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Separation Anxiety Dog Training – Training Them to be Alone

Article originally published on SitStay. Refer to the original article here. Article written by Jessica Mabie.

What is Separation Anxiety?

Dogs with separation anxiety experience stress, confusion, and tension. Separation anxiety manifests when a dog is insecure when left alone and is separated from their human.

There are varying separation anxiety levels that dogs can experience, from mild whining to extreme behaviors like destroying their surroundings. Symptoms associated with separation anxiety include:

  • Drooling and panting: When dogs experience extreme anxiety, they may pant and or drool excessively.
  • Crying, barking, or whining: Dogs will display persistent crying, barking, or howling when separated from their family.
  • Urinating or defecating: Dog with separation anxiety will have absence when left alone, even though they are housebroken.
  • Destructive behavior: Dogs with severe separation anxiety will dig or chew on furniture or exit points such as doors, window sills, or other accessible objects. This behavior is not only destructive but can also be dangerous and cause injury to your dog.
  • Escaping: Some dogs will attempt to flee their home, yard, or crate to find their humans.
  • Pacing: Pacing often at the door their human used to leave is a common habit seen in dogs with separation anxiety.
  • Stress colitis: Dogs who experience prolonged stress from separation anxiety may even begin to suffer from colitis. Colitis is inflammation in the large bowel resulting in diarrhea.

Separation Anxiety – The Difference Between Dogs and Humans

Dogs and humans are very different when it comes to what feels natural when separated. Humans grow up to be independent to leave their parent’s home.

It feels natural for humans to leave to go to the store, out to dinner, work, and even on vacation. It feels unnatural and uncomfortable for most humans to stay home all the time, as seen in today’s world of social distancing and quarantine.

On the flip side, dogs are pack animals. Pack animals do almost everything together, from hunting, sleeping, eating, and even rearing their young. Though there are a few times that the pack may separate, they often do so in groups, rarely leaving any of them completely alone.

Pack animals find a sense of security together, it is easier to hunt together, and there is safety in numbers. And though our dogs no longer need that same security to survive, it is an ingrained behavior.


Separation Anxiety Dog Training

Whenever anyone gets a new dog, they focus on housetraining, recall, sit, and down, but often overlooked is training your dog to be okay when left alone. Proactive training to avoid separation anxiety is always the best choice when possible.

However, every situation is different, and dogs may develop separation anxiety for various reasons. One of the common reasons dogs suffer from separation anxiety is if they were previously abandoned. These dogs are more likely to suffer from separation anxiety in their new home until they become more confident.

Below are some different ways to help your dog get over separation anxiety.


What is Dog Training for Dogs with Separation Anxiety?

Dog training dogs with separation anxiety is about changing how a dog feels about being left alone. Training helps dogs associate feelings of calm and confidence instead of anxiety and fear when the owners leave.

Training aids your dog in understanding that when you leave, you will also come back. Training also helps dogs acclimate to being alone and shows your dog it’s safe for them to be on their own.

Separation anxiety training is about building trust between canine and human and teaching a dog how to live in a human world. Additionally, separation anxiety training helps build on the amount of time your dog can be left alone.


How to Train a Dog with Separation Anxiety

First and foremost, your dog must receive proper exercise before you leave the house. Dogs who are full of energy will not be content being left alone for hours on end. So, the first step in training is to drain that energy before you even step foot out of your house.

The second most important factor is your behavior and energy. Do you feel bad about leaving your dog? Nervous or anxious? Dogs pick up on our feelings and energy. If we are putting off nervous or tense vibes, your dog feels that, but they do not know why; instead, they just know something is wrong.

So be sure when you leave your dog that you are calm and confident. Do not become excited or go through a big goodbye routine. Instead, grab your wallet or purse and leave the house. When coming home, do not enter your home with exciting energy; instead, be calm, the same as you were when you left. You want to teach your dog that leaving and returning is not a big deal.

Next, it is all about baby steps. Start with teaching your dog to comfortable staying behind when you leave a room. To do this, you will want to find a focal point for them to wait on. It can be anything like a bed, mat, or training table. Put your dog on their focal point and take a step away, then come back and reward. Be sure you are rewarding calmly; this is a low energy exercise.

Never call your dog off the focal mat; instead, use a release command. With time build on this exercise with greater distance and duration.

Note this is not where your dog will stay in your absence; you are teaching your dog to be calm and confident being away from you. Your dog does not need to sit or lie down; your dog only needs to be relaxed.

Another thing to work on when training a dog is desensitizing them to their trigger points. Suppose your dog starts to show signs of anxiety when you put on your jacket, shoes, or touch the doorknob to leave. You will want to desensitize this action, meaning you need to remove any value that this action has to your dog.

Key Takeaways to Your Dogs Separation Anxiety

All too often, humans unintentionally trigger separation anxiety in their dogs, either by not teaching them to be alone in the beginning, creating too much nervous energy when leaving or by not providing enough exercise before leaving the house.

The great news is that many dogs can overcome separation anxiety with training.

However, in severe cases of separation anxiety, it is best if you seek the professional help of a dog behaviorist or veterinarian to aid you and your dog.

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Community Stories

Why I Don’t Think I Can Care for a Pet

Hello everyone, I am hoshi hooaunt.

I hardly appear on Hoshi’s account, if you’re unaware that Hoshi had an aunt, helloo! ?

