Separation Anxiety

[poochmad]

A bit of background.

We purchased Henschke at 8 weeks of age from a breeder who had the two pups (he is only from a litter of two) and who kept the pups in a pen at the back of the yard, where they could carry on to their heart's content.

When we first got Henschke, we had a problem with him from the beginning and that was that as soon as he was put in the puppy pen, he howled, non-stop for hours on end...even though we were standing right next to him!

To stop this, we had a behavourist come out who helped us with fixing the problem. He was not surprised when I told him that Henschke was only one of two and commented that the dogs he helps with separation anxiety are usually from a single or two dog litter.

When I told the trainer that Henschke was only staying inside for 4 weeks until he was a bit bigger before being given access to the back yard, the trainer strongly suggested that we don't put him out in the yard until he was 6 months old. The reason being, is that he said that a number of dogs were stolen in our area...

After that, we were paranoid about him and watched him a lot. Too much, in hindsight. He was kept indoors until he got too big for the puppy pen and well, basically our problems with him started from the very beginning.

Anyway, hubby and I both now recognise and agree that through our actions we now have a dog that stresses when we're not near him. Especially with me. We have followed advice given here on DOL and each time we have changed our behaviour, it has worked. (Although he tends to go three steps forward, one step back.)

Through DOL advice, we have done and still do the following:

• Allowing him access to inside/outside, through a doggy door.
  
• Giving him a frozen kong stuffed with chicken.
  
• Giving him a sand pit with hidden treats.
  
• Hiding treats around the yard.
  
• Giving him stimulus toys to occupy him (biscuit cube, home alone toy, everlasting treat ball).
  
• Rotating his toys.
  
• Walking calmly out the front door with confidence.
  
• Ignoring him in the morning and when we return until he calms down.
  

The above has been modified to suit his behaviour. For example, we would make the mistake thinking all was well, give him a little too much attention in the morning and then come home to find he'd been stressed by the way things had been strewn around or that his bed had been chewed.

After that, we looked at our behaviour and then change it by ignoring him in the morning and giving him little pats at night.

Recently, all seemed to be well, even though some days we came home to find he had been stressed (by the evidence we had previously identified by the state of the house and the discussion from the neighbours. The days he was good, the house was fine, the days that he stressed, he was noisy and the house had suffered), our neighbour was telling us that all was quiet.

Recently we had work done on our house and hubby took Henschke to work with him. That started a new behaviour, scratching on the back of the front door. It's so bad now that he's taken a lot of the paint off the door and there are big gouge marks down the door frame and wall. We don't look at that as 'bad dog', we look at that, and think, 'poor dog'. He never, ever, gets in trouble for any damage he does. We know that it's only stress that is causing him to act out and if he was punished (not that you could unless you were there), it would only stress him out more.

We have started assessing what type of day he has by the damage to the front door. Scratch marks and dirt meant he'd had a hard day.

On Friday night we made a big mistake. We went out at night time but didn't follow the routine we had created, which left our dog nice and calm. Hubby had forgotten to close the upstairs bedroom door and because we had people waiting, rushed out the door.

The result was that Henschke starting barking (in a distressed state) and didn't stop barking until we got home...three hours later.

We were hoping it was just a night thing so on the Saturday we went out for an hour and when we came home he heard us and started barking and the door had been damaged.

That day we had to take him to the vet for a medical follow up and ended up telling the vet what was happening. Surprisingly, he was very good about it and told us that separation anxiety is very serious and that he had actually put dogs down that ended up turning on themselves or other pets.

He gave us a training pamphlet which basically details what we have been practicing above. The only difference is that the preferred method is to not leave the dog at all so that you aren't putting the dog in a distressed state. The idea is to build up the time the dog is apart so it doesn't become distressed and so it can get calm through a controlled departure schedule.

The other option he gave us is to use medication which would inhibit the anxiety felt in our dog and at the same time following the new training procedure. This he suggested be given as a last resort.

Due to us not being able to not have him at home alone or to take him to work, the desensitising is the best we can do.

So, after a bit more research here on DOL, we decided to remove our focus on the dog and mould him into being more independent. As well as the previous actions, we are now done/doing the following:

• moved his bed away from near husband in loungeroom to an area by himself (is around the corner out of site).
  
