Vet Medz

Last night on my way home from work I picked up a copy of one of the free papers used by commuters all over London to quicken their journey and distract themselves from the 20-60 minutes that they spend each day squashed insanely close to strangers’ armpits.

Somewhere between the latest on the economic down turn and an interesting piece on Lindsay Lohan’s mismatching tanned legs and pale feet was a curious little article that got me thinking about my latest conference – Companion Animal Products.

The ‘phenomenon’ on the web of icanhascheezburger.com is a site less than two years' old that was sold for an estimated $2m nine months ago. It gets more than two million hits a day and has been named the 8th most powerful blog by The Observer. The website contains pictures of people’s cats and funny captions, 10,000 people submit their efforts daily with only nine or ten making the cut.



These jokes have developed their very own subculture, constantly referring back to earlier musings. It has its own language - a cross between baby language and text speak known as “lolspeak” - with very strict rules and its own wiki conversion site, reoccurring characters and even its own mythology.

Believe it or not, visitors to the site recently attended a huge convention at the O2 arena. Many admitted to stalking their cat with a camera and not being able to look at their pet without thinking of captions in the now cult language of lolspeak.

Icanhascheezburger.com is just one example of the increasing devotion of people to their pets but it reflects the growing opportunities for product development in this area and is the main reason for the growth that we have seen in the companion animal products industry.

This years’ Companion Animal Products conference, Prague, 26-27 November 2009, has been designed show you how to spot the best opportunities for your product portfolio and predict your competitor’s pipeline. Attendees will benefit from leading market analysis, recent product launch industry feedback and the latest developments to address the unmet needs in the companion animal product market. www.animalpharmevents.com/summit



Obviously you need to come to the conference to get this expert market intelligence and industry researched information from our experienced speaker panel but for the time being I hope that you enjoy this insight into a large section of your target market’s psyche....

http://www.icanhascheezburger.com/

Pilled up pets

All of the behavioural issues that we have created in ourselves, we are now creating in our pets Photo: Litter Kwitter, Cleverlad Pet Products

Several months ago, James Vlahos asked us if he could use our report, Companion Animal Behavioural Products, to get some ideas for his feature on the same subject for The New York Times.

We said yes.

“Pill Popping Pets” was published last week, and it makes a very intriguing read.

There were many funny bits in the feature (at last, a life science feature that is actually funny), but the one that I love the best is about Booboo the crazy cat who attacks her owner randomly. Growing up, I had one or two crazy cats like that. Drugging your pets is not necessarily the answer for behaviour modification, but I wish we had Prozac to pill them up. We would have had them longer.

Echoing the opinions of our report author, Dr Uwe Gerecke, some of the people interviewed by Vlahos said that what owners perceive as inappropriate behaviour for their pets could very well be their normal behaviour as a dog or a cat, but one that is undesirable in a human set-up.

Vlahos wrote: "Although most animal-behaviour problems are believed to have genetic roots, their expressions are typically triggered by the unnatural lives that people force their pets to lead.'A dog that lived on a farm and ran around chasing rabbits all day would be more prone to being stable than a dog living in an apartment in Manhattan,' [Dr Nicholas] Dodman says.

Vlahos: "Although most animal-behaviour problems are believed to have genetic roots, their expressions are typically triggered by the unnatural lives that people force their pets to lead." Photo: Janet Goulden

"Undomesticated canids, neither confined nor excessively attached to people, don’t suffer from separation anxiety. Some captive horses endlessly circle their stalls or corrals — a compulsive behaviour similar to Max’s tail chasing — but such purposeless repetitions have never been observed in the wild."

If your lock your pet up in a city flat for eight hours a day, or let it loose in an area full of other pets - all competing for space - while you’re away at work, of course it’s going to turn loopy and develop some habits. Some humans go nuts doing things that are not naturally human. Like spending eight to 12 hours behind the desk, and another two hours commuting back and forth on public transport every day.

What I find interesting is the length pet owners go to make their animals fit into their lifestyle. Vlahos observed that "people’s willingness to employ behaviour-modifying medications stems in part from a growing desire for more convenient, obedient household animals".

