Don't get angry with your furry friends, they're just doing what comes naturally

Living with someone can be frustrating at times and they might be doing things that drive you up the wall. The same situation can be applied to pets, but it isn't always your animal's fault, it may simply be behaving naturally and you are the one who does not understand.

Animal behaviourist and veterinary surgeon Cynthia Smillie, at Animal Behaviour Veterinary Practice, reveals some common dog and cat problems.

Smillie says many cases involve dogs with temperament issues: aggression or fear towards other people or dogs.

'A problem is very often a result of poor socialisation, particularly when an animal is very young,' she explains. 'Socialisation is essential to develop a reliable temperament. We expect an awful lot of them when we put them in an environment that is alien to them.

'The way an animal lives in the wild [conflicts with what] we expect in a domestic environment and how they should behave.'

The animal behaviourist explains aggression and fear mainly stem from three developmental situations.

The animal may be inherently abnormal and act inappropriately despite a healthy environment, or it has experienced an abnormal social system and environment, which has resulted in it developing a problem. Finally, the environment is normal, but the animal has responded inappropriately.