Barking mad?

Marcia could not understand what was wrong with her dog. Maisie howled constantly and paced around the floor all night. In despair, Marcia took her to an expert on animal behaviour.

The expert's solution was to prescribe drugs. A survey by the journal Vet Record Open found that 83% of US vets have given dogs drugs to help with anxietyA feeling of unease or worry. It can be mild or very severe..¹

Lockdown could be a major factor. During it, 23 million American families bought or adopted dogs to keep them company.² Maisie was one of them.

But what was good for the humans was not necessarily good for the animals, say Jessica Pierce and Marc Bekoff in Scientific American. As lockdown companions, dogs were exposed to "charged human emotions such as loneliness, anxiety, fear and depressionLow mood that affects someone's daily life, and can last for weeks or months.. Dogs are profoundly empatheticAble to imagine how someone else is feeling. and are highly attuned to our emotions, and so it is likely that our neediness extracts a high price."

The relationship was particularly intense because these pets did not get to meet other people and other dogs. And because they grew up with a human around the entire time, suddenly being left alone when their owners went back to work upset them. 

But there are other possible reasons why more owners are looking for expert help. One is that more people are getting dogs from rescue centres.

This is good, since it means that many fewer animals have to be put down.³ But it also means a lot of damaged dogs being looked after by inexperienced owners.

It is estimated that there are 78 million pet dogs in the US: 44% of households have at least one.⁴ (There are even more pet cats: around 86 million.)

It may be, though, that many dogs are being given drugs they do not need. Rose Horowitch suggests that because people have become so worried about human mental health, they are seeing problems in animals that do not really exist.

Should fewer people own one?

Yes: Animals in captivity lack the stimulation they would get in the wild, and not all humans are good at looking after them. All countries should have a dog-care test, as Switzerland does.

No: Humans and dogs almost always benefit from each other's company. The world's oldest dog has just died at the extraordinary age of 31: his owner attributed his longevityThe fact of lasting a long time. When referring to populations and demography, it means living a long life. to a "calm, peaceful environment."

Or... It is very unfair on humans to have to look after dogs. It is a huge responsibility, and even going for a walk is stressful when you worry that your pet might run off or get into a fight.