Dr. Barbara Natterson-Horowitz, a cardiologist who co-authored Zoobiquity , highlights a critical evolutionary concept: in the wild, showing weakness is a death sentence. Prey animals, in particular, have evolved to mask pain and illness. A rabbit with a broken leg will still attempt to hop normally when a predator is near. This evolutionary hangover means that by the time a pet owner notices something is wrong—a lack of grooming, a change in feeding schedule—the animal may have been suffering for days or weeks.
Behavioral science has provided the tools to decode this silence. Standardized pain scales for dogs and cats now incorporate behavioral parameters: Dr. Barbara Natterson-Horowitz
They tackle complex issues that traditional training cannot solve alone, such as: a cardiologist who co-authored Zoobiquity