Music Therapy for Animals

Part of my morning routine includes turning on the radio for my cats.  They really like to listen to NPR when I am out of the apartment. More on that later.

My Bachelors and Masters degrees are actually in Music Performance, so these stories are a great mix of two of my great loves, animals and music. I know how music heals the soul, and it does so with animals too.

A lot of the articles I've read about 'Music Therapy for Animals' drone on and on about the science and psychology behind music therapy. I don't really care that much about that. Does it work or not?

The proof is in the pudding. I want to share my personal experiences and success stories with you:

Success Story 1: Stewie the Hamster

About 11 years ago, I got Stewie the Hamster. When I went into Petco that day I no intention of leaving with a furry friend, but the clerk told me he'd been there for a long time.  He was gorgeous and crazy cute, but the devil in hamster form...he had never been socialized and was a biter. No parent or hamster-loving kid was going to take him like that, but I was confident I was the one to turn him around, so of course he came home with me.

I can't find any old photos of Stewie but he looked like this little guy.  He was crazy cute, but so mean!

He bit me really good a couple of times while I was trying different things to socialize him.  Hamster bites are like two razors coming into your skin. After a couple of days of trying to handle him, I was frustrated but still wasn't going to give up. Everything I was reading just said to just get your hamster used to being handled, but he'd bite every time!  I finally came to the conclusion that handling him repeatedly just wasn't going to work, not right away anyway.

So one day I had the idea to turn on the radio before I left for work. A light rock station with some chatter mixed in, on low volume. 

I came home 9 hours later and instead of him buried in the corner like he usually was, he was standing toward the front of his cage looking at me.   I carefully put my hand in and he let me pat his head with my finger - no blood involved! I didn't want to push it so I just opened the cage enough to see if he wanted to crawl into his exercise ball and he did (without my hands). He always loved the ball, but not hands.

The next day I did the same thing again and he was even better! I could actually hold him, incident free! I couldn't believe the complete 180 he made in his personality. I told everyone about my miraculous hamster experience, I couldn't believe it!

From that day until the minute he died, Stewie was the most cuddly and loving hamster I've ever had. He loved to be held, was gentle, adored his ball, and always wanted to be out with me exploring. He never bit anyone ever again and was very happy.  He was a wonderful little buddy.

Success Story 2: Maya the Cat

Maya is not my cat, but my parents'. Our family cat of 15 years had died the year before, and my parents' house was feeling very barren without any furry family members. So when a friend's barn cat had kittens, and once they were fully weaned I sprung at the opportunity.  Maya was the only one who didn't immediately run away, so she came home with me. She was a very sweet cat, beautiful dilute calico, who for a few years was the only cat in the house.

We didn't know much about cat behavior at the time, and Maya seemed normal and content, so when a second (and shortly thereafter, a third) cat came to be a part of the household, we didn't understand why Maya became a recluse to the basement. The new cats were a few years younger than her, and we quickly learned that they would sometimes bully her with their rough play, so she'd retreat to her safe hiding places in the basement. 

Maya prefers string and mousies to roughhousing.

She gradually reverted into a very insecure cat. Each time I'd visit instead of being head butted with purrs, she would hide, and if I tried to pet her she might even hiss and spit at me. It was sad, and my parents didn't know what to do.

So, remembering my success with Stewie a few years earlier, I suggested the music therapy.  We set up a radio in the middle of the basement and put on the classical music station.

Maya's transformation wasn't as immediate or as revolutionary as Stewie's was, but it absolutely did help. She started spending a lot more time upstairs. She stood her ground more against the other two cats. They don't fight, she's just made it clear she wasn't going to run away from them. She stopped acting like the victim, stopped acting like "prey" (as Jackson Galaxy puts it) and they stopped treating her that way!  She was getting her self-esteem back.

Evidence of her progress!
Here is Maya (right) begrudgingly sharing a chair with one of the ruffians, Rocco (left).
I love her expression here, it's like "Ugh...it's you."

Now she purrs more and hides less. She is still passive to the other two ruffians (as I call them), but those two largely leave her alone now and just tumble around with each other. She wants nothing to do with that play-wrestling, and much prefers chasing a catnip mousie down the hall.

She still has the radio playing classical music 24/7 downstairs. There are quiet places she can get away from it if she so chooses, but the places she likes to sit to look out the window or watch everyone else is within earshot of the music.

Success Story 3: Oliver the Cat

Now back to my choice of NPR for my three cats.  My two females, Pretzel and Meatball, absolutely love strangers and welcome visitors with head butts and cuddles (whether the visitors want them or not!). 

Oliver on the other hand, would always hide for as long as he could. If he did get the gumption to come out from under the bed, he'd plaster himself to my side, every muscle as tense as can be. He would never hiss or anything, but I didn't like seeing him so insecure in his own home. 

He's generally a relaxed and happy cat, but not when he hears strange voices in the apartment. Plus he's all black so I think he knows he's invisible under the bed!

Sweet boy loves the piggies. And boxes.

So I'm sure you can guess what I did...a couple of months ago I set up a radio in the kitchen (the middle of the apartment) and chose NPR for the nice variety of low voices calmly prattling the news mixed with all types of music. Voices seem to be his sensitivity, so I wanted to make sure he heard strange people talking on a regular basis.

