Separation Anxiety

Some dogs develop separation anxiety. Below are some steps that may prevent this from becoming a problem.

Crate train your dog using the following steps:

• Leave the dog in the crate for short periods of time to teach the pet that you WILL return to release it.
• Continue to extend the length of periods until you can leave the pet alone for several hours.
• Vary the time of your return, so the pet will not expect you to be there at an exact time.
• Teach your pet to stay in a kennel or run in the yard by moving the crate outside, leaving the crate door open. Once again, leave the pet alone for short periods of time to adjust to its new environment.
• Ask a neighbor to assist you in determining your dog’s ability to handle being left alone. How does it spend its time when you are not home.

Some dogs seem to be less affected by periods of isolation. Others can suffer both mentally and physically. Dogs are pack animals and will almost always prefer spending time with the family rather than being isolated in the yard. If you are planning a new adoption or if you currently have a dog, please consider the social needs of the animal. Don’t set yourself and your dog up for a disastrous relationship.

Using the above steps with a new dog will help it adjust to spending time alone. This technique of conditioning will minimize potential problems associated with leaving your dog alone while you are at work. If your dog will be alone for 8 + hours per day, be sure that you spend DAILY time with it. Like with children, quality time is more important than quantity.

One final thought on garages: the garage is not part of the house, and not a sufficiently stimulating environment for a dog unless you spend a large part of your time there. Garages are also generally unsafe areas to leave a dog unattended.

Limit Isolation

How often have we seen dogs that are left in the yard all day and then sleep in the garage all night with only an occasional hour or two spent in the house with people? Unfortunately for the dogs, many dog owners feel this is an adequate life for a pet.

Barking
Bored, lonely dogs often vocalize loudly. This leads to upset, angry neighbors.

Digging
Bored, lonely dogs need an outlet for their frustrations and often resort to digging as a release. Unfortunately most of us don’t care to have our yards look like mine fields.

Escaping
Bored, lonely dogs will try to find places that are neither boring nor lonely. Unfortunately accidents often happen to dogs running at large and these can be quite expensive for the owner, if not fatal for the dog. Escaping also becomes a habit for a dog – one that can be very difficult to break.

Destructive Behavior
Bored, lonely dogs will find ways to “entertain” themselves – often by chewing on patio furniture, garden hoses and/or anything else within reach.

Self-mutilation
Bored, lonely dogs who do not use other means of release will often vent their frustration by chewing on their own feet, flanks or other body parts. This can lead to many serious health problems.

There is a simple prevention for boredom and loneliness for most pet dogs: make them part of the family.  Dogs are pack animals and the owners are the members of the dog’s pack.

Don’t isolate the dog. This does not mean that the pet should never be apart from you. It means that when you are home the dog is with you in the house. It means that the dog sleeps in the house. It means that the dog takes part in family activities.

Enrolling in a training class teaches you and the dog to communicate with each other and gives you the means to teach the dog desired behaviors which will make the pet pleasant to have in the house.