Texas Veterinary Behavior Services

05/30/2025

Thank you to Vet Tech Institute of Houston for having us yesterday! Dr. Gibson gave a presentation about the veterinary behavior specialty and went over some behavior basics. We are always happy to pass on our knowledge to the next generation of veterinary professionals! 🐾🩺

05/29/2025

This is pretty fascinating.

When a crow feels sick… it visits an anthill.
Sounds strange? It’s actually one of nature’s most fascinating healing rituals.
When a crow senses it’s unwell, it will intentionally find an anthill, spread its wings wide, and remain completely still—waiting for the ants to crawl into its feathers.
Why?
Because ants release formic acid—a natural antiseptic that kills bacteria, fungi, and parasites hiding in the bird’s feathers.
This behavior is called “anting”, and it’s been observed not just in crows, but in many bird species.
No medicine.
No vet.
Just pure instinct and nature’s built-in pharmacy.
A brilliant reminder that the natural world is full of intelligent, self-healing systems…
We just need to stop and notice.

05/06/2025

Stanley is definitely THE MAN showing off his excellent skill for cooperative care hind leg blood draw training. Here he is practicing at his vet clinic in an exam room and doing a fantastic job with outside distractions.

05/06/2025

Kaya's mom is an extremely dedicated and very skilled dog trainer. But she has still been struggling with excessive reacting and arousal with her lovely Doberman. So we are all proud to hear her recent update with how Kaya has been responding to changes in the training and behavior modification.

"I just had to share this video as I was literally so happy I was crying!!

We were walking and a dog came up on a path that went on a hill that I couldn’t see down and it seemed REALLY close maybe 15 feet (video looks farther). Kaya looked and moved with me then turned and looked back- not fixating more like she was curious. One little bark then went with me- a little more aroused but not bad and then followed cues.

I can’t imagine this low key of a reaction a few months ago!

Gives me so much hope that what you are helping us with is working!!!"

I just had to share this video as I was literally so happy I was crying!!We were walking and a dog came up on a path that went on a hill that I couldn’t see ...

04/30/2025

It’s a celebratory day when you can finally leave your laundry basket out. Dryer balls are still not safe, however

04/25/2025

Don't miss it!

🧪 A Hairy Situation... in the Best Way! 🧪

We’re excited to spotlight Elena Contreras, DVM, MS, PhD at the 2025 Scientific Paper Session, part of the Veterinary Behavior Symposium happening June 17–18, 2025 in Louisville, KY!

Her talk, “A Hairy Situation: Variability of Feline Hair Cortisol Concentration as a Measure of Stress Physiology vs. Hair Physiology,” explores how what’s growing on the outside might reflect what’s going on inside.

🐱✨ With implications for how we understand feline stress, Dr. Contreras’s research digs into the science of cortisol and the complexities of interpreting stress signals in cats—one strand at a time.

🗓 You won’t want to miss this presentation (or the whole day of groundbreaking research).

📚 The Veterinary Behavior Symposium brings together cutting-edge research and practical applications for professionals passionate about animal behavior science.

🔗 Check out the full SPS and PBF schedule and register here: https://www.dacvb.org/page/2025VBSandForum

04/25/2025

Never leave uncooked rice unattended...

04/07/2025

Monday Medical Corner:

Ovariohysterectomy, popularly known as ‘spaying’, is commonly performed on female dogs as a means of sterilization and to reduce risk of certain diseases including mammary tumors and pyometra (uterine infection). Recent evidence suggests that delaying this procedure until the dog is more mature (at ~18-24 months of age) offers behavioral, orthopedic, and other health benefits.

Dogs’ reproductive cycle is different than that of humans’. A dog’s estrous cycle includes multiple stages. The best known phase is proestrus/estrus or when the dog is in “heat.” This is the phase where the dog ovulates and can become pregnant if she is bred. This phase lasts about 3 weeks on average. The dog then enters diestrus – the phase of pregnancy. What is interesting about dogs is that the hormonal profile in diestrus is the same whether the dog is actually pregnant or not. During this phase, estrogen declines and progesterone rises (secreted from a structure called the corpus luteum [CL]). Progesterone is the hormone that maintains pregnancy. Diestrus in dogs lasts about 2 months – the average duration of gestation when the dog is pregnant. At the end of diestrus, the CL essentially dissolves or becomes inactive and progesterone levels drop. If the dog is pregnant, this change is part of the process that triggers the birth of the puppies and onset of lactation and maternal behavior.

