CAPITAL HUMANE SOCIETY
2320
Separation Anxiety
Copyright Denver Dumb Friends League and
Humane Society of the
Dogs
with separation anxiety exhibit behavior problems when they’re left alone.
Typically, they’ll have a dramatic anxiety response within a short time (20-45
minutes) after their owners leave them. The most common of these behaviors are:
·
Digging, chewing and scratching at doors
or windows in an attempt to escape and reunite with their owners.
·
Howling, barking and crying in an
attempt to get their owner to return.
·
Urination and defecation (even with
housetrained dogs) as a result of distress.
Why
Do Dogs Suffer From Separation Anxiety?
We
don’t fully understand exactly why some dogs suffer from separation anxiety
and, under similar circumstances, others don’t. It’s important to realize,
however, that the destruction and house soiling that often occur with
separation anxiety are not the dog’s attempt to punish or seek revenge on his
owner for leaving him alone, but are actually part of a panic response. Separation
anxiety sometimes occurs when:
·
A dog has never or rarely been left
alone.
·
Following a long interval, such as a
vacation, during which the owner and* dog are constantly together.
·
After a traumatic event (from the dog’s
point of view) such as a period of time spent at a shelter or boarding kennel.
·
After a change in the family’s routine
or structure (a child leaving for college, a change in work schedule, a move to
a new home, a new pet or person in the home).
How
Do I Know If My Dog Has Separation Anxiety?
Because
there are many reasons for the behaviors associated with separation anxiety,
it’s essential to correctly diagnose the reason for the behavior before
proceeding with treatment. If most, or all, of the following statements are
true about your dog, he may have a separation anxiety problem:
·
The behavior occurs exclusively or
primarily when he’s left alone.
·
The behavior always occurs
when he’s left alone, whether for a short or long period of time.
·
He follows you from room to room
whenever you’re home.
·
He reacts with excitement, depression or
anxiety to your preparations to leave the house.
·
He displays effusive, frantic greeting
behaviors. ! He dislikes
spending time outdoors by himself.
What
To Do If Your Dog Has Separation Anxiety
For
a minor separation anxiety problem, the following techniques may be helpful by
themselves. For more severe problems, these techniques should be used along
with the desensitization process described in the next section.
·
Keep arrivals and departures low-key.
For example, when you arrive home, ignore your dog for the first few minutes, then
calmly pet him.
·
Leave your dog with an article of
clothing that smells like you, an old tee shirt that you’ve slept in recently,
for example.
·
Establish a “safety cue”--a word or
action that you use every time you leave that tells your dog
you’ll be back. Dogs usually learn to associate certain cues with short
absences by their owners. For example, when you take out the garbage, your dog
knows you come right back and doesn't become anxious. Therefore, it’s helpful
to associate a safety cue with your practice departures and short-duration
absences.
·
Some examples of safety cues are: a
playing radio; a playing television; a bone; or a toy (one that doesn’t have dangerous
fillings and can’t be torn into pieces). Use your safety cue during practice
sessions, but don’t present your dog with the safety cue when you leave for a
period of time longer than he can tolerate or the value of the safety cue will
be lost. Leaving a radio on to provide company for your dog isn’t particularly
useful by itself, but a playing radio may work if you’ve used it consistently
as a safety cue in your practice sessions. If your dog engages in destructive chewing
as part of his separation distress, offering him a chewing item as a safety cue
is a good idea. Very hard rubber toys that can be stuffed with treats and
Nylabone-like products are good choices.
Desensitization
Techniques For More Severe Cases Of Separation Anxiety
The
primary treatment for more severe cases of separation anxiety is a systematic
process of getting your dog used to being alone. You must teach your dog to
remain calm during “practice” departures and short absences. We recommend the following
procedure:
·
Begin by engaging in your normal
departure activities (getting your keys, putting on your coat), then sit back
down. Repeat this step until your dog shows no distress in response to your
activities.
·
Next, engage in your normal departure
activities and go to the door and open it, then sit back down.
·
Next, step outside the door, leaving the
door open, then return.
·
Finally, step outside, close the door,
then immediately return. Slowly get your dog accustomed to being alone with
the door closed between you for several seconds.
·
Proceed very gradually from step to
step, repeating each step until your dog shows no signs of distress (the number
of repetitions will vary depending on the severity of the problem). If at any
time in this process your actions produce an anxiety response in your dog,
you’ve proceeded too fast. Return to an earlier step in the process and
practice this step until the dog shows no distress response, then proceed to
the next step.
·
When your dog is tolerating your being
on the other side of the door for several seconds, begin short-duration absences.
This step involves giving the dog a verbal cue (for example, "I’ll be
back.'), leaving and then returning within a minute. Your return must be
low-key: either ignore your dog or greet him quietly and calmly. If he shows no
signs of distress, repeat the exercise. If he appears anxious, wait until he
relaxes to repeat the exercise. Gradually increase the length of time you’re
gone.
·
Practice as many absences as possible
that last less than ten minutes. You can do many departures within one session if
your dog relaxes sufficiently between departures. You should also scatter
practice departures and short-duration absences throughout the day.
·
Once your dog can handle short absences
(30 to 90 minutes), he’ll usually be able to handle longer intervals alone and you
won’t have to work up to all-day absences minute by minute. The hard part is at
the beginning, but the job gets easier as you go along. Nevertheless, you must
go slowly at first. How long it takes to condition your dog to being alone
depends on the severity of his problem.
Teaching
The Sit-Stay And Down-Stay
Practice
sit-stay or down-stay exercises using positive reinforcement. Never punish your
dog during these training sessions. Gradually increase the distance you move
away from your dog. Your goal is to be able to move briefly out of your dog's sight
while he remains in the “stay” position. The point is to teach him that he can
remain calmly and happily in one place while you go to another. As you
progress, you can do this during the course of your normal daily activities.
For example, if you’re watching television with your dog by your side and you
get up for a snack, tell him to stay, and leave the room. When you come back,
give him a treat or quietly praise him.
Interim
Solutions
Because
the above-described treatments can take a while, and because a dog with
separation anxiety can do serious damage to himself and/or your home in the
interim, some of the following suggestions may be helpful in dealing with the problems
in the short term:
·
Consult your veterinarian about the
possibility of drug therapy. A good anti-anxiety drug should not sedate your
dog, but simply reduce his anxiety while you’re gone. Such medication is a
temporary measure and should be used in conjunction with behavior modification
techniques.
·
Take your dog to a dog day care facility
or boarding kennel.
·
Leave your dog with a friend, family
member or neighbor.
·
Take your dog to work with you, even for
half a day, if possible.
What
Won’t Help A Separation Anxiety Problem
·
Punishment is not an effective way to
treat separation anxiety. In fact, if you punish your dog after you return home
it may actually increase his separation anxiety.
·
Getting another pet. This usually
doesn’t help an anxious dog as his anxiety is the result of his separation from
you, his person, not merely the result of being alone.
·
Crating your dog. Your dog will still
engage in anxiety responses in the crate. He may urinate, defecate, howl or
even injure himself in an attempt to escape from the crate.
·
Leave the radio on (unless the radio is
used as a “safety cue” - see above).
·
Obedience school. While obedience
training is always a good idea, it won’t directly help a separation anxiety problem.
Separation anxiety is not the result of disobedience or lack of training, it’s
a panic response.