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Coping with Your Dog’s Separation Anxiety

Dogs are pack animals. Your family, and all other pets in the family, are his pack. When everyone leaves for work and school, some dogs get terribly upset and may become destructive or aggravate the neighbors with constant barking and whining. What can cause this behavior and is there anything you can do about it?

My Experience

Years ago, I had a dog named Pepper. She was part Australian Sheppard, and was a very sweet dog, although she was also really…ahem….active. I had her for 11 years, and for the first 9, she was an excellent dog. Even as a puppy, she never chewed on furniture, shoes, or clothes. Every single day, everyone left for work and school, and Pepper caused no problems. After 9 years, she suddenly became very destructive. It started when she got left in the basement one day, and it stormed. Being deathly afraid of storms, she wanted to get to her usual hiding place – under a bed. So she dug her way through the basement/kitchen hollow-core door. I came home to find her hiding under the bed, and a big hole in the door.

But this was just the beginning. In the next couple of years, Pepper dug through doors, walls, and even the front door. She crashed through windows screens and shredded upholstered furniture. We bought her a large crate, and on her first day in it, she broke the thick plastic floor lining, and her even-thicker plastic water dish, into shards. She also broke both of her upper eye teeth off at the gum line trying to chew her way out. We took her to the vet to have her teeth fixed, and I requested a prescription for doggy Valium. The vet told me that, without getting a doggy psychiatrist’s treatment, doggy Valium only works in about 5% of cases. And even with a psychiatrist, they only help in about 15% of cases. I have since heard better numbers than that, but back then, it left us feeling pretty hopeless.

In the last few months that Pepper lived with us, we moved into a big, brand-new home. At first, she seemed as happy as we were with our new digs. But before long, she started her destructiveness again. She chewed on the woodwork, shredded the carpeting in a number of places, and destroyed some window screens. We finally came to the heart-breaking decision that we were going to have to find her a different home, before she totally ruined ours. At 11 years old, we weren’t sure that anyone would want her. But we did find her an excellent home, with lots of room to run off that crazy energy of hers, and someone that is home for her all day long.

We never could pinpoint what caused Pepper’s sudden stress and anxiety. Looking back, I think it might have started around the time we got a new box springs and mattress. Up till then, Pepper had always slept on the bed – not at the foot of the bed, but right up there on the pillows. It had gotten to the point that if I rolled over onto my stomach or side at night, I’d get a mouthful of her shed hair. So when we got the new mattresses, I stopped letting Pepper sleep on them. Maybe being alone all day was ok with her, as long as she got her cuddle time at night, and all of the destructiveness was her way of letting me know she didn’t appreciate being exiled from sleeping on the bed.

I think Pepper’s case was somewhat unusual, but there are steps to help with more “normal” cases of separation anxiety. Why not try these things that can help:

Food and Exercise

Give your dog lots of exercise. An exercised dog is a happy dog, and is also a tired dog. Plus a full belly is a happy belly. A dog which has been on a nice run and gotten his belly full is more likely to relax and take a nap and sleep much of the day away. Ah, the life of a dog   And of course, you should always be sure that there’s fresh water and food readily available for your dog.

Sights, Smells, and Sounds

Leave the television or a radio on. It can be reassure your dog if he can hear human voices. Leave a window open. Dogs like the fresh air and the outside smells, plus they are able to see and hear people and various animals that are outside. You may have to leave it open only a crack, though, based on your dog’s behavior. Pepper would go right through a screen that was open wide enough.

Something to Do

Leave your dog some favorite toys. It will give him something to do. Toys that you and the dog have played with, and therefore have your smell on, can reassure. Ropes, nylon bones (not real ones, they can splinter and cause many problems or worse), squeaky toys, and balls are all good. The dog I have now goes out in the front yard on a 20-foot lead. I’ve seen him play with the lead, as if it were a live person or animal, when there was nothing else to do.

Answering Machines and Web Cams

Set your answering machine to screen calls, so the caller’s voice can be heard, and call your dog a couple of times throughout the day and let him hear your voice. If at all possible, set up a web cam in your house and also at work so you can look in on your pup to see what he is up to. If he is misbehaving, call the answering machine and reprimand him. If he appears to be getting anxious, call and talk to him in a soothing voice.

Put Your Dog in a Crate

Although it didn’t work with Pepper, it can work for you. It may sound mean to confine your dog to such a small space each day, but it can actually be reassuring to him. A dog often comes to think of his crate as his own familiar “bedroom”. One Fourth of July, when my current dog, Bo, was just a pup, he ventured outside and heard a big firecracker boom. He ran back inside, cowering. He came out again, and it happened again. His third time out, several loud fireworks went off simultaneously, and Bo ran back inside, down the steps, into his crate, and curled up and hid in there. It absolutely was his safe place to go. Crating works best if your dog is used to it, or is raised from a pup using a crate.

Stay Calm

When you leave, and when you initially get home, stay calm. Your dog will pick up on your vibes, and if you become nervous because he is likely to be nervous or upset, your dog will pick up on it. Make coming and going no big deal.

Interval Training

Leave the house for just a couple of seconds, then come back in. Go out again, and wait a minute or two and then come back in. Vary the amounts of time you are gone. Get your dog used to being separated for small amounts of time, and gradually increase the time. Go in or out different doors. Take your keys with you one time, but not another. Go when your dog is looking, then when he’s not. And stay calm. Eventually, your dog is not going to know if you are going to be away for a long or short time. But he will begin to realize that you always return.

I really hope these pointers will help you and your best friend to live in harmony. Love My Dog Blog would love to hear any stories you have about your dog and separation anxiety, or any stories about your dog.

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