The Drug Pushers;
coming to a corner near you!
Formely published in Your Dog Magazine 2007
The issue of psychotropic drugs in pet behaviour has been cropping
up more and more as pharmaceutical companies push to distribute
their mind altering drugs into the pet arena as the quick fix.
Their drug behaviour counsellor groupies push their chemical coshes
prefixed with the words “Can help, may help, in conjunction
with” meaning that the drugs alone are not a cure all. I
would maintain that drugs are not a cure at all and the use of
drugs in dog behaviour & training is a direct abuse and assault
of pet dogs who cannot say “No” to being doped. A dog
cannot complain if the side effects are excruciating painful -
it simply suffers. No expert can detect a dog’s inner mind
and fears as a consequence of being drugged.
Of the thousands of cases we have consulted on; especially in
the anxiety and phobic problems we succeed without the use of any
drugs. We use skill, knowledge, experience and our ability to support
and motivate people training their dogs to new positive experiences – yes
its hard work in many cases but that’s being a responsible
dog owner.
Moreover, too many of the behaviour counsellors on courses today
are being taught by people who delude themselves that they have
the Pharmacological knowledge to teach - they don’t they
are not experts in pharmacology and the dogs mind. They simply
read the drugs company’s literature and regurgitate it.
One case we saw four weeks ago was a Wheaten Terrier that paced
around the house all night keeping the owners awake and panting
heavily. The counsellor walked in and immediately got their vet
to prescribe Clomicalm. The drug changed nothing in the dog’s
behaviour the counsellor failed completely. One of my colleges
dealt with the matter and now all is calm and well. He used acquired
knowledge, not chemicals.
Dogs that are hyperactive, anxious, barking, whining for attention,
causing much disruption to family life for whatever the cause are
often quieter when doped out of their skulls. The owner can only
respond by saying he’s better behaved, he’s not better,
he’s drugged and that’s why the majority of the owners
have come to my associates because they fear for their dogs sanity
haven administered drugs on these pseudo experts advice.
The RSPCA’s senior scientist Penny Hawkins said “Pet
owners may be horrified to learn that laboratory experiences are
often carried out on dogs to test these pills. Some dogs used to
test the anti depressant drugs suffered severe side effects and
even died. Would caring dog owners really want this to happen?” Well
the Dogs Trust is now prescribing Prozac to rescue dogs how dreadful.
I rest may case on the following: a human can make a free conscious
decision to take mind altering drugs and communicate two way their
feelings and side effects to their Doctor. A dog cannot and with
that half the information missing it can never be right to mistreat
our pets in this inhumane way in the name of behaviour reformation.