• not allowing him access to me when I'm in the bathroom, in the study or in the kitchen - all doors are shut.
  
• periodically, throughout the day and night, going through the process as though going out (picking up car keys, picking up bag, going to front door), then returning to whatever doing, all the while ignoring the dog.
  
• Periodically, both night and day, going out the front door, waiting while Henschke's quiet (if he scratches, wait until he stops for a while) before going inside and ignoring the dog.
  
• No talking to the dog.
  
• Reducing affection. Only giving a brief pat when dog called and instructed to sit.
  
• walking him twice a day - 20 mins in morning, 40 mins at night.
  
• moved his feeding out of kitchen (used to eat with me) to where his bed is.
  
• allowed him access to one of the front rooms (devoid of all things that can be chewed) so he can see outside (as he loves to people watch)
  

He seems to be getting a bit better in that he's not scratching at doors when I close them and after a little while (we ignoring him), he goes to his bed.

My mother has been listening outside the house and has reported all is quiet until 5.30pm, when it's getting dark. So to counter this, we left the outside light on as we figure that he may be crying then as he's waiting for us to come home.

Is there anything else we can do or should be doing to ensure our dog stops stressing when we're not there?

Will we have to treat him like this for the rest of his life, or are there only some aspects we will need to follow so that he doesn't get overly attached again?

Note: we have decided to get another dog, but only when we have this problem 'licked' as I don't want to take the risk the pup developing the same anxiety if it copies our dog. Also, I don't believe another dog would stop it, as it's not dogs that he's focused on, it's us.

[Cosmolo]

Can you just clarify- no talking to the dog and reducing affection? Do you mean no talking in certain situations or at all? Have you done any obediece training with him? While obedience is not a cure all, it can help in cases of anxiety. Have you spoken to the behaviourist again since the behaviour intensified? I would consider some Behave or tranquil paste or petark calm suppplement to assist you rather than medication.

I see many dogs with separation anxiety and haven't noticed a correlation between SA and single or 2 dog litter. Curious if other trainers here have?

[poodlefan]

Poochmad, I know how hard you've worked on this issue with Henschke. It must be very disheartening to see one lapse in routine cause so much distress.

I firmly believe that you are at the stage where you need help from a qualified veterinary behaviouralist, especially if drugs are being suggested. I don't think that's a bad thing but you need someone qualified to assess the situation before you go that route IMO. I'm pretty sure at least one Sydney veterinary behavioralist has a clinic in Canberra - you may be able to book a consult for them on the way through.

Obedience training and more exercise cannot hurt this situation and may help. I think Henschke would benefit from a focus in his life other than you and your OH.

[poochmad]

Can you just clarify- no talking to the dog and reducing affection? Do you mean no talking in certain situations or at all? Have you done any obediece training with him? While obedience is not a cure all, it can help in cases of anxiety. Have you spoken to the behaviourist again since the behaviour intensified? I would consider some Behave or tranquil paste or petark calm suppplement to assist you rather than medication.

Before we talked to him all the time...like he was a child. We believe that this is definitely a huge problem, we treated him like a kid instead of a dog.

So. Everywhere we were, he was too. When he was outside nosing around, we were outside. When we were watching telly, he was either playing with us, sleeping on the couch or in his bed. Constantly around us. All the time.

The no talking is not having conversations with him, like this:

'So Henschke pants, how are you today? Did you have a good day? Did you like your dinner? What did you do?' Don't laugh, it's true. Hubby was the biggest chatterbox out of the both of us.

Now, we don't have conversations with the dog.

Instead, we talk about him, just not to him.

I have done obedience training with him. He can sit, drop, stay, inside, outside, wait, give. He's very, very good. I was planning on doing more training, but we are showing him and training is an hour away. That, plus travelling every day for an hour each way, plus the showing (travelling up to 3 hours each way at a time), gets a bit much for everyone, including the dog. Also, he was sitting down every time hubby stopped in the ring and was getting confused. So we decided to stop with the training and focus on the showing until he was older.

With regards to the reduction of affection, he was getting constant attention, lots of cuddles, belly rubs, ear scratchings, etc. Whenever he came near us, he'd get attention. All the time.