The proof is in the pudding: a couple of weeks ago, after we've been doing the NPR experiment for a little while my dad came to visit for the weekend. Oliver did not hide...not for even a minute!  He trotted right out, jumped up on the couch next to him and waited for pets, just like he does with me when I come home. 

I was so proud of him and happy that the music / radio therapy had worked yet again! He was completely relaxed and content hanging out with us. He'd never done that before with visitors.

The next weekend my mom visited, and he did the same thing. He even gave her head-butts, purrs, and licks. No hiding.  I think his days of being insecure and skittish around strangers might be over for good!

We're going to continue the NPR therapy in our apartment forever, as I don't want any relapse. It works, and we're sticking to it.

As you can see, this has really worked wonderfully for me and my pets.  If any of my stories sound like something you are struggling with for any of your pets or animals in your life, I suggest trying radio / music therapy!**

**Disclaimer: I am not a vet, I only speak from my personal experiences with my healthy animals. There can be a lot of reasons why an animal might behave strangely, and only a vet can tell you if there are any physical reasons for why your pet might be acting in a certain way.

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Read More about Music Therapy for Animals:

Music Therapy Helps Soothe Humans and Animals Alike

Harpist Soothes Cats at a Troubled Minnesota Shelter

Music Therapy for Cats

Music Therapy for Dogs

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Even cows love music!

Controversy of Captivity : Behavior Problems

When we think of animals in captivity the first thought is usually animals in zoos. However, there are many more types of abusive captivity out there in which animals are currently living:  puppy mills, aquariums, marine mammal parks, pet stores, factory farming, gestation crates, circuses, and the list goes on.

Animals that live in human care are in captivity.  Dogs were domesticated as early as 15,000 BC, but throughout history not only pets and livestock were kept in human care, but also wild animals in menageries and zoos.

The menagerie at Versailles, constructed by Louis XIV in the 1660's.

Most modern zoos make great efforts to create a habitat as close to the animals' natural environment as possible. However due to the nature of traveling circuses, factory farming, and puppy mills, animals in those situations are trapped in tiny enclosures and abusive environments. Those enterprises use animals for profit, so to maximize profit, they minimize expenses (at the animal's suffering).

Occasionally these captive animals, particularly those non-domestic wild animals, develop repetitive and purposeless behaviors called stereotypical behaviors or zoochosis. These behaviors include pacing, self-mutilation, over-grooming, swaying, head bobbing, and bar biting, to name a few.

If you have been to a zoo, pet store, or circus, then I guarantee some of these will look familiar to you:

Pacing

This is very common, I'd be very surprised if you haven't seen this before.  This usually causes well worn paths in the ground, and is often seen with big cats and wolves in captivity.

There can be a few reasons why an animal might pace, some theories include pre-feeding anticipation, checking on or marking territory, or an old habit ingrained from a previous small zoo enclosure.  However, as in the example in the video below, the enclosures are very small, with no behavioral enrichment opportunities (more on behavioral enrichment further down):

Bar biting

Includes licking, biting, chewing the walls or bars. Often seen in giraffes and primates.

Swaying, Rocking, Head Bobbing

Standing in one place and repetitively swaying back and forth. Seen in many different animals, particularly bears and elephants.





See more Stereotypical Behavior patterns here.

How to combat stereotypical behavior? Behavioral Enrichment!

So, now that we know what to look for, what is the best treatment?  The answer is Behavioral Enrichment.  I give the Sea Lion narration for feedings and enrichment sessions at the Central Park Zoo, and the way we explain Behavioral Enrichment is as follows:

"If you've ever played fetch with a dog or given a cat a scratching post, that is all behavioral enrichment. It encourages animals to do behaviors that are good for both their physical and mental well-being. Behavioral enrichment gives animals at the zoo something active to do and something intellectual to focus on."

Excellent buffalo enrichment for the lions at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
The buffalo was built so keepers can attach meat, rawhide, and play sounds from it, to further enhance the lions' enrichment experience.

Adorable example of behavioral enrichment for a captive juvenile Giant Panda. SO CUTE.

Puzzle feeders, such as the one these Polar Bear brothers are enjoying, are very popular enrichment items.

Most enrichment stimuli can be divided into six groups: Sensory stimulation, feeding, manipulation (by the animal, ie toys), environmental (habitat enhancement), social (interacting with other animals), training, and puzzles.  Enclosures in modern zoos work very hard to facilitate all means of environmental and behavioral enrichment.

Behavioral enrichment in pets

This practice of stimulating animals to prevent boredom and behavioral issues goes well beyond animals in zoos.

An example of enrichment toys for a captive macaw.

As I've learned from Jackson Galaxy on My Cat From Hell, and Cesar Millan on The Dog Whisperer, a host of behavior problems in pets can be resolved through play, exercise, and "Catification" (Jackson Galaxy's term for creating feline-friendly environments in your home to accommodate a cat's natural instincts).  In other words, enrichment.




In this video Cesar talks about how to select the right rescue dog for you, and demonstrates his best dog-walking tips and tricks:



Abusive captive environments lacking enrichment and appropriate husbandry can have long-reaching effects for its former captives, even once they are freed from their prisons.  For example, dogs or animals that originate from puppy mills or pet store breeding-mills have many more behavioral problems than those that come from breeders.

Just another reason to "ADOPT DON'T SHOP"!


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