Anxiety is a very serious and increasingly common issue in dogs – in-fact it has become an epidemic issue.
Anxiety when left unaddressed or when addressed in the wrong way can quickly increase in intensity. Anxiety may take many forms, separation anxiety, fear of unfamiliar inanimate or animate objects, sounds, weather – i.e. thunderstorms, or insecurity leading to aggressive-reactive behaviour.
In order to successfully remedy anxiety, each factor that contributes to the condition must be addressed. My approach is two-fold - during the course of a session:
- My primary focus in curing anxiety in a dog is to observe, analyze and improve the dog’s peoples’ habits and communication skills;
- Then once habits and communication are addressed it is time to look at the dog’s overall diet.
Omega Fatty Acids are a good example of the gap between that actual ability of a kibble to meet a dog’s nutritional requirements vs. the dog owner’s expectations that he/she has purchased a nutritionally appropriate and complete product. Purchasing an expensive dog kibble (regardless if from a pet store or veterinary office) is not an assurance that your dog’s nutritional needs will be properly met.
I have yet to find a dog kibble that comes close to providing the correct balance of Omega-3 fatty acids (Polyinsaturated Alpha-linolenic acid [ALA], Eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and Docosahexaenoic acid [DHA] vs. Omega 6-fatty acids. This means that you need to know how to make-up for the lack-of-balance of good fats in your dog’s diet.
EPA’s Importance In Proper Brain Function
A proper daily in-take of EPA can help your dog better handle stress…
EPA:
- Increases the fluidity of cell membranes;
- Improves communication between brain cells;
- As such daily ingestion of enough EPA:
- Works to support proper functioning of the brain, and;
- Enables calming.
Ingesting too much of the Omega-6 fatty acid Arachidonic Acid (AA) causes cellular inflammation.
- The brain is very sensitive to cellular inflammation.
- Cellular inflammation creates a breakdown in the signalling between cells.
- When breakdown occurs the brain cannot function at optimal levels.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines are ineffective in treating brain cell inflammation as they cannot cross the blood-brain barrier that isolates the brain from undesirable substances in the blood-stream.
When brain cells become inflamed the only substance that can protect these compromised cells is sufficient levels of Omega 3 fatty acids.
The brain uses two Omega 3 fatty acids – DHA and EPA. While DHA is an important and necessary structural component of the brain, EPA is the primary anti-inflammatory Omega fatty acid for the brain. When used by the brain EPA has a short life-span. This means that the supply of EPA (via the blood stream to the brain) must be constantly present. For this reason it is very important to make sure that your dog is taking in a sufficient amount of EPA on a daily basis.
Commercially manufactured dog kibble has relatively high levels of Omega-6 fatty acids and respectively low levels of Omega-3 fatty acids.
- To make matters worse, when coupled with increased consumption of omega-6 fatty acids refined carbohydrates (such as wheat flour, rice and sugar):
- Increase insulin production;
- Which in-turn increases the amount of AA (the Omega-6 fatty acid which causes inflammation);
- At the same time decreased consumption of EPA:
- Results in an increased AA to EPA ratio;
- Which further exacerbates inflammation.
Cats And Their Owners Are More In Sync Than You Think
We all know that cats like to sleep a lot, but there are conflicting reports about the time of day when they are most active. Some scientists say they are most active at night, others in the day-time, and yet others say they are most active at twilight (i.e. crepuscular). Could it be that they are all right – depending on the cat and how it is kept?
Many studies of cats are actually on laboratory cats. So Giuseppe Piccione and colleagues at the University of Messina, in Italy, decided to study the behaviour of cats in homes, and see how they varied.
Ten pet cats took part in the study. They were divided into two groups. Group A lived in a relatively small house, with access to a small garden between 8 and 9am. Group B, in contrast, lived in a large house with a very large garden to which they had continual access, and were shut out of the house overnight.
The owners of all ten cats followed the same daily pattern: they left for work at 9.30am, came back at 1.30 in the afternoon, left again at 3.30 and returned at 8pm. The cats had free access to water. All of the cats were fed dry food at 8am, and at 9pm the Group B cats got dry food whereas the Group A cats got wet food. The study took place in summer, when the sun rises in Messina, Italy, at 5am and sets at 9pm.
All of the cats wore a special recording device on their collar for ten days, to measure their activity levels. The scientists calculated how active each cat was overall, and how active they were at night vs how active they were during the day.
The results showed that the cats in Group A were most active during daylight hours. On the other hand the cats in Group B, that were shut outside overnight, were most active during the night time. In Group B, there was a daily rhythm to their activity levels, which didn’t exist for Group A. However, in Group A, the cats were most active when the owners were at home and interacting with them.
The scientists say these results show a “high influence of human presence and care on the amount of activity in cats.” We know that some other domestic animals (such as dogs) adapt their activity levels according to how they are kept, but this is the first time it has been shown for cats in the home. So the time of day when they are most active is not hard-wired genetically, but varies according to their lifestyle.
There were relatively few cats in this study. While this is typical of the field, it would be nice to see higher numbers of participants in this kind of research. Future studies could investigate a wider range of housing situations. It would be interesting to see if cats change their habits if their owner’s lifestyle changes, but of course this would be hard to study in a real-life situation.
We are used to thinking of cats as their own creatures, but this research shows they adapt their lifestyle according to that of their owner and the place where they live.
What is your cat’s daily routine?
Reference
Piccione, G.,, Marafioti, S.,, Giannetto, C.,, Panzera, M.,, & Fazio, F. (2013). Daily rhythm of total activity pattern in domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) maintained in two different housing conditions Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 8 (4), 189-194 DOI: 10.1016/j.jveb.2012.09.004
AFFCO Certification for Dog and Cat Food Not A Guarantee of Quality or Good Nutrition in Dog and Cat Food
I strongly recommend that concerned and loving Dog Owners never judge a dog-food products quality based on AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) guidelines and here is why...
Just because a dry or wet dog food or treats are AAFCO approved, does not mean that the food:
- Is free of toxins and carcinogens;
- That the food is really nutritionally complete:
- Will support your dog’s short and long-term health;
While AAFCO does include some US state and federal representatives, AAFCO it is NOT a federal or state run government organization...
- Although AAFCO promotes themselves as a governing body of the pet food industry - they are self-proclaimed
- AAFCO is a partisan organization that is primarily made-up of people directly involved in the pet food manufacturing industry;
- AAFCOs true reason for existing is not to support the health of your dog, it exists to promote the pet food industry in its drive to produce the biggest possible margin of profit;
- AAFCO is directly responsible for unclear labelling on pet food products including dry and wet dog food and treats;
- AAFCO allows toxins and carcinogens into the food that they approve;AAFCO is responsible for the confusion around poor vs. good quality.
The bottom line is buyer beware for the health of your dog.
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