Episode 88 – Serotonin Syndrome - What you need to know!

Serotonin Syndrome, also known as Serotonin Toxicity, is the most severe side effect of serotonergic medication and can potentially be fatal if not treated and managed.

Therefore, understandably, many vets are very cautious when it comes to prescribing serotonergic agents and especially when combining serotonergic agents such as an SSRI and, for example, trazodone.

· But, how frequent is this side effect in practice?

· What are the signs you should be looking out for?

· What can you teach your caregivers to do in terms of monitoring to screen for mild signs of Serotonin Syndrome?

· What medications, aside from psychopharmaceutical medications, can cause Serotonin Syndrome?

· What are the Differential Diagnoses for Serotonin Syndrome?

· And how do you treat a pet with Serotonin Toxicity?

I talk about all this and more in this episode!

Here are the studies I mention in the episode:

1. Indrawirawan, Y., & McAlees, T. (2014). Tramadol toxicity in a cat: Case report and literature review of serotonin syndrome. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 16(7), 572–578. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098612X14539088

2. Pugh, C. M., Sweeney, J. T., Bloch, C. P., Lee, J. A., Johnson, J. A., & Hovda, L. R. (2013). Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) toxicosis in cats: 33 cases (2004-2010). Journal of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, 23(5), 565–570. https://doi.org/10.1111/vec.12091

3. Thomas, D. E., Lee, J. A., & Hovda, L. R. (2012). Retrospective evaluation of toxicosis from selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressants: 313 dogs (2005-2010). Journal of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, 22(6), 674–681. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1476-4431.2012.00805.x

If you’d like to learn more about Veterinary Psychopharmacology, then my PSYCHOACTIVE course is for you!

Follow the link below to get access to PSYCHOACTIVE – PRACTICAL VETERINARY PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

Use SUMMER50 for a 50% Discount this summer 2025!

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/psychoactive

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Episode 87 – The importance of sleep in our pets – a conversation with Dr Carrie Tooley

Sleep!!!!

Honestly, this is a topic I have been thinking about so much lately and this amazing conversation with Dr Carrie Tooley just reinforces how important sleep is to the mental and emotional health of our pets and patients!

What you’ll learn in this episode:

1. How sleep plays a role in emotional arousal and emotional regulation in our pets and patients.

2. How long our pets should actually be sleeping every day (this will surprise you, especially in puppies and kittens !!!).

3. What we can do in our homes to help our pets get consistently good quality sleep.

4. What we can do in our hospitals and clinics to help our patients get consistently good quality sleep.

5. What the amazing research and case report by Carrie tell us about the importance of sleep in our pets and patients.

Here are the studies by Carrie and colleagues which we talk about in the episode:

1. Tooley, C., & Heath, S. E. (2022). Sleep Characteristics in Dogs; Effect on Caregiver-Reported Problem Behaviours. Animals, 12(14). https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12141753

2. Tooley, C., & Heath, S. E. (2023). Emotional Arousal Impacts Physical Health in Dogs: A Review of Factors Influencing Arousal, with Exemplary Case and Framework. Animals, 13(3), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13030465

If you’d like to get in touch with Dr Carrie Tooley: carrie@brvp.co.uk

AND… if you’d like to know more about how to integrate sleep into your pet’s and patients’ lives, then have a look at my Learn To Speak Dog course, where I dive into this important topic in module 6!!

Use Discount Code – SUMMER50 for 50% off Learn To Speak Dog this summer!

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/learn-to-speak-dog

I really hope you enjoy this episode; it is packed with so much information!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

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Episode 86 – Behaviour Signs and Neurotransmitters

When I first started out in Veterinary Behaviour Medicine, knowing which Behaviour Medication to choose for any given patients was a real struggle. I didn’t really know what to base my choices on, often reached for the same medication over and over again without really knowing why and just hoping that I’d made the right decision.

Sound familiar?

As I progressed through my residency, I started to understand how behavioural signs are correlated with neurotransmitters in the brain and how to make really smear medication choices to affect these neurotransmitter levels.

