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Animal Behavior
Pets on the Couch: Do Animals Need Freud and Pfizer?
An interview with Nicholas Dodman about his new book on animal psychiatry
Posted August 17, 2016
Dr. Nicholas Dodman is a world-renowned veterinarian who has written many very popular books on dogs and cats. His new book titled Pets on the Couch: Neurotic Dogs, Compulsive Cats, Anxious Birds, and the New Science of Animal Psychiatry is another exceptionally important work that should be of interest to anyone who chooses to share their home with another animal. It is forward-looking, covers many different animals—not only dogs and cats—and surely will be controversial, as many in the veterinary community have not been fans of his groundbreaking work in this area. Nonetheless, I can see Pets on the Couch becoming a game changer for those who cohabit with companion animals, AKA pets, because they know that often their companion isn't doing well psychologically. And there are solid biological and evolutionary reasons to reject the argument that humans are the only animals who suffer psychologically.
The book's description nicely outlines the material that Dr. Dodman covers:
The pioneering veterinarian and author of the New York Times bestseller, The Dog Who Loved Too Much, and the national bestseller, The Cat Who Cried for Help, recounts his uniquely entertaining—and poignant—stories of treating animals for all-too-human problems as he reveals his amazing breakthroughs with the new science of One Medicine.
The Oliver Sacks of animal brains, Dr. Nicholas Dodman is an internationally renowned veterinarian and research scientist who wrote one of the first popular books to recognize the complex emotional lives of dogs and to reveal innovative ways to help them, including with Puppy Prozac. Now, Dr. Dodman once again breaks new ground with the practice of One Medicine, the profound recognition that humans and other animals share the same neurochemistry, and that our minds and emotions work in similar ways.
Racehorses with Tourette’s Syndrome, spinning dogs with epilepsy, cats with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, feather-plucking parrots with anxiety, and a diffident Bull Terrier with autism—these astonishing cases were all helped by One Medicine, which emphasizes the similarities rather than differences between animals and humans.
Inspiring, sometimes heartbreaking, and utterly fascinating, Pets on the Couch demonstrates how what we share with our animals can only lead us to a greater appreciation for them—and our mutual bonds.
In his new book, Dr. Dodman clearly shows that animals can be depressed, can feel grief and loss, and that they suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They also can suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and can feel love and worry about losing that love, also called separation anxiety. Pets can also suffer from Tourette’s syndrome, epilepsy, and autism. I have previously written about psychiatric disorders in nonhumans, including my own field observations of wild animals who looked to be suffering from autism and bipolar disorder (please see "Do Wild Animals Suffer From PTSD and Other Psychological Disorders?" and "Psychological Disorders in Animals: A Review of What We Know" and many links therein).
An interview with Dr. Dodman
Pets on the Couch will help readers understand symptoms of psychological disorders and hopefully save the lives of the animals we love most, for we are their oxygen, their very lifeline. I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Dodman and am pleased to share his words with a wide audience.
Why did you write Pets on the Couch?
Writing a book about the oneness of animal kind has been on my mind for at least 15 years. I turned over in my mind how best to approach the subject, which has been the basis of my work at Tufts for around 30 years. 15 years ago I tried writing a book proposal but at that time I really did not have sufficient variety of information because I was heavily focusing most of my studies on obsessive-compulsive disorders. I did discover an animal (equine) version of Tourette’s syndrome early on and had encountered PTSD in a few dogs. Aggression studies were ongoing but my research into anxiety disorders, for example, was in its infancy. But now, finally, I feel that I have enough unique information to really make a strong case that we are more similar to animals than many would think. Since the early days, I have always based my diagnoses and treatment on a “one Medicine” approach and it has stood me in good stead, producing the findings and novel treatments described in the book.
How did Pets on the Couch emerge from your years of practice?
Thirty-five years of seeing clinical cases has given me clear insight into what ails animals behaviorally. Each time I saw a case of aggression, phobia, compulsive disorder, or hard-to-diagnose case, I thought about it from first principles, not simply relying on textbook information. I detailed all the especially memorable cases and ones that shed new light on the condition and pursued diagnosis and treatment until I reached a conclusion. This body of clinical experience and my own published work is now at a sharable level which I believe will be eye-opening, educational and entertaining for those interested in the world of animals.
What's new in this your latest book?
Much of the information in the book is about my own novel findings, from my involvement in the obsessive-compulsive story to canine autism, equine Tourette’s and PTSD. Even the classification of anxiety disorders along the same lines as used in psychiatry is new as is the identification of partial seizures as a cause of some of the more bizarre behavioral conditions that affect animals.
What are you main messages?
Despite what some people still think, animals (mammals and birds in particular) have thoughts and emotions that are similar to our own and they can suffer from many of the same psychological and psychiatric conditions.
What are your main goals?
To update people about behavioral research and clinical experience that illustrates the amazing similarities between us and other animals. People should recognize that animals can be anxious, that they can be virtually driven mad by frustration when their biological needs are not met, that they can become enraged, and that their behavior is an indicator of more sophisticated cognitive processes that lie within.
What are you working on now?
We are fine-tuning our earlier genetic findings about OCD and autism by using even more sophisticated and detailed genetic screening. We are also adding layers of substantiation (in the form of biomarkers) to confirm the full construct of some of the animal versions of human psychiatric disorders that we believe are valid. I am also working on a simple oral treatment of compulsive disorder in horses, using calcium and a caprylic acid derivative. I believe this combination treatment could be helpful in treating OCD across the species, including humans.
Paying attention to the psychological lives of other animals is a win-win for all
Many thanks to Dr. Dodman for doing this interview. I'm thrilled there is so much interest in all aspects of the emotional lives of animals—their ups and the downs—and I highly recommend this fascinating book that is couched in the latest scientific research. Psychology Today writer Dr. Jessica Pierce has repeatedly stressed that there are significant ethical questions at hand when we choose to take responsibility for the life of a companion animal (please see her recent book Run, Spot, Run: The Ethics of Keeping Pets), and surely, paying attention to their psychological needs and psychological state is critical to giving them the very best life possible (please see "Are You Ready to Give Another Animal the Best Life Possible?").
Evolutionary theory (Charles Darwin's ideas about evolutionary continuity) also clearly shows that there is no reason at all to assume we are unique in suffering from a wide variety of psychological disorders, and I'm sure that future comparative research will show that we and other animals experience deep and rich emotions on both sides of the coin. Because wild animals don't get the medical care to which our companion animals are privy, those who suffer from extreme and debilitating psychological disorders may simply die, as do those who suffer serious physical injuries and illness. I feel lucky to have seen the animals about whom I write above.
My suggestion is to read and share Pets on the Couch widely. It'll be a win-win for humans and nonhumans. When we take another animal into our homes and hearts we owe them the very best life possible. Surely, this is not asking too much.
Marc Bekoff's latest books are Jasper's Story: Saving Moon Bears (with Jill Robinson), Ignoring Nature No More: The Case for Compassionate Conservation, Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed: The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation, Rewilding Our Hearts: Building Pathways of Compassion and Coexistence, and The Jane Effect: Celebrating Jane Goodall (edited with Dale Peterson). The Animals' Agenda: Freedom, Compassion, and Coexistence in the Human Age (with Jessica Pierce) will be published in early 2017.
