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(EMAILWIRE.COM, April 30, 2013 ) Chicago, IL -- Dogs appear to be capable of suffering from both separation anxiety and depression just their human companions can have. The news may not be surprising to devoted dog owners, but the information has continued to add concrete backing for the notion of such dog-lovers.
A vacation is usually met with excitement. However, for Shyloe Fayad , she found herself dealing with stress regarding what to do with her four-year-old Bichon Frise named Tony, who suffers from anxiety.
"Luckily my friends (who also have a dog) offered to watch him while I was in Nicaragua," said Fayad. "I kept making sure they really understood what it meant when I said 'Tony can't be alone.'"
"Basically he is never alone," she said. "The only time we leave him is when we get groceries and even then we're constantly checking to make sure we haven't left him too long."
According to professor Stanley Coren, author of the book “Do Dogs Dream?” and professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, diagnosing anxiety, depression, and other illnesses within dogs is not unusual due to them sharing similar neurochemistry with humans.
He stated that research indicates that dogs exhibit symptoms of depression much like a two-year old child might in a similar situation. "You're dealing with something that's non-verbal, which means symptoms will be mostly behavioral, such as loss of appetite, lethargy and failure to respond to play opportunities that used to make the dog very happy," said Coren.
Signs of depression were noted in the early 1980s when Nicholas Dodman of Tufts University, was looking at the symptoms expressed in canines. Because the symptomology in dogs and humans are similar, Dodman started treating dogs with Prozac, and found the dogs showed improvement.
"A whole lot of people considered that confirmation of the fact dogs are having very much the same kind of emotional disorders that human beings have," said Coren.
A report from the UK's Sainsbury Pet Insurance company found that 623,000 dogs and cats within the United Kingdom suffer from mental illness of some sort in 2008. It also found that 900,000 experience loss of appetite as a result of such stress or affliction.
"A person would never go to a psychologist and say they are suffering from separation anxiety. The same thing applies to dogs," said Coren. "It is one of those things that is a symptom and is usually caused by the owner."
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Benjamin Wrights
4157669098
news@postpressrelease.com 
Source: EmailWire.com
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