In this episode I chat through exactly this and give some examples of how to start thinking about which medications to choose according to the signs the patient is showing.

Here’s the FREE PDF download I mention in the episode:

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/behaviour-signs-nts

And here is the link to PSYCHOACTIVE – PRACTICAL VETERINARY PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/psychoactive

This course is epic.

This course is my soul's work and contains the wisdom I want to share with you after safely and effectively using Veterinary Psychopharmacology in hundreds of my patients.

Use SUMMER50 for a 50% Discount this summer 2025!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Veterinary Behaviour Community on Facebook

You can CONNECT with me:

Website: Visit my website

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Episode 85 – Setting Up a Behaviour Service with RVN Nikki McLeod

Veterinary Nurses are INVALUABLE when it comes to promoting Behavioural Health within Veterinary Practices.

In this episode, I chat to RVN, Nikki McLeod about her current exciting journey of setting up a Behaviour Service within the practice she works in, what her challenges have been, what her wins have been and what she has learned along the way!

This is such a great episode for vets and veterinary nurses around the world to gather top tips and inspiration on how they can utilise their skills and their teams to start integrating Behaviour Medicine into their everyday practices.

Nikki is such an inspiration, and I wish her every success with the set-up of this much-needed service!

If you are a Veterinary Nurse and you’d like to learn more about the basics of Canine and Feline Behaviour, then have a look at my amazing courses:

Learn To Speak Dog

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/learn-to-speak-dog

Learn To Speak Cat

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/learn-to-speak-cat

AND… avail of my Super Summer Offer of 50% off both of these courses until 31st August 2025!

Just use the Discount Code SUMMER50 when checking out!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Veterinary Behaviour Community on Facebook

You can CONNECT with me:

Website: Visit my website

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Episode 84 – Assessing and Managing Inter-Cat Tension & Aggression Cases

This week, I saw a 2-cat, a 4-cat and an 8-cat home, all with diagnoses of inter-cat tension or inter-cat aggression.

These cases can be really complex to work up and understanding the fine nuances of cat-cat sociability can be really challenging.

In this episode, I share the things I think about and the questions I ask when I go into a multi-cat home with inter-cat tension or aggression.

You’ll hear me talk about severity of behaviour, covert and overt feline aggressive behaviours, how to discern play from hostile behaviours, why it is important to assess everyone in the home including the cats not obviously involved in aggressive events and some mistakes that caregivers commonly make when they are living with cats who are fighting.

Have a listen also to episodes 18 and 48 of this podcast to learn more about resources and the 5 Pillars of a Health Feline Environment, both of which are so important when it comes to inter-cat tension.

Here is the link to the 2024 AAFP Inter-Cat Tension Guidelines:

Rodan, I., Ramos, D., Carney, H., DePorter, T., Horwitz, D. F., Mills, D., & Vitale, K. (2024). 2024 AAFP intercat tension guidelines: recognition, prevention and management. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 26(7), 1098612X241263465.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1098612X241263465

And, if you want to find out more about Feline Behaviour, Body Language, Communication, Social Relationships and more, then check out my amazing course:

LEARN TO SPEAK CAT – suitable for professionals and caregivers alike!

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/learn-to-speak-cat

I really hope you enjoy this episode!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Veterinary Behaviour Community on Facebook

You can CONNECT with me:

Website: Visit my website

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Thank you for tuning in!

Episode 83 – We are what we eat. A conversation about Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome in dogs and cats - with Dr Gaelle Joanny

This is SUCH an epic episode. The quality of conversation with Dr Gaelle Joanny always blows my mind and I am so grateful to be able to share this with you.

I have spoken about Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome in dogs and cats before – check out episodes 55 & 57 of this podcast for more background information.

However, in this episode, we take a deep dive into the nutritional ways we can support our patients that are suffering with this disease – both with diets and nutraceuticals.

Here are some things you’ll take away from this episode:

1. How feeding a good quality diet over a lifetime can prevent Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome.

2. Nutraceuticals to help manage Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome and how they work.

3. Medium Chain Triglycerides as an alternative fuel source for the brain.

4. How management and environmental enrichment can help.

5. Why we all need to get so much better at recognizing the signs of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome!

