The Cat Who Cried for Help by Dr. Nicholas Dodman - Essay Example

Dr. Dodman advises the cat-lovers to take good care of its initial restlessness, even if it is observed on a small scale. He advises in a tone of warning, “I have seen homes sold and marriages dissolve as a result of conflicts over wayward cats, but despite the long fuses of dedicated owners, behavior problems are still a major cause of feline mortality.”(xv) Out of frustration and unable to bear with the aggressive tantrums every year millions of cats are euthanized. Dr. Dodman advises a creative approach to modify and change the aggressive behavior and suggests that approach of goodwill towards the cat is needed to get positive results.

He argues, “Although scientists have failed to give full credit to the cat’s cognitive abilities because they can’t quantify them, the concept of feline intelligence is nothing that would surprise the average cat owner. It will just take time for the pundits to prove what the rest of us already intuitively know little true: the cats have feelings too.”(235) Perception of Dr. Dodman –the cat and its psychological needs. Cat is a safe pet, both from the point of view of keeping and maintenance and needs less management in comparison to dog.

Cats are attractive and self-sufficient. They are happy with some trees and some rats to chase and a quiet corner to rest. The problem is human beings fail to understand its psychology and to take care of its bare minimum needs. They have a defined territory and if it is violated, often they find it difficult to tolerate any interference and this is the beginning of their problems of adjustment. Cats adjust themselves to the home life, but the more the numbers of the family and the resultant disturbance are, the more they get upset.

The addition of new members, frequent arrival of guests and changes in the routine have the significant effect on a cat behaviour. They are averse to sudden changes in any area that affects their normal schedule. This happens when new addition is made to the cat family. An intelligently framed exercise schedule makes the life of a cat comfortable. Click-and-treat is one such exercise. A genuine cat lover will create cat nests, scratching posts, climbing structures and other requirements that go in tandem with environmental enrichment strategies.

In many areas cats are as sensitive as human beings and they have cognitive abilities. Human anxiety reducing medicines work on an aggressive cat as well in many cases and cats are mammals of emotions and feelings. The solutions tendered by Dr. Dodman The attitude of Dr. Dodman to the problems of cats is humane. He has tackled the most difficult behavior and has found solutions. He applies drug therapies and tries behavior modification. His counseling provides the aggrieved individual important clues for better understanding of cats.

The three main problems identified by him are: aggression, emotional behaviours such as inappropriate elimination, excessive vocalization, clawing on furniture and compulsive