"The studies of Reconcile (the fluoxetine hydrochloride product by Eli Lilly used to treat dog's separation anxiety) show why behavioural pharmacologists prefer not to rely on the medicine bottle — or for that matter, retraining — alone. Dr Steve Connell, a veterinarian at Eli Lilly, told me that 'behaviour modification by itself works. There’s not any question about that. But if you use behaviour modification in conjunction with Reconcile, it works quicker and it works better.'"

No pooping allowed. But is the dog in the wrong? Photo: Edwin PP

A pharmaceutical company executive told Vlahos that “all of the behavioural issues that we have created in ourselves, we are now creating in our pets because they live in the same unhealthy environments that we do.”

I asked Dominic, our web programmer who recently acquired two kittens, if he uses ‘aids’ to modify his kittens’ toilet behaviour. He is currently training them to do the business in the designated area, i.e. the bathroom.

“No,” he said. “I just moved the litter tray to the bathroom. As long as they know where it is, and they don’t get yelled at, there is no problem”.

Vlahos's feature got me thinking about the real motivation behind pet ownership. No doubt some people love animals. But for some, it isn’t really about the pets. Making the pets fit into their lives like some toys or on-demand entertainment devices speak volumes of their need for love and reassurance.

You can read the full article by James Vlahos on http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/magazine/13pets-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1.

You can get the full copy of Companion Animal Behavioural Products for free if you subscribe to Animal Pharm.

Punitive measures should be the last resort

Recently, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB), issued a position statement and guidelines on the use of punishment for disciplining animals, in response to reality TV shows like "The Dog Whisperer".

Currently airing on the National Geographic Channel in the US, the dog whisperer, Cesar Millan - touted as the "Dr Phil for dogs" - goes around rehabilitating problematic dogs with his unique disciplinary techniques.

The AVSAB acknowledges that "punishment can be effective in specific cases, but it must be used carefully due to the difficulties of performing it properly compared to positive reinforcement and due to its potential adverse effects".

Punishment, it cautions, "should not be used as a first-line or early-use treatment for behavior problems. This is due to the potential adverse effects which include but are not limited to: inhibition of learning, increased fear-related and aggressive behaviors, and injury to animals and people interacting with animals".

At the moment, we are editing a podcast by Dr Uwe Gerecke about behavioral products for companion animals.

He says that behavioral problems in companion animals are acquired disorders, which occur as a reaction to inappropriate husbandry conditions, isolation or deprivation of social interaction.

But he also points out that what the owners perceive as behavioral problems are probably not problems at all, but simply a normal behavior for the species. Cats like to mark their territories and dogs like to chew on things.

"Owners's expectations have changed over the last 30 years, and consequently changing the lifestyles of especially pet dogs and cats," he explains. "Many companion animals today have little opportunity to express their normal repertoire of social reproductive and hunting behavior. As a result of this, many owners have no idea what the normal repertoire of the respective species really is."

Dr Gerecke's take on the use of drugs is pretty similar to that of the AVSAB's.

Only resort to these measures after an accurate diagnosis on the underlying behavioural problem, and if the owners, with the help of the vets, have a good idea about the safety of drugs chosen.

Note: Dr Uwe Gerecke also did a podcast on Nutraceuticals in the Animal Health Industry for Animal Pharm.

Hypoallergenic pets?

In a BIO video that we featured recently on http://www.animalpharmnews.com/, Dr Barbara Glenn, the Director of BIO's Animal Biotechnology Department, talks about the possibility of one day creating "hypoallergenic animals" for pet.

Before we say "Frankenstein", let's think about it. Before the advent of GM technology, we bred companion animals and food-producing animals to get pedigree stocks. OK, the techniques weren't GM, but my point is we tried to control the way these animals turn out so they suit our needs and lifestyle. We wanted thoroughbred horses, cats, dogs - we didn't want mongrels. We wanted the best meat, the best dairy produce, the best eggs, the best leather. We still want the same things, but in a bigger quantity because there are more of us today, and if we can get away with it, "bespoke", so they fit into our lives. Tall order.

If they can come up with cats that don't shed hair or smell as much, I might consider having one again in the flat. Bizarre? Try having a cat in Central London.

By the way, check out this website. Pet to order, only $7,900 a pop.