Helping our animals deal with stress

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10th January 2013, 3:12pm

Helping our animals deal with stress

A leading animal behaviourist who has pioneered research into the effects of pheromone therapy has co-authored a new book on the subject.

We may not be sure how our animals experience stress, but emotional upset can have a significant impact on their lives.

For this reason, more emphasis is being placed on what can be done to alleviate the effect of different types of stresses on our pets' emotional and physical health.

Professor Daniel Mills, from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Lincoln, has pioneered the use of pheromone therapy to encourage desirable behaviour in dogs and cats.

Bringing together the latest research in this developing area, he has written a new book on the use of pheromone therapy within the field of clinical animal behaviour with colleagues Dr Maya Braem Dube from the University of Bern in Switzerland and European behaviour specialist Helen Zulch, also from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Lincoln.

Stress and Pheromonatherapy in Small Animal Clinical Behaviour details how stress impacts on animal behaviour and welfare and what we can do about it, especially by using chemical signals more effectively.

Pheromones, which are a form of chemical signal, are produced by a huge variety of species throughout the animal kingdom. They are released by the animal into its environment and can affect their own behaviour and that of other animals as well.

As the culmination of many years' research and experiences, the book offers sound evidence-based advice on how and when pheromones can be used most effectively.

It deals with some fundamental issues focussing on the key concepts of the various forms of stress, and how communication and perceptual processes influences the action of message receivers.

It then goes on to cover the application of these concepts to a range of specific situations, concentrating on conditions in which there has been most research to support the effects of pheromone therapy.

Professor Mills, has conducted extensive research in this field over the last 15 years and provides consultancy to a range of organisations in the animal care and science industries.

He said: "We have tried to bring together our experience in both practice and research in veterinary behavioural medicine to present not just the current state of the art, but also a vision of future practice for consideration. In our experience this approach has allowed us to be more specific with our treatment recommendations and led to more rapid progress for clients. The approach may initially appear somewhat novel to practitioners, but is not difficult to understand and has a solid foundation in the latest thinking in neuroscience and behaviour. This is an approach that we have very much developed at the University of Lincoln."

The publication is suitable for veterinarians in small animal practice, students of clinical animal behaviour and researchers.

For more information or to place an order visit www.wiley.com/go/vet

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