Dog Separation Anxiety

True dog separation anxiety is not as common as once thought because dogs will often display many of the symptoms of Separation Anxiety for a variety of reasons like, not receiving enough exercise, too much time away from their owners, not enough mental stimulation, and improper training, just to name a few. The only way for a dog to be clinically diagnosed with Dog Separation Anxiety is by a Veterinarian or qualified Dog Behavioral Specialist. The symptom criteria for true Dog Separation Anxiety are listed below:

• The dog will never leave your side and will follow you from room to room, even if he/she was sleeping when you got up
• The dog is extremely anxious when he/she knows you are leaving
• The dog can not survive not sleeping in your bed
• The dog urinates and defecates in the house, in many locations even when you are home
• The dog barks all day when you are not there, and there are no breaks in barking
• The dog chews things with your scent on it. For example, your clothing, shoes, bedsheets, towels, the chair you usually sit in, etc.
• The dog expresses no guilt or remorse for this inappropriate behavior when you return home, and makes no attempt at hiding or concealing the things that he/she has destroyed
• The dog gives you a frantic greeting, and paces when you enter your home
• The dog whines and cries if you separate yourself from him/her while you are in the home. For example, if you do not let the dog follow you in to the bathroom when you shower.
• The dog scratches at, and bites exits to the home, for example, door frames, window frames, and sliding doors, etc. (This is their attempt to leave the house to go and find you)
• The dog barks and commits acts of destruction even if you've been gone for 30 minutes or less
• The dog demands attention from you and is jealous of other family members or pets
• The dog will do any number of the things on this list even if left with someone else (their attachment is to you, or a particular family member) and they do not behave badly if anyone else leaves except for the person they are obsessed with
• The dog will not eat, or drink while you are gone even if you left a steak on the middle of the floor
• The dog will not play with his her toys while you are gone, and will engage in destructive behavior like chewing or constant, non-stop barking

Before you jump to the conclusion that your dog has Separation Anxiety because he/she does a number of things on the above list, I highly suggest you do the following:

1. Read the article Dog Chewing and incorporate the suggests contained within and see if there is an improvement in your dogs behavior
2. Set-up a video camera or Nanny Cam in your home when you leave to see when your dog commits acts of destruction, or when he/she begins whining or barking
3. Try giving your dog Obedience Training see, Sit Training, Stay Training
4. Provide your dog with more exercise
5. Purchase engaging chew toys
6. Take your dog to a Veterinarian or Dog Behavioral Specialist for an evaluation

If after all this you find that your dog does indeed have true Separation Anxiety, know that there are many things that you can do to greatly reduce your dog's distress, and even reverse this behavioral condition with enough love, support, and encouragement from you.

Dog Separation Anxiety Solutions 

First things first! You need to make a conscience decision to commit to your dog in helping him/her deal with this problem. Half-hearted attempts at correcting true Separation Anxiety will not work. You need to mentally prepare yourself for the weeks and months ahead, and know that at the end of the road it will all be worthwhile.

In the beginning it will be necessary to keep the dog with you at all times during the training process. If this is not possible you must hire a Pet Sitter, or find a friend that can stay with the dog while you are at work.

Take the dog with you everywhere you can to socialize him/her as much as possible. Now is the time to give your dog mental stimulation by interacting with other humans besides you. I also highly suggest that you take your dog to dog walks, dog parks, dog obedience classes, and anywhere your dog will have an opportunity to interact with other dogs as well.

Other dogs can actually be quite healing. If you've ever seen The Dog Whisperer on the National Geographic Channel, you've probably noticed that Cesar Millan usually brings the toughest cases to interact with his healthy pack. I am a very firm believer in this method. I realize that Cesar Millan is likely not to whisk your dog away for two weeks for rehabilitation so you need to do everything possible to get your dogs with other well-adjusted dogs so he/she can learn from them. Do you have a friend or family member that has a well-behaved, happy dog? Can you set-up play-dates? Is there a local Doggy Day Care Center in your town that is reputable that will let you stay with your dog while he/she is there? These are two really excellent things to try, and will help you tremendously.

Now for the hard part. You need to take some responsibility as to why your dog developed Dog Separation Anxiety in the first place, as this behavior is not natural in dogs, and develops or time for a number of reasons. You need to ask yourself the following questions, and be very honest in your answers?

1. Do you spend a lot of time away from home, either traveling or because of long work hours?
2. Do you give your dog enough exercise? Daily walks, rounds of fetch, time to run?
3. Do you actively train your dog in obedience commands?
4. Have you been providing enough mental stimulation for your dog, i.e., interactive chew toys while you are gone, giving your dog time to explore while on walks - and not just rushing him/her to do his business?
5. Are you really the pack leader, or alpha in the house? Often times, dogs who perceive themselves as alpha will be extremely anxious when a member of their pack (you) leave, and they do not know where you are, or what you are doing.
6. Do you yell at, or hit your dog when he/she misbehaves?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, that should be the first thing on your list of behaviors YOU need to change. Obviously, if you answered yest to #1 I'm sure there is very little you can do about changing your work schedule - we all have to earn a living. However, there are things that you can do to help in this regard, for example, enroll your dog in doggy day care 2-3x per week, hire a dog walker, or pet-sitter, check out Sittercity, (this is a fabulous resource) enlist a friend or family member to come in and check on the dog. I know its not easy, but there is always a solution to every problem, and I'm sure if you really think about it, you can find a way.

Now exercise, this is actually one of the easier things to fix. Take your dog out every morning, or at night and give him/her a long hearty walk. This actually benefits the both of you - you'll both be in better shape, have time to bond with one another, and perhaps you'll both meet some friends along the way!

As for Obedience Commands - take 10-15 minutes a day training your dog in basic obedience commands. See both Dog Chewing, and Dog Obedience for helpful tips and tricks for how to get this done more easily.

Mental Stimulation - this can be provided on long walks if you allow your dog a chance to explore, with interactive chew toys like Kongs, and by Obedience Training.

Now if you're not the pack leader it is high-time that you became the alpha. I can not stress how important this is. Your dog needs your leadership and guidance, in the wild he knows how to take of him/herself. However, when living in Domestication your dog really needs you to lead the way. I highly suggest you purchase, Cesar Millan:mastering Leadershi V 1- and start watching immediately.

If you are yelling at, or worse hitting your dog - JUST STOP IT! This will not resolve any behavioral problems, in fact, it will probably only make things worse! The best way to get a dog to do what you want is to be Calm, and Assertive. Yelling will only provoke the dogs natural instincts to defend him/herself, or will turn your dog into an emotional mess. And hitting, if I need to explain why it is not good to hit an animal, then you probably shouldn't have one in the first place.