Behavioural changes in our pets can be worrying and confusing for both ourselves as pet owners and the animals themselves.
Sometimes we can see an obvious cause for the change, but more often finding the answer is challenging.
It is now known that the same areas of the brain which process fear and anxiety, also process acute and chronic pain. This means that the feelings an animal experiences when they hurt themselves can sometimes get interpreted and expressed as fear.
An example seen in younger animals can be a sudden refusal to engage in a previously normal activity. Imagine a dog is walking up some steps in the park, trips and hurts himself. Consequently he then refuses to go near those steps again, having built an association with pain and the steps, which expresses as a fear of steps. The acute pain experienced is confused in the brain and tied up with a fear i.e. 'fight or flight' response.
A common presentation seen by vets is the older animal who has started to demonstrate what appear to be signs of anxiety - they pace at night, seem confused, or become agitated when left alone. While these may be signs of brain aging, chronic pain should always be explored as a cause of these signs. In these cases, arthritis or another cause of chronic pain is being expressed in behavioural changes. These older patients are often seen to pace or whine at night time, which can simply be because the house is quieter, they are less busy and they notice their pain more.
If you feel your pet has had a change in their behaviour which isn't easily explained, consider having them examined, and ask your vet if they think they might be painful.
Here is picture of Ivy, a rather nervous girl who had to be reintroduced to her own garden after slipping on some ice recently!
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