Pets Can Develop Compulsive Disorders

The condition is best treated by improving their quality of life.

Feline compulsive disorder manifests most often as either excessive grooming to the point of baldness or sucking on, chewing or ingesting fabric or other nonfood items. Fercast/Shutterstock

Q: I was recently diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder. I live with two normal cats, but I’ve been wondering whether cats can have OCD, too.

A: Yes, though veterinarians who specialize in behavior refer to the abnormal repetitive behaviors as “compulsive disorder,” or CD, since the word “obsessive” refers to thought patterns we can’t objectively evaluate in cats.