After diestrus, the dog enters anestrus which is a period of hormonal quiescence. In the dog this lasts on average about 6 months as the typical complete estrous cycle in dogs is about 7-9 months long.

If a dog is spayed during diestrus, the precipitous drop in progesterone can mimic whelping and trigger the onset of maternal behavior – including maternal aggression. Since the dog does not have puppies, dogs may begin to guard other objects and show aggression toward humans or other animals. In rare cases, this aggression has persisted long term.

Since there is no benefit to spaying a dog during diestrus, we recommend that dogs be spayed during anestrus to prevent this possible complication.

04/01/2025

Fun Animal Facts: Meet the Rhinoceros Beetle! By Kymber Roldan

As our family gathered at a home in Lagrange Texas for Christmas 2024 my granddaughter Dahlia discovered a Rhinoceros beetle. Her mother brought the large beetle in to the house for her and Dahlia was jumping up and down with excitement.
Dahlia picture
After showing off her newfound prize, she added him to her terrarium where he will live out his remaining days. I knew when I saw him he was not very long for this world but what a treasure for a curious little girl. This experience influenced this posting.


Rhinoceros Beetles
Common names: Rhino beetle, Hercules beetle, unicorn beetle, or horn beetle.

There are 1500 species with 225 genera in this sub species.
Rhino beetles are a subspecies of scarab beetles (Scarabaeidae). They are among some of the largest beetles living. Sizes range from 2-3 inches (5-7 cm) all have horns originating from their central head and forming from mid thorax pointing forward. They use the horns for digging, defense and fighting during mating. Horn size is a representation of physical health of the male.
Rhino beetles hatch from eggs, developing in to a larval stage, they can stay in this stage for years prior to developing in to pupae and then emerging in their final beetle form to reproduce and continue the cycle of life.

Rhinoceroses beetles as pets.

In Asia Rhinoceros, beetles are popular pets. They are easy to keep, clean pets that do not smell and are simple to feed. In Asia, some male beetles often are used for entertainment. With the aid of a female beetle, they set two males up for fights and often people gamble on who the winner will be. Winning beetles are highly prized.


Pest Beetle control:
All stages of Rhino Beetle: Rats, Ants, Pigs and other beetle species will eat beetles and their larva.
2 imported diseases threatening Rhino beetles: Fungus Metarhirium Anisopliae and Oryctes Virus .
Mostly used for control of coconut beetles in Hawaii. Formerly known as Rhinoceros Nudivirus Oryctes. Discovered in Malaysia in 1963, used as a biological control of Rhinoceros Beetles in Asia and the Pacific Islands. This virus causes the disintegration of body fat and causes adults to stop eating. It is spread beetle to beetle, intrahemocoelic inoculation, and fecal-oral contact during mating. Currently it is found in tropical regions of Africa, Asia, USA and Oceania.

Metarhirium Anisopliae, Strain F52 infects insects, primarily beetle larva. . m. anisopliae, grows naturally in soils throughout the world and causes disease in various insects by acting as a parasitoid. This has been a helpful “natural” defense against beetles for non-food plants, however; recently reported cases of human and feline infections bring its use in to question. Click for information on these infections.

Information gathered from Wikipedia, Google and National Wild Life Federation

02/18/2025

Dog Breed Fun Fact: Did you know that Golden Retrievers were originally utilized as hunting dogs? Scottish landowners required a canine hunting companion capable of retrieving birds across hunting terrain that had numerous ponds and marshes. The dogs were introduced into North America during the 20th century for hunting and companionship. Today, they have expanded beyond their utility as hunting dogs to serve as therapy dogs, service dogs, and search and rescue dogs. They remain popular family companions but sometimes are prone to resource guarding towards humans.

02/12/2025

SEALY SCHOOL: So Sealy's annual exam, vaccines, and blood draw will be due in early summer. So we are now starting to teach her to stand for vaccines and voluntary blood draw. Here is a clip from our first sessions.

02/11/2025

Cat Breed Fun Fact: Did you know that Bengal cats are a cross breed between the domestic cat and an Asian Leopard Cat? Although most Bengal cats today are several generations removed from the Asian leopard, they are still renown for their active nature – they not meant to be lap cats. Their heritage accounts for their unique coat pattern and athletic prowess, but also makes them prone to destructive tendencies, aggression, and excessive vocalization if their substantial enrichment and exercise needs are left unmet.