Awkward, Unhinged And Hilarious Animal Pics For Those Who Need A Break From Cuteness

Even though misbehaving pets can be sometimes funny (and this list is proof), overlooking pets' poor behavior can create a lot of challenges in the future, which can also hinder the relationship between an animal and its owner.

To learn more about how to see the signs of poor behavior in pets and how to deal with them, we reached out to Dr. Kate Mornement, board-certified applied animal behaviorist and founder of Pets Behaving Badly, and Dr. Janet Cutler, a certified cat and dog behaviorist and founder of Landmark Behaviour Inc.

"Many different behaviors can qualify as poor behavior, and it is often dependent on the expectations of the family," says Cutler.

"This could include poor manners, such as jumping up or begging. Many more serious behaviors can be a result of fear and anxiety, such as barking, aggression, or damage to the home."

Meanwhile, Mornement says, "Poor behaviour in pets can be behaviors that are actually quite normal for the animal but are perceived as problematic by the owner. For example, dogs that chase small animals or cats that scratch the furniture."

The reasons why pets exhibit what we see as problematic behavior can be a lack of training, manners, or even socialization, says Cutler. "Many behavior problems are due to fear and anxiety, which can occur because of genetics, experience, training methods and what happens when your pet shows that behavior, and many more."

It can also be due to more serious issues like health problems, notes Mornement. "Poor behavior can be the result of a health issue so it's important to have your pet seen by a vet to identify or rule out a medical cause. Other causes of poor behaviour include boredom, fear, anxiety, territorial behaviour and a lack of appropriate outlets for normal species-specific behavior."

What can be done to minimize undesirable pet behavior is to look at the environment and situation that behavior happens in, says Cutler. "Often we can modify the environment to help decrease the behavior. Then, we can work on the behavior itself through training techniques, rewarding the behavior we would like to see," she explains.

"If the behavior is rooted in fear and anxiety, this is often a longer process and could require some help from a behaviorist or trainer. Ensuring your pet gets plenty of exercise and mental stimulation can often help a lot in addition to behavior modification."

Mornement suggests always using positive reinforcement when working with problematic pet behavior. "The key is to first understand what's motivating the animal to perform the undesired behaviour. Are they scared? Are they lonely? Are they bored? Do they get something positive as a consequence of performing the bad behavior? For example, many dogs learn to jump up on people because the behavior results in something they like such as pats and attention," she says.

"When pet owners focus on consistently rewarding desired behavior with things their pet values, their pet will offer these behaviors more frequently in favour of undesired behavior—it's called the Matching Law in psychology."

While trying to modify furry friend's manners, both experts stress that it's important not to utilize punishment. "Oftentimes pet owners may try to punish bad behavior and assume that a pet is performing the behavior out of spite. Punishing the behavior can get it to stop, however it does not help with the underlying causes of the behavior, and oftentimes results in further poor behavior," Cutler says.

"Although effective in the moment, punishment does not teach the animal what the owner wants them to do," adds Mornement. "We also know that punishment can make some problem behavior worse and can negatively impact the bond between pet and owner. Instead pet parents should focus on using positive reinforcement to reward an incompatible behaviour and ensure they are meeting their pets physical and emotional needs," she suggested.