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| Puppies and kittens need to be socialised from an early age. |
Should you wait until a vaccination course is complete
before you socialise your puppy or kitten, or advise your clients to do so?
According to the AmericanAnimal Hospital Association (AAHA), the answer is generally NO.
AAHA recently
released its Canine and Feline Behaviour Management Guidelines, which make some
very clear statements about behaviour in puppies and kittens.
Importantly, the guidelines argue that – based on current
evidence – patients do not outgrow pathologic fear. Animals that suffer from an
anxiety at an early age are likely to continue to do so. Early intervention is
not a luxury: it is critical.
Puppies and kittens should not be separated from their
litter mates until they are EIGHT weeks (56 days) old. Early separation is
associated with increased anxiety, barking, fearfulness on walks and
reactivity, as well as food-possessiveness, problematic attention-seeking
behaviour and destructive behaviour later in life.
There is a clear consensus statement about socialising
puppies and kittens before their vaccination course is completed:
Puppies and kittens born to healthy, properly vaccinated mothers and engaged in an active vaccination program have a low risk of contracting infectious diseases.
There is no reason to delay puppy and kitten classes or
social exposure until the vaccination series is completed as long as exposure
to sick animals is prohibited, basic hygiene is practiced, and diets are high
quality. The risks attendant with missing social exposure far exceed any
disease risk.
The behaviour and emotional wellbeing of veterinary
patients has come into focus, particularly in relation to companion animals, in
the last couple of years. There are some important reasons for this: in Western
countries, more dogs and cats are adversely affected by behavioural problems
than any other condition.
If an owner cannot cope with an animal’s behaviour, the
outcome is often surrender of that animal. Which, as we know, can be life
threatening. Animals with behaviour issues may be challenging or, at worst,
deemed a liability to rehome. The majority of animals surrendered to shelters
for behavioural reasons are between one and three years of age. We can all play
a role in reducing this terrible statistic.
Reference
Hammerle M et al
(2015) 2015 AAHA Canine and Feline Behaviour Management Guidelines. Journal of the American Animal Hospital
Association 51:205-221 DOI 10.5326/JAAHA-MS-6527
