This is a subject I’ve been asked much about, so I’d like to address it here.
Separation anxiety is caused in dogs for several reasons, most of which involve human error. Dogs that panic when they are left alone can exhibit destructive behavior to themselves (licking, biting, stress, etc) as well as destructive behavior to their environment. Dogs that are over-babied, coddled, an/or given more love then structure are prime candidates for separation anxiety. Bottom line is if you make it a big deal that you are leaving, it will be a big deal to your dog. The reason dogs panic when they are left alone is because one of three reasons: 1. they feel that bad things will happen if they are alone, 2. they are dominant and don’t want to be left alone or 3. they feel they are made to feel its a big deal to be left alone.
Many people have a ritual of leaving the house and baby talking to their dogs, “Mommy’s leaving now, but don’t worry baby, she’ll be back.” As they are walking to the door, a slight look from the door brings the human down to their knees to pat the dog, kiss him, hold him and all the while baby talking. Dogs who are treated like this panic when they are alone because they lack structure. The do not know what its like to be alone and act out. I strongly suggest not making any issue of leaving a dog alone. I start out leaving them alone to go and check my mailbox, then I work up to longer and longer times. Doing spontaneous periods of time, sometimes 5 minutes, then 20 minutes, then 8 minutes…. mix it up.
There are several pieces of advice here.
1. Don’t make it a big deal when you leave – just leave.
2. Don’t make it a big deal when you come back – just come back in.
3. Leave the dog something to occupy his time – there are plenty of toys you can hide treats in, toys that are safe can be left with them.
4. Leave some music on.
5. Contain the dog in a smaller area. Dogs are den animals, they will not see it as a bad thing. Too much freedom can overwhelm a dog.
If your dog starts acting up before you leave, do not scold him and then leave. You should leave on good terms. It is NEVER a good idea to yell at your dog. Yelling is a human characteristic that does not fair well with dogs. Yelling at a dog only makes the condition worse. To get the message through to a dog, you need to be firm and calm.
Training your dog to be alone for periods of time will be a valuable lesson for him. Dogs are pack animals and function best in groups, with dogs or humans, however dogs that have major behavioral or emotional issues from being left alone need to be addressed. Do your dog a favor and make it ok in your dogs mind to be alone. Once they learn that being alone is not a bad thing they will be stronger happier and more stable beings.