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ACTIONS
Prozac for Rover
Posted 25 April, 2007 at 10:34pm by Michael Chu(Filed under: Current Events)
At first I thought the idea of Reconcile, a beef flavored prescription medication for dogs that is being referred to as "puppy Prozac", was ludicrous. Reconcile treats "pet separation anxiety" (for the pet, not the owner). I couldn't help thinking that in our world of looking to drugs to fix all our problems (I'm not saying drugs are not useful, I'm just saying that there's a tendency for people to seek a quick solution to a problem and often that's going to be a drug.), now we've got drugs for our pets too. After thinking about it for a moment, I realized that "pet separation anxiety" is a real issue. Growing up, I remember going on vacation for a couple days with my parents and coming home to find out from the neighbors that my dog had whined and cried every night. Would Reconcile be a good option? Maybe. This ABC News article suggests that medication could be the best course of action when accompanied with behavioral training. My hope is that it's not abused and used as a substitute for loving, playing with, and training your dog.
2 comments to Prozac for Rover
Debra, April 27th, 2007 at 7:42 am:
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This assumes that dogs have emotions similar to ours. They don't. Dogs don't have separation anxiety. They might have pack adjustment issues if their regular "pack" (owner) leaves them with another "pack." The solution is lots of exercise and discipline, so they know their place in the new "pack" and can integrate into it. Dogs live in the moment so its not that difficult to help them adjust to new situations.
The biggest problem with dogs in America today is that we treat them like children and don't respect their "dogness." So they sometimes behave in ways that we interpret in anthropomorphic ways as emotions. BS. As Cesar Millan says, dogs need discipline, exercise and then affection, but often its affection only — and the dog suffers. I love my dog — but I respect his essential "dogness" and treat him like a dog, not like a human.
We already overmedicate humans and its especially offensive how we overmedicate children (ADD — what a joke). Why would we medicate dogs as if they were children? This is just ridiculous.
Michael Chu, April 27th, 2007 at 10:19 am:
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Having not owned a dog since I was a child (and what did I know about raising animals then?), I hadn't considered this angle. Now that you've brought it up, I think you're right on the money. Dogs are dogs - not furry, cuddly children.