Dr Gaelle brings her nutritional expertise to the conversation; we talk about a number of influential studies on this topic and we both express the importance of recognizing the signs of this degenerative disease so we can support and manage our pets so much better in their twilight years – because… don’t they just deserve that from us!

Keep an eye on our Social Media Channels in the coming days and weeks for even more information about the diets and nutraceuticals mentioned in this episode!

We really hope you enjoy this episode; it is packed with so much information!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Veterinary Behaviour Community on Facebook

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Website: Visit my website

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Thank you for tuning in!

Episode 82 – How young is too young to start Behaviour Meds?

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll grow out of it…”. A phrase that makes my heart sink when it comes to young dogs with obvious behavioural diagnoses.

Now, what do I mean by “young”? We’re talking about dogs somewhere between 6 and 12 months of age and yes, it is absolutely possible that these youngsters already have a behavioural diagnosis based on genetics, epigenetics and early life learning experiences.

Should we wait to treat them?

Absolutely not!

In this episode, I chat through my reasons for making this bold statement and present you with a nice study by Dr Jill Sackman, DACVB, et.al. “Outcomes and side effects of Behavior Medications in young dogs”, that shows that the use of behaviour medications in young dogs (6-12 months of age), is safe and prevents the continued development of more troublesome problem behaviours!

To learn more about adolescence in dogs, have a listen to Episode 67 of this podcast !

If you’d like to learn more about Veterinary Psychopharmacology, then click on the link below for more information on Psychoactive!

PSYCHOACTIVE – PRACTICAL VETERINARY PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/psychoactive

This course is epic. This course is my soul's work and contains the wisdom I want to share with you after safely and effectively using Veterinary Psychopharmacology in hundreds of my patients.

And… if you’re not quite ready for Psychoactive, here is the link to my hour-long Masterclass on the Basics of Veterinary Psychopharmacology:

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/veterinary-behaviour-basics

I really hope you enjoy this episode!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Veterinary Behaviour Community on Facebook

You can CONNECT with me:

Website: Visit my website

Trinity Veterinary Behaviour Instagram: Follow Trinity Veterinary Behaviour on Instagram

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LinkedIn Profile: Connect with me on LinkedIn

Thank you for tuning in!

Episode 81 – Janice and Robbie’s Story

Robbie is probably one of the most anxious dogs I have seen in my 6 years working as a Veterinary Psychiatrist.

His behaviour got so bad that his lovely caregiver, Janice, had to sleep on the sofa with him for several weeks, neither of them getting much sleep.

When I first met him, Robbie would pace, pant, patrol the home, lick walls and cupboards, and paw at the floor to try to make himself feel a little better.

The relationship with his housemate dogs became extremely tense as they were just not able to read his body language or understand his behaviour.

Everyone was stressed and at a loss.

After an initial consultation, I started Robbie on a comprehensive psychopharmaceutical treatment plan and within a few weeks, his anxiety had decreased to the point that Janice could sleep in her own bed again.

Robbie continues to go from strength to strength and has even started to play with his toys again and is friends with his housemate dogs again.

Are you a pet parent in a similar situation?

Then find me here: www.trinityvetbehaviour.com

Are you a Vet or Pet Care Professional who wants to learn more about Psychopharmacology?

Then I have just the thing for you:

PSYCHOACTIVE – PRACTICAL VETERINARY PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

https://katrin-jahn.mykajabi.com/psychoactive

An online course dedicated to teaching you what you need to know to get started on your Veterinary Psychopharmacology Journey!

If you liked this episode of the show, The Pet Behaviour Chat, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, share, and subscribe!

Facebook Group: Join The Pet Behaviour Community on Facebook

You can CONNECT with me:

Website: Visit my website

Trinity Veterinary Behaviour Instagram: Follow Trinity Veterinary Behaviour on Instagram

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Trinity Veterinary Behaviour YouTube: Subscribe to Trinity Veterinary Behaviour on YouTube

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Thank you for tuning in!