Hoshi and me (hooaunt) at Wooftopia

Today I’m going to share why after getting Hoshi, I don’t think I can be a hoomum of another fur baby.

I care for Hoshi along with my sister, I mainly help out to feed him and just take care of him in general. Even though I am not the main caretaker for Hoshi, it has been a difficult journey. Caring for a puppy takes a lot of time and commitment, there’s much to take note for him.       

Smol Hoshi taking a nap in his old crate

Sitting on the sidelines, watching my sister sacrifice her personal time and her wallet for Hoshi, I am in awe of her efforts and hard work. Hoshi isn’t a difficult puppy to take care of, he’s very smart and super sweet. He knows where to pee and poo which is usually the most troubling issue for most pawarents. Something really magical ✨ about having dogs is that Hoshi knows when we are happy and when we are sad. I got to experience that myself and it was such a memorable moment, I am sure that it will remain forever in my heart. 

I had just came back from work, and was feeling a little down. I think Hoshi realised that I was a bit upset, he started to cuddle with me. It was unusual because, at that time, he would usually be quite active when someone comes home. However, that little cuddling session with him really healed me and it felt very special?. 

Hoshi being a cuddly boi after sensing that im sad ?

Having said all that, having a dog is wondrous thing however, there are things that i did not expect as well. 

Separation Anxiety 

Whenever we leave the house, Hoshi cries and whines and it’s really heartbreaking to hear and see him like that?. After he gets tired from crying, he would lay his head in between the gate and watch us leave. I guess leaving him alone at home is inevitable and it’s definitely a process that we have to go through. 

Hoshi being a sad boi when we leave for work
Hoshi being a happy boi when we come back

Time and Commitment

Having a pup takes up a lot of time and commitment. Starting from the basic care, his meals, his walkies, and hygiene, these are just some of the important things to take note of. ?

His meal times, Hoshi can be quite picky with his food at times, so we try to add in a bunch of variety for him. However, that would also mean that we would have to be on the constant lookout for new things for him to try. Thankfully, Pawjourr has a sampling program, where we can try out different things before purchasing the full-sized products.

Hoshi enjoying the free samples from Pawjourr!

Moving on to his walkie sessions, we try to walk him everyday however when it is raining, we can’t bring him down. In replacement, we would play fetch with him to waste his energy and spend some time with him.

Hoodad teaching him how to jump

As for his hygiene, we would have to brush his teeth, clip his nails, and care for him like a baby! It is a lot of work, but it is necessary for the lil baby! 

Hoshi’s cupboard –> where we store all of his things!

These are just the very little things that you would need to care for a puppy! It really takes a lot of effort and courage to love a puppy! Hoshi is a great blessing in our lives, and we are so in love with him!

For all those who are considering getting a puppy, please know that there’s a lot of hard work that comes from caring for one, but of course a lot of love as well. For all the pawrents out there, hats off to you guys! Lastly, for all the hooaunts/hoouncles that are just like me, keep loving your furbabies! 

Smol Hoshi taking pictures ?

Follow @hoshisheltie on Instagram to follow us on our journey.?

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Community Stories

When Separation Anxiety Meets Separation Anxiety

Getting a bulldog, as I’ve read in countless articles and magazines, would be hard. I knew that. I knew that I’d have to deal with skin issues and separation anxiety. But what Google didn’t prepare me for was how much I had to sacrifice. 

The tugging and pulling

I’ve had MomoKill for about 7-8 months now. The longest I’ve ever left her alone is 5 hours, when I had to leave the house for other commitments. One of the biggest reasons is this:

Every time I try to leave the house, she’d pull my clothes or my bag, holding me back. Going up against a bulldog isn’t the easiest thing. She has so much strength that I’d leave the house sweating, like I just got into a fight.

The heartbreaking cries

It gets harder when MomoKill gives up. The moment she realises that I will leave whether she pulls me back or not, she’d start crying and whining until I go back in the house. Strength is not a weapon anymore at this point. But she knows her cries are my weakness. I try not to give in, but whose heart wouldn’t melt with a face like this staring at you?

Going out without MomoKill

The only thing I can think about when I leave the house is whether my baby feels like I’ve abandoned her. Not one time have I gone out without worrying about MomoKill.

This got to a point where my friends got annoyed because all I’d talk about is my furkid. All I’d think about is what I could get my furkid while I’m out. My friend even told me off because he thought I was “too dependent on MomoKill”. I was honestly tempted to end the friendship because of that.

Here is a photo my mum sent to me while I was out. MomoKill was waiting and looking out the window, acting anxious and pacing around.

Returning home

When I finally return home after a few hours, the first thing I see is her waiting at the door for me to come home.

My photo gallery has pictures of her and nothing else. When I can bring her, MomoKill comes along with me everywhere I go. It has come to a point where my friends have accepted that if they want to see me, they’d see my dog as well. It may not be very healthy, but I don’t ever want to leave her.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m so thankful for her and for this relationship that we have. However, my internship is starting soon and I’d have to be out more. I don’t know how she would be able to cope without me. More importantly, I don’t know how I’d be able to cope without her. Nevertheless, she’d have to learn, and I guess I’ll have to as well.

Many books and online articles try to help dogs with their separation anxieties. I hope someone writes an article on how pawrents can get over their separation anxieties with their dogs too..

(P.S. If you happen to have tips or can relate, please leave a comment so we can help each other out! ?)