Mere og mere tyder på at dyr kan lide af noget der minder om OCD
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, som findes hos mennesker:
New Study on Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Cats
He chews all the books, papers and cardboard he can find and he does it all
the time. Or she chases her tail around and around but she doesn't quite
seem to be having much fun. Or you've noticed that the hair on his legs is
getting a little thin and that he seems to be doing an awful lot of
grooming.
Sound familiar? Your cat may have an obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a
condition that can be mysterious to treat in cats. However, a new study
conducted at the University of Pennsylvania may shed some light on the
problem. In the study, 103 dogs and 23 cats with OCD were treated with a
combination of behavior modification and medication, which resulted in a
significant decrease in the intensity and frequency of OCD in most of the
animals. However, owners shouldn't expect miracles. The study says while
"the frequency and intensity of clinical signs in most dogs and cats may
decrease by more than 50 percent" with "consistent behavior modification"
and treatment with medication (clomipramine), "success appears to depend on
client understanding and compliance and the reasonable expectation that OCD
cannot be cured, but can be well controlled."
Interestingly, OCD in dogs did "not appear to be associated with lack of
training, lack of household stimulation, or social confinement," says the
study, but "in cats, OCD may be associated with environmental and social
stress." Stress, for cats, can be due to a change in physical environment,
such as a recent move, or to the pure unmitigated dullness of staying inside
all day. So it's important to keep kitty mentally and physically stimulated
(a cat tree by the window and regular interactive playtime is a good start).
FRA:
http://www.thedailycat.com/compuserve/culture/news/archive/2002-12-09.html
Mice with OCD
Do cats, dogs, horses and monkeys suffer from OCD? ( obsessive compulsive
disorder). They probably do but it's a condition that has yet to be clearly
understood and classified the way it has been for the two legged creatures,
Homo sapiens. However, there is some interesting evidence which points out
that those creatures who do the repetitive things they do probably have it
in their genes.
In a recent investigative effort, Greer and Capechii have published
interesting findings on this rather complex and confusing behaviour disorder
in Neuron. The investigators have identified a gene in mice (Hoxb8) that
appears to be associated with grooming behavior.
Mice which had the mutants in the Hoxb8 genes showed all the crazy
repetitive, hair pulling behaviour of the obsessive compulsive disorder
spectrum called trichotillomania in humans. Greer and Capecchi have observed
that Hoxb8 is expressed in regions of the CNS known as the 'OCD-circuit.
That's more food for thought.
Reference for further reading:
Greer, J.M. and Capecchi, M.R. 2002. Hoxb8 is required for normal grooming
behavior in mice. Neuron 33(1):23-34.
FRA:
http://www.purapet.com/puramagazine/8thissue/micecat.htm