The Emotional Wellbeing of our animals

We all know when our animal companions are hurt or ill in the physical. But do you know that your animal can suffer emotionally and that suffering emotionally can cause illness, disease, mental distress, and behavioural issues. It is slowly starting to be recognised that as responsible pet owners we need to take the whole animal into consideration, this means their physical body, their mental body, and their emotional body. All three are very connected just like they are for humans.

There are many factors that come into play when we begin to think about the emotional health of our animals, like nutrition, environment, exercise, health, past experiences, interactions with both people and other animals can all play a part. Even bad experiences or high levels of stress in the family can have a major impact on the emotional health of our pets. A grieving pet can also suffer when they lose a family member or a mate.

When you think about emotions in a human we think happy, sad, angry, fearful, loving, etc. Our animals can also feel a similar range of emotions, they just can’t talk about them the way we would. If you are observant you will see when your animal uses a cue like a wagging tail for happiness or ears laid back for fear or aggression. Learning the language of your pet is key to understanding their moods both the ups and the downs. Being aware that our animals do have emotions is an excellent place to start.

So, what as a pet parent should you be looking for to ensure your pets emotional needs are being met? What is your pet trying to show you? Is there a behaviour that is not quite right? Are they showing aggression towards a person or other animal? Are they off their food? Are they hurting? Is there an issue in the family that may have them not behaving as normal? Do they look and feel happy or content?

These are all questions you can ask yourself, tune in and listen to your internal answers and watch your pet more to give you the answers. When you are not sure reach out to your Vet, an animal communicator, or an animal kinesiologist as they will all be able to help you answer the questions you are asking. There are also natural remedies available to help like flower essences and essential oils that can all bring in a sense of calm to an unhappy animal.

Things to tick off the list and make sure your animal has the best chance of a balanced emotional body.

Nutrition

Nutrition is a vitally important aspect of every part of your pet’s life, whether it’s a dog, cat, horse, guinea pig or fish, fresh food and water is everything. Feeding a species appropriate diet as close to what they would eat for themselves in their natural environment is the key to not only providing all the nutritional aspects of health and wellbeing, but it also feeds the soul which in turns feeds both the mental and the emotional aspects of that animal, helping them to be calm, well-adjusted and and happy within themselves.

Environment

Having a safe environment is a must for our pets. Some live inside and others live outside and sometimes they live in both areas. So, making sure that the area they live is safe is one of the most important aspects to emotional health. When our animals feel safe they are much happier and content.

Exercise

Every animal alive needs the appropriate exercise for the size and breed of the animal. This is probably the most important thing to aid in emotional health. Adding enrichment activities for each breed of animal is a great way to stimulate the mind and level out the emotions.

For Dogs this can be long sniffing walks or a romp in the playground with other dogs or even just a wrestle and play in the back yard with the kids.

Not many dogs enjoy being dragged along the footpath flat out on a power walk. One of the key emotional aspects of them being calm and happy is reducing the cortisol levels in the brain by long sniffing walks. This will wear out the overactive dog way quicker than a powerwalk or run or 30 mins of ball chasing will. Lowering the cortisol levels allows the dog to be in an ultra-calm state that will last the rest of the day. Also, while they are slowly walking and sniffing they are engaging the mind and the emotional bodies which in turn helps regulate the physical body.

For Cats this can be playing in their house or enclosure, hunting their friends, and wrestling or playing with their human chasing a toy. Cats spend a lot of time sleeping but they do have highly active periods of high intensity play. Cats are natural hunters so mimicking safe things they can hunt is great exercise for them.

For Horses this may be a ride with their person or just having fun haring around in their paddock.

Health

Health is an important aspect. If your pet is unwell then they are not going to a happy camper. It is also very important to know if your pet is ill, please seek medical treatment from your Vet as soon as possible. Pain is also another thing that will affect the emotional health of your pet. There are many modalities out there that can help with pain issues, from chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, and many others. Just choose the right thing for you and your pet.

Past experiences

Past experiences can have a major impact on the emotional health of your pet especially if they weren’t happy experiences. Animals can display frustration and aggression and have big trust issues if they have negative experiences from their past. Rehoming animals can be quite traumatic for the animal. If an animal has come from a place where they were physically abused or neglected they will have many emotional traumas that can present with bad behaviours, anxiety and some animals can be completely shut down. If this is the case and you are looking after an animal like this it is very important to fulfill their basic needs and to love on them very slowly and gently and to get extra help from a professional when needed.

Interactions with people and pets

It is always great to be aware how your pet interacts with others. Do they love people or are they shy and timid with people? Do they love to play with other pets or are they aggressive and stand offish? Not all animals love being around people or other animals. It is important to understand that they are an individual just like we are. They have individual likes and dislikes. Never force and interaction if it is not welcome no matter if it is a person or other animal. Watch your pet for the clues they will be giving and let them decide on who they like and don’t like.

Family life

What is your family like? Do you have a house full of kids that never give your dog or cat a minute’s peace? Is your dog bored because you are never home? Do you expect perfect behaviour at all times? Are you contributing to the behaviours without realising? (This is actually really common)

All of these things will impact your pet. The comings and goings of the family and how much interaction and love they receive all will impact emotional health.

The grieving pet

Has your pet lost a friend or partner or a loved one in the family they were close to? Yes our pets can and do grieve just like we do. Some will get very lethargic and stop eating, others will display no joy or happiness. And others will continue as normal but will just not seem right. It all totally depends on the animal and the bond they shared with the loved one. When a pet is grieving it is important to offer love and comfort. Sometimes they just need time to process the loss and other times they need to be cajoled back into life with fun activities. Often when they have lost an animal mate or partner it can help to bring another animal into the family after they have had time to grieve. The new pet can bring in the much-needed spark of life again. If the grief display is ongoing please reach out to professionals to help.

The most important aspect to the emotional resilience and wellbeing of your pet is your awareness of how they are doing across every level. Understanding that your pet is an individual and has individual likes and dislikes will help you have an incredible bond filled with love and understanding. Animals will usually offer you unconditional love and support as long as they rust you and have bonded with you.

Take the time to think about what your pet would like most and try to include those activities (apart from excess food lol) throughout their day. Learn to spot signs of unhappiness or distress so you are able to offer them help quicker. Learn as much as you can about the breed of animal you have so that you understand their breed specific needs. Being prepared gives you the tools you need to ensure your pet’s needs are met on every level.

Good Luck