Canine Separation Anxiety

What Do You Know About Canine Anxiety?

Canine Separation Anxiety is one of the most common problems that dogs develop.

It's an anxiety disorder, and is defined as a state of intense panic brought on by the dog's isolation or separation from her owner.

In other words: when you leave for work in the morning, your dog is plunged into a state of nervous anxiety which intensifies extremely quickly.

Dogs are social animals.

They need plenty of company and social interaction to keep them happy and content.

No dog likes to be left alone for long stretches of time, but some dogs do a lot worse than others and these are the ones most prone to separation anxiety.

What Causes Canine Separation Anxiety?

Breeding

Some breeds are genetically predisposed towards anxiety and insecurity, which is something you should consider when deciding which breed you’re going to go for (particularly if you’re going to be absent for long stretches of time). A few of these breeds include:-

• Weimaraners
• Springer Spaniels
• German Shepherds
• Airedales

Dogs From Shelters

A significant proportion of dogs from shelters develop canine separation anxiety. Most of these ‘shelter dogs’ have undergone significant trauma in their lives.

They may have been abandoned by their previous owners and no longer trust humans to come back when they go away.

Puppies Weaned Too Early

Dogs that were separated from their mothers and siblings too early have been identified as being especially prone to separation anxiety.

Puppies from pet-stores are a perfect example of this: they may be taken from their mothers well before the earliest possible age (which is 8 weeks), and then confined to a cage or box in the pet store for anywhere between a few weeks to two months.

This early weaning, coupled with the lack of exercise and affection while in the pet store, is psychologically traumatic for the dog.

Neglect

Neglect is the number one cause of canine separation anxiety.

If you’re absent much more than you’re present in your dog’s life, separation anxiety is pretty much inevitable.

Your dog needs your company, affection, and attention in order to be happy and content.

What Are the Symptoms Of Canine Separation Anxiety?

The symptoms of separation anxiety are pretty distinctive.

Your dog will usually learn to tell when you’re about to leave. She’ll hear your keys jingling, see you picking up your bag and putting on your coat. She’ll know you are going out and will become anxious.

She may follow you from room to room, whining, trembling, and crying. Some dogs even become aggressive, in an attempt to stop their owners from leaving.

When you’ve left, the anxious behavior will rapidly worsen and usually will peak within half an hour. She may do some or all of the following:

• Bark incessantly
• Scratch and dig at windows and doors (an attempt to escape from confinement and reunite herself with you)
• Chew inappropriate items
• Urinate and defecate inside the house

In extreme cases she might:

• Self-mutilate by licking or chewing her skin until it’s raw, or pulling out fur.
• Engage in obsessive-compulsive behaviors, like spinning and tail-chasing.

When you come home, she’ll be excessively excited, and will leap around you in a frenzy of delight for a protracted period of time (more than the 30 seconds to one minute of a happy, well-balanced dog.)

This extended greeting is a source of some misunderstanding: without realizing that such a greeting actually signifies the presence of a psychological disorder, some owners actually encourage their dog to get more and more worked up upon their return (by fuelling the dog’s excitement, encouraging her to leap around, paying her protracted attention, and so on.)

If you’re behaving in this way with your dog, please stop. I know it’s tempting and very easy to do, and it seems harmless – after all, she’s so happy to see you, what harm can it do to return her attention and affection in equal measure?

You’re just validating her belief that your return is the high point of the day. So she’s as happy as Larry when you return.

But, when it’s time for you to leave again, her now-exaggerated happiness at your presence is under threat, and she gets unhappy when you walk out that door.

Fortunately, there are things you can do to minimize your dog’s tendency towards anxiety.

How To Help Your Dog With Canine Separation Anxiety

Here’s a short list of do’s and don’ts:

• Do:- Give her heaps of exercise. Really wear her out: the longer you expect to be away, the more exercise she should get before you leave.

  For example, if you’re leaving for work in the morning, she’ll probably be by herself all day.

  So she needs a good, vigorous walk (fifteen to twenty minutes is the absolute minimum here!) before you walk out that door. More is even better.

• Do:- Distract her from her boredom, loneliness, and anxiety by giving her an attractive alternative to pining, pacing, and whining. All dogs love to chew – why not play on this predisposition? Get a couple of marrowbones from the butcher, bake them in the oven for 20 minutes (so they go nice and hard and crunchy – and so she can’t smear marrow all over your furniture), slice them up into chunks of a few inches long, and give her one about 15 minutes before you leave. It’ll keep her happy and occupied, and will act as a smokescreen for your departure.
• Do:- Put the radio on as you leave. Tune the radio to a soothing station. Classical music and talk shows are ideal. Keep the volume quite low. It's amazing how something so simple can often alleviate canine separation anxiety. It helps to give her the feeling that she’s got company.
• Do:- Supply her with a view: if she can see the world going by, that’s the next best thing to being out and about in it.
• Do:- Get her used to you leaving. Taking things nice and slowly, practice getting ready to go: jingle your keys about, put on your coat, and open the door. Then – without leaving! – sit back down and don’t go anywhere. Do this until she’s not reacting any more. When there’s no reaction, give her a treat and lavish praise for being so brave. Next, practice actually walking out the door (and returning immediately), again doing this until there’s no reaction. Gradually work up – gradually being the operative word here! – until you’re able to leave the house with no signs of stress from her.
• Do not:- React or show sympathy when she’s crying. Although it sounds very cold-hearted, trying to soothe and comfort your dog by patting her and cooing over her is actually one of the worst things you can do: it’s essentially validating her concern. Make sure she can’t tell that you feel sorry for her: don’t ever say, “It’s OK, good girl” when she’s upset!

All of this advice comes from Secrets to Dog Training.

It's an excellent resource with heaps of useful information on how to cope with canine separation anxiety and is a great learning tool for anyone who wants to learn how to deal constructively with their dog’s problem behaviors.

All of the common behavioral problems are dealt with in detail, and there’s a great section on obedience commands and tricks too.

Click here to visit the Secrets to Dog Training site.

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