To understand what is abnormal, it is important to understand know what is normal. Nobody knows your pet better than you do. Its habits, behaviour, temperament, body language and mood throughout the day will tell you what you need to know. However, animals do have personalities. Some animals are more resilient than others, some are less expressive. Hence, you must always consult your veterinarian when you suspect something is wrong. Animals tend to hide sickness. This trait was a part of evolution, when animals were not domesticated, they used this characteristic to protect themselves from wild animals.

There are two major ways to assess an animal. The first one being- by observing the behaviour and the second one is observing the physical signs and symptoms. Before we move on to the identification of sick or injured pets, let us understand how to confirm that an animal is healthy.

Sometimes they develop abnormal behaviours, and these behaviours are different from the loss of normal behaviours. These behaviours may be developed due to previous bad experiences with sickness or pain.
These abnormal behaviours include:
• Aggression
• Fear
• Altered facial expressions
• Restlessness
• Hiding
• Vocalisation

Some diseases like rabies also lead to vocalization and aggression in animals. In this case, the animal is not showing pain. This is a difference that your veterinarian is trained to understand and diagnose. Hence, once you notice abnormal behaviour, you must take your pet to the vet.

Sources:

• https://www.americanhumane.org/fact-sheet/recognizing-caring-for-a-sick-pet/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6941081/