Separation anxiety


elder1991

New Member
Hello. I have had my miniature dachshund for 10 months now and he has just turned 1. He is absolutely no bother when we’re with him but when we’re not, his separation anxiety is REALLY BAD. We have him in a crate (if we don’t he chews the doors) we’ve done toys, smothering them with peanut butter, putting biscuits in, the smelly plug in thing, music, covering the crate with a blanket. I’m moving into my new house and I’m very anxious about my new neighbours.
Help!?
 

Doxie-Tees

New Member
Hi - I had a mini with the same problem several years ago. You may want to try a thunder shirt (makes them feel like they are being hugged), or putting a soft water bottle filled with warm water in the doggie bed (second best thing to a warm body). I would always leave classical music on low volume when I had to leave. That all helps, but really, he probably needs a companion dog which is what I eventually did, so I ended up with two minis who got along very well together. Ultimately, dogs are pack animals and 1 is not a pack. Good luck
 

LittleRoo

New Member
Hi I’m new here!
I also have a pup who has separation anxiety-I can’t leave her! And now we are all on lockdown coz of Clovid-19 it’s not gonna help!!!
 

Bamboozle

New Member
Hi I’m new here!
I also have a pup who has separation anxiety-I can’t leave her! And now we are all on lockdown coz of Clovid-19 it’s not gonna help!!!
I also have a new puppy who is a bit shy to begin and now since lockdown we can't go anywhere for socialization. It's a problem for us too!
 

dogperson

New Member
Hi, I'm new to this forum, but I'd like to share my experience with my standard dachshund. He showed signs of separation anxiety since I got him - he was 8 weeks old and cried when we were out of sight. I was able to train him myself up to a point, but then I needed professional help. I went through three trainers who could not help him unti I finally found a veterinary behaviorist. I strongly recommend to seek out the help one in your area. My dog's case was moderate - he was able to eat when alone but would vocalize (bark and howl) when he was done with the kong in less than 10 min. Dogs with more severe cases won't even eat when alone. My dog only started to improve when he was prescribed medication (anti-anxiety medication which is only given a couple of hours before he is left alone, and he is slowly being weaned off it as he improves). This and a specific protocol allowed me to leave him alone for up to 7 hours. For him, the protocol involved the following:
- making sure he had a stable and enriched routine meeting his basic needs (avoiding under or over stimulation)
- medication 1-2 hours before I left him alone
- some people really benefit from using the Adaptil diffuser (it needs to be on all the time, not just when they're alone) and also thundershirts
- before I left, I took out a specific mat and two or three special toys he would only get when left alone (it is vital that these objects are ONLY available when the dog is to be left alone - otherwise they do not work as a positive discrimination stimulus)
- in the first weeks of training, I would play with him on the mat with these toys for about 10 mins - this is how you start buiding a strong positive association with these objects - they will start working like a child's special blankie and give the dog comfort when alone
- then I would give him a kong, chew and/or food puzzles and turn on a automatic treat dispenser before I left
- I gradually built up the time that I would be away from him, monitoring his behavior with a remote camera - this is vital, because you don't want to go too fast and have your dog start panicking. If so, the whole procedure will turn into a negative trigger for anxiety - we want the mat, toys and everything else to have a positive association so that the dog will learn what being alone can be fun! Be patient - at first he may only be able to handle being 2 minutes alone. My dog was like that.
- at first the automatic treat dispenser dispensed food in short intervals which I gradually increased (at first every 5 min, then every 10, 20, 40 etc). This is what will keep your dog motivated to remain calm after he's done with the kong/food puzzles/chews.
- when he was able to stay alone for 4 hours without any problems, it was easy to go up to 5, 6 and 7 hours.
- that's when we started to wean him off the medication (halving the dosage progressively)

Quarantine, however, really screwed things up for us, and we will have to go back to training when things start opening up again. However, he has not lost what he has already learned. When I get ready to leave on my own, he doesn't panic anymore - he goes straight to the cupboard where I keep his mat and special toys and will wait excitedly for me to go through the routine. Every dog will need ajustments due to individualities, so I highly recommend getting in touch with a vet behaviorist. Separation anxiety is one of the hardest behaviors to treat, but you will get there with persistence, patience, consistency, and the right professional to guide and support you!
 
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