The Trauma of Being Lost:
The Effects on Pets
The bond shared between a pet and its owner can be uniquely special. As such, the trauma inflicted as a result of losing a pet can have devastating outcomes not just on the owner, but the pet itself too. Before diving too deep into the issues revolving the loss of pets, it’s important to understand that there is underlying trauma that needs to be addressed pets are enduring. Realizing this can allow us to better imagine the world from our pet’s perspective and do what is necessary to make their lives easier, free of discomfort.
A sudden feeling of separation can breach pets the moment they become lost. The feeling can, quite frankly, be extremely overwhelming. Dogs, cats and other pets are known to live their life depending on the routine set for them, and the sense of security provided to them by their owners.
Severed; without familiar sights, and trusted caregivers, pets can experience a strong surge of stress. Pets, during such times, quite often face confusion as well as fear, leading them to believe they might be lost. If they don’t grasp the reason why they are stuck in a particular place and the means to their escape, all that the pet experiences is a surge in anxiety.
Fear is one of the components of stress that any animal is likely to feel, especially when in an unusual setting. A familiar pet may panic and start to exhibit behaviors that are not ideal in a given circumstance. For example, a dog will bark and move to different places in the house, trying to look for their owner, while a cat will go to small boxes and shut itself off from the world.
This anxiety can be made worse by other factors, like stressors that are in the environment, including loud sounds, new smells, and even the presence of other people or animals. Sometimes, these overwhelming sensations can result in emotion-driven actions that are completely outside a person’s character, such as violence or social withdrawal.
The most common danger that lost pets encounter is aggression from humans and other animals. Stray dogs and feral cats present a unique risk for lost pets who may see them as a threat or compete for available resources. Additionally, not every individual is compassionate; a lost pet may run into people who do not care at all and, at worst, do harm to them.
The potential for abuse or neglect alone creates a fear-riddled environment for the animal. Other animals like snakes, wild dogs, and even domesticated but territorial pets may inflict other pet injuries. Lack of shelter or food for the lost pets may lead them to forage in places that are dangerous and where there are high chances of them getting injured or sick.
The combination of psychological trauma and harsh living conditions poses great danger to lost pets, as they are most likely to suffer shocking injuries . One of the greatest of these would be traffic . Cars and bicycles as well as pedestrians are other major risk factors for unwatched pets who happen to wander into the pathways. It is commonplace for such pets to sustain life threatening injuries as a result.
As identified in several studies, free-roaming animals are likely to become victims of various accidents due to their erratic traffic conditions where their instincts to either run away or hide could end in catastrophe.
A nomad pet with an insufficient food, water, or shelter supply will perish eventually. In the case of being a captive animal, the nomad lifestyle is one that can create several obstacles like food and water access. Pets that are kept away from home for a certain period of time are likely to suffer from food and water scarcity coupled with psychological distress like anxiety or in some extreme cases anguish.
During the attempt to find their care-giver, pets are no longer able to feel satisfactory balance in their body which leads the pet's body into thinking they are under stressful condition. Keeping the pet's state of health in mind, there are extreme chances pets can succumb turning out sick which can lead to exposure to several diseases while getting injured.
The summer season in the region of Dubai is very harsh; the blazing sun tends to rise in such a way which makes these regions extremely difficult for the more unfortunate and abandoned animals. These sensitive beings require the complete attention of the people who adopt pets or the animal welfare societies from the community as a whole.
The most notable concern for animals during the summer months is usually dehydration. Animals can overheat with their body temperatures often going above 40°C, leading to heat stress or even heatstroke. Particularly, cats and dogs may become physically hurt or mentally overwhelmed which can become very disorienting. Hence, finding sufficient amounts of shade or water, if not impossible, becomes extremely difficult.
Dubai’s scorching summers raises concerns about pets that are lost and wandering through the streets. Even the ground is boiling hot, leading to burns on the pads of their paws. Asphalt has the potential to reach temperatures that can set fire to any animal’s paw pads. Unfortunately, pets can face unintentional self-inflicted injuries which can result in needless suffering, not just pain.
A pet relies on their owner for affection and companionship, signifying that they are very social by default. Being lost can lead to pets feeling exceptionally disconnected, which can become psychologically fraught for the individual. For example, dogs are pack animals and commonly need their “pack”, which in this case is their human family.
The negative impact on a person’s mental health is bound to be severe, feeling a persistent need to return to their human family. This loneliness can create enduring behavioral problems like separation anxiety, fear of abandonment, or difficulty adjusting to normal life even after reuniting with the family.
Reuniting with a lost pet can elicit a sense of joy, even though the emotion is complex in nature. Pets that have been lost for an extended time period tend to show symptoms of suffering from trauma which includes social withdrawal, fear, and increased levels of anxiety. Certain pets have difficulty adapting back to their homes (which in the past, they visited often) and may feel scared and anxious about going to places that they once loved and considered as safe. The fact that they have been lost (and in certain cases captured), fundamentally alters there behavior – an alteration that one’s guardians need to be understanding of.
For dogs, the world can be a very scary place. The possibility of encountering dangerous animals or people can cause a lot of anxiety and fear. Pets certainly do get lost, but few understand the copious amounts of trauma that comes along. Taking proper care of pets and attempting to understand their experiences allows people to better address the problem of their pets getting lost, especially for those that have gone through traumatic experiences. Understanding the stress that can be caused due to losing a pet, enables good will between humans and pets and helps address issues with companionship and trust.
