Don’t bark at | 50 | not to be taken seriously,’ says Pauline Appleby, | ||||
me, I’m a | of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors. | |||||
psychologist | The organisation was founded in 1989 and its | |||||
Unruly pets are causing owners to ask for | membership has been growing rapidly. ‘Now- | |||||
5 | help on the couch, says Jonathan Green | adays, if you take your animal to a vet and he | ||||
nn and John Murphy | 55 | refers you to a pet psychologist, people think it is | ||||
face their counsellor | perfectly normal.’ | |||||
with increasing | Ms Magnus’ work is more diverse than just | |||||
annoyance as they recount | working with dogs. Cats are the second most | |||||
10 | their problems. Taking | preferred pet in Britain, but she has also dealt | ||||
sidelong glances at each | 60 | with frustrated rabbits. Then there was the | ||||
other, the couple’s bitterness | hamster which was determined to escape from its | |||||
spills out. ‘He takes | cage. ‘The answer was more exercise on a wheel | |||||
out his frustrations on me,’ | and putting food on a stick so it had to work to | |||||
15 | complains Ann. ‘He is | eat,’ she explains. Likewise, the African grey | ||||
making me ill - driving | 65 | parrot which pulled all its feathers out. He was | ||||
me up the wall, in fact,’ | bored and simply needed more toys and to be let | |||||
John sighs, turning towards the source of his | out of his cage more often. | |||||
trouble. | The essence of dog psychology, though, is | |||||
20 | For it is Ben, a one-year-old poodle, who is on | understanding the pack instinct. Problems arise | ||||
the psychologist’s couch today - not his owners | 70 | when dogs challenge their human owners for “top | ||||
who are nearly at their wits’ end with frustration. | dog status”. ‘They are pack animals and it is easy | |||||
He sits on his haunches, giving us all a noncha- | to give them the wrong message about who is | |||||
lant gaze between yawns during the proceedings. | boss,’ Ms Magnus says. ‘In the wild, dominant | |||||
25 | We are in a Suffolk veterinary consulting room as | dogs lead the pack, eat first and sleep where they | ||||
Emma Magnus, a pet behaviour counsellor, nods | 75 | want. Therefore owners must never let their dogs | ||||
while hearing of the distress Ben is causing his | walk through doors first and must never give | |||||
owners. | them titbits of food from the table. Nor should | |||||
Ann reads out a list of grievances. Last week | they let their pets sleep on the furniture. Even in | |||||
30 | Ben nipped the gardener on the bottom. Only this | games of tug-of-war, never let the dog win. It | ||||
morning he chased Leo the cat down the garden | 80 | shows that he or she is stronger than you.’ | ||||
before rushing into the house, snatching all the tea | Ms Magnus’ diagnosis of Ben the poodle is | |||||
bags and hiding them upstairs. The other week he | that he is an attention seeker. He pinches things | |||||
ate the family’s supper off the stove. He regularly | like the TV remote control to gain maximum | |||||
35 | takes the TV remote control, causing uproar as | attention. A strict and dynamic programme is in | ||||
the family try to watch television. | 85 | order, she says. She recommends he must work to | ||||
But Ben is not only a compulsive thief. ‘He is | get his food as he would in the wild. His supper is | |||||
also sexually frustrated,’ says Ann. This led to his | to be scattered outside on the lawn. Besides, Ben | |||||
recent castration, but all to no avail. His rebellion | is to be ignored when he pesters the family for | |||||
40 | continued unchecked. ‘I have had dogs all my life | attention. At the end of the session the Murphys | ||||
but never one like this,’ says Ann. | 90 | are delighted. Ben, though, is lost. The couple | ||||
The Murphys are here to see how they can | ignore him pawing them for attention on the way | |||||
remedy Ben’s antisocial behaviour. They are | out. | |||||
among a growing number of pet owners seeking | ‘If we can lead a normal life it will be | |||||
45 | pet behaviour counsellors to mend the dys- | wonderful,’ says Ann. For Ben, not realising what | ||||
functional behaviour of their animals. | 95 | lies ahead, life will never be the same again. | ||||
Last year 1,321 animals were referred to pet | ||||||
behaviour counsellors. ‘Ten years ago, people | The Times | |||||
would have thought it was odd and wacky, and |