Feline stress in a nutshell — why does it occur, how can it be recognised, and what can be done to alleviate it?

Even the owners of highly sociable indoor cats will describe the frequent tendency of their cat to actively desire periods of solitary independence. This level of freedom to remove themselves from the...

Canine stress in a nutshell — why does it occur, how can it be recognised, and what can be done to alleviate it?

A dog's natural response to a novel encounter with a stimulus (whatever it is) is one of preparatory arousal (Gray, 1987) — it is this initiation of a stress response that will enable an appropriate...

Let's talk about stress

Stress is an emotional and physiological response to change in an animal's environment (Mills et al, 2013). Such change is brought about by the presence of a ‘stressor’ which can be a stimulus that is...

How to run a puppy party: social saviour or social demon?

The term ‘puppy party’ is a popular way of encouraging owners to attend sessions, particularly those owners with previous experience of dogs and who may be less likely to attend an obviously...

An introduction to developmental problems in puppy hood

The 19th and 20th century psychologists argued long and hard over the relative influences of nature and nurture on an individual's behaviour. The current consensus is that both the genetic background...