic behaviour is a symptom of underlying health issues like arthritis or gum disease. Our veterinary team will assess your pet to see if any health issues could be connected to changes in your pet’s behaviour. It’s important for us to explore this to make sure we’re not only treating the symptom but also the cause. If there are no health issues connected to your pet’s behavior, our team will provide support to minimize it. If your pet’s behaviour is impacting your daily routine or the dynamic at home, it might be time to book them an appointment with us at 403-934-3311.

What is a common behaviour issue you see?

We tend to see aggression in pets quite often. Pets don’t have the same grasp on language that we do so their aggression might be their way of asserting dominance or defending themselves against perceived threats. When engaging with other people or pets, they might act aggressively to protect you, their owners, home or toys. Aggressive dogs might snarl or bite others when they sense danger. Cats might arch their back or their tail might stand straight up. It’s important to get to the root of your pet’s behaviour, like fear or anxiety, to help them.

How do you treat it?

First, we’ll discuss any triggers that might be sparking this behavior in your pet. For example, are they only aggressive towards certain people or while they’re in specific environments? Identifying triggers can help us create remedies for the behaviour, like creating smoother transitions to sudden changes in their environment.