Seperation Anxiety

[Acacia]

Hi all,

On sunday I picked up our new boy from his breeder, the breeder got him back from the original owners and he was rehomed to me. We are not sure on exactly what went on but he was badly matted and he is still very thin, his spine, hip bones and ribs stick out a lot and I think he didn't get much human contact either, he didn't know how to sit or anything like that, but the breeder taught him a few things and a bit of manners in the few weeks he was with her. He has no manners when greeting other dogs, he just wants to bounce right up to them. I don't think he has met many dogs in his life time, but he learns very quickly. All off these things we are working on and it is going very well so far.

He has been fully checked over by the vet and all blood results came back ok. He is 81.5cm at the withers and only 48kg.

I just want a little advice on dealing with what I think may be seperation anxiety. He doesn't wee or destroy things, but he does whine and even howl when he is left alone, even for very short periods when I am in the next room. He does not like to be confined in a laundry or other small room either. He is fine outside, but when inside he wants to be by your side at all times.

I am a stay at home mum so I am home most of the time. Everytime I leave the room to change a nappy, eat etc when he starts whining I don't go back in the room until he has stopped, and when I do go back in I don't look at him for a while. It seems to be working a little, we have only had him for a short time and the house is still unsettled with the other dogs etc. so I am expecting he will feel a little more relaxed being alone inside as time goes on and he realises he isn't going to be left forever, again. I want to make sure I am doing the right thing to begin with though.

I let him sleep outside as that is where he seems happiest to be alone as he just sleep and doesn't make a sound. I would prefer him to sleep indoors and I am hoping we will get there eventually. When it is wet outside I let him sleep on our floor in our room as we don't have a dog house big enough for him yet, and I doubt he would use it if we did anyway.

Other than the above he is just a beautiful boy and he wins everyone over in seconds, even people who don't really like dogs.

Any tips on dealing with this? Anything I could be doing differently? Should I ignore his cries for long periods of time or work on it more slowly and gradually increase the time away? He is even worse when my OH leaves the room as he has become attached to him the most, he will even cry for him while I am still in the room.

Here he is:

[SkySoaringMagpie]

Sounds like you're doing the right things to me. I think it's good to be gradual where you can - you already know the main thing to do, which is not to reward the whining. I would increase the amount of time you're away slowly now while you can, so that when you do have to be away a while it's not a huge deal. Also, chuck a bit of variance in so that sometimes you come back quickly.

If he's not destroying stuff, pasting poo all over his crate or injuring himself, a bit of whining is not too bad. I'm sure if you continue to refuse to reward it, he'll knock it off.

The other important element is to reward the things you do want to see. So if he's sitting quietly, reward him with something he likes.

[TangerineDream]

I've found that wndering in and out of the room without paying any attention to them can work well - in a way it desensitises them to you leaving when you do it over a period - I have to do the same thing with Tango and the front door......still working on not having him spin in circles and bark for 5 minutes if I walk out the front door, so I walk towards, then back, then towards (closer) and back, then touch door handle then back, then towards then back, then open door, shut door, do something else, then towards door and back, etc etc ad infinitum, till they lose their 'reaction'.

Lots of luck...