Behavioural Counselling

If your pet suddenly changes their behaviour, there could be a health condition behind it. When pets go through changes in their body, symptoms often show externally. Especially if your pet is in pain, their behaviour is one of the ways they’ll express discomfort. Before creating a plan to deal with your pet’s behaviour, we’ll determine the root cause. 

What is the most common behavioural issue? 

One of the most common behavioural issues pets experience is aggression. Aggression can be a symptom of an underlying health issue or happen when your pet is triggered by changes in their environment or health. Before we can address your pet’s behaviour, we determine the root cause of their aggression. For example, if your pet is consistently snarling or barking at strangers or other pets, they could be expressing fear. However, it can be scary when their behaviour escalates, and they’re suddenly a danger to you and the people/pets around you. If you have concerns about your pet’s behavioural issues, please get in touch with us at 604-427-2744.

When is it time for behavioural counselling? 

Not all of your pet’s behaviour will warrant counselling. It’s important to have realistic expectations of your pet and understand that they won’t always be on their best behaviour. However, behavioral counseling could be the next step if you’ve noticed their behaviour is disruptive to your daily routine or puts your pet and others in harm's way. After a physical exam, we’ll look at your pet’s overall health, environment, and medical history to determine which options are best to address their problematic behaviour. Any of the following behaviours may require additional support from our team: 

• Barking/howling 
• Attacking people/pets
• Urinating
• Separation anxiety