Meeting Their Needs
Every living thing has needs. It’s easy to think that “needs” are relegated to basic life necessities such as food and water. Everyone knows we need these things to survive, but here we are asking what do we need to thrive. You didn’t get a pet just to have something “survive” by your hand in your home. They aren’t a house plant (although, again, thriving is different from surviving with those too!). You got them to be a companion most likely, or to serve some other task for you. Getting that pet may have been you meeting your emotional or social needs. That pet also has emotional and social needs that may be different from your own!
Many behavior issues stem from a pet’s needs not being met. While sometimes this may come down to food and water, mostly it is the social, emotional, and physical needs their lives are lacking in. Pets need exercise. We all know that. Cats are pretty good at exercising themselves, but there are some ways we can enhance that with cat wheels or going on leashed walks. Most people know to walk their dog daily (preferably twice). But for how long? At what intensity? These are all individual factors that vary by things like breed, age, and athleticism. The physical needs of a pug will differ significantly from a husky or cattle dog. When choosing a dog, try to keep that in mind. If you already run yourself for many miles a day, a more active dog may work for you. Apartment life is not for every dog! Unspent energy can easily manifest as problem behaviors with overly excited greetings, high arousal leading to aggressive displays, and the list goes on.
Social and emotional needs also differ from one individual to another. Just like in humans, there are more introverted and extroverted animals. Not every dog wants to hang out at the dog park! There’s a lot going on there and it can be very overwhelming, but if your dog has a fantastic time, that is also great! Social needs could easily be met just by hanging out with you, doing some training or play time. Emotional needs are easily overlooked the most often. Our pets have feelings very similar to our own. While we may never know the full range of what they are truly capable of feeling, we know the big base emotions are there. Every living being has the right to a safe space. Even in the wild, we find animals attempting to make a safe habitat or home base where they can relax and sleep. If your home environment does not feel safe for your pet emotionally because they are constantly being yelled at, poked at, what have you; this can lead to some serious behavior issues including bites occurring in the home. Listen to what they are asking for with their body language and allow them the ability to say “no” to something they are uncomfortable with. Be their advocate and help them have that safe space.
If you are unsure about what the needs of your pet may be, or you have tried to meet their needs and still need help navigating behavior problems, let’s have a chat!