We're just trying to 'ween' him off us so we're not his 'be and all'.

[fbaudry]

Poochmad, I know how hard you've worked on this issue with Henschke. It must be very disheartening to see one lapse in routine cause so much distress.

I firmly believe that you are at the stage where you need help from a qualified veterinary behaviouralist, especially if drugs are being suggested. I don't think that's a bad thing but you need someone qualified to assess the situation before you go that route IMO. I'm pretty sure at least one Sydney veterinary behavioralist has a clinic in Canberra - you may be able to book a consult for them on the way through.

Obedience training and more exercise cannot hurt this situation and may help. I think Henschke would benefit from a focus in his life other than you and your OH.

Poochmad, I feel for you, even more so because I am going through a similar (sort of) situation with Archie... He is hyper reactive and very anxious too (even though this manifests itself not through barking but excessive pacing, turning into spinning). We have had a routine in place since we got him fairly similar to yours, with more exercise though (which he can never seem to get enough of) and a couple of "training" sessions a day. The other difference is that he doesnt have access inside/outside.

Since seemed to be getting a little bit better but have gone backwards since daylight savings... I now get home after dark and this seems to be really unnerving to Archie and he is besides himself when I get home.

I had to seek the help of a behaviourist vet and he is now on medication... I waited a long while before actually starting the medicine because for some irrational reason I felt bad about it, thought it was a last resort thing and was afraid it might turn him into a zombie or drastically alter his personality.

No such thing in reality (I sometimes wish it would make him a bit quieter!), he is still the same dog but I believe it helps a bit, both in every day situations and with him being on his own. We are far from being perfect but I believe there is hope at the end of the tunnel.

I guess he will always retain an element of anxiety/hyperactivity, that's part of his make up, but I think we can work on modifying it and reducing it to more acceptable levels.

Poodlefan, what do you mean by the dog having a focus in life other than his owner? I do like the fact that spaniels are close to their owners, and when you're away from them all day you don't necessarily want them to be away from you when you are home.

I should add that Archie is rarely on his own, but with Olaf, my other really balanced and placid cocker, but he doesn't seem to feed off Olaf's energy. So getting another dog is not necessarily going to cure the problem.

Sorry, I am not helping but just wanted to let you know you are not alone...

PS has anyone experienced a similar issue at night time?

If we go out on a week-end night, Archie is fine if left inside (either free run of the house, or confined to the bathroom) but will fret if left outside (which is his everyday "territory")

[poodlefan]

Poodlefan, what do you mean by the dog having a focus in life other than his owner? I do like the fact that spaniels are close to their owners, and when you're away from them all day you don't necessarily want them to be away from you when you are home.

Something the dog enjoys and finds stimulating but that is not directly related to the presence of the owner. Agility would be one thing I'd look at... self rewarding, energy intensive and confidence building.

There is a balance to be struck between having a dog that is close to you and one that is excessively bonded. Again, socialisation - exposure to a wider range of people, to dogs and to enriching experiences - gives a dog more in its life than its owners. I think its healthier for an owner to be an important part of their pet's life, not their whole life. That's more challenging with some dogs than others.

[poochmad]

Poodlefan, what do you mean by the dog having a focus in life other than his owner? I do like the fact that spaniels are close to their owners, and when you're away from them all day you don't necessarily want them to be away from you when you are home.

Something the dog enjoys and finds stimulating but that is not directly related to the presence of the owner. Agility would be one thing I'd look at... self rewarding, energy intensive and confidence building.

There is a balance to be struck between having a dog that is close to you and one that is excessively bonded. Again, socialisation - exposure to a wider range of people, to dogs and to enriching experiences - gives a dog more in its life than its owners. I think its healthier for an owner to be an important part of their pet's life, not their whole life. That's more challenging with some dogs than others.

Completely agree with this - not being 'the whole life' to Henschke. This is definitely what has happened with him. We are too much of a stimulus, hence why we have been stepping back.

The breed is naturally independent, so I'm hoping with our change in the way we interact with him, we'll be able to 'tap' into his independence so he can be more happy on his own.

Agree also with fbaudry, it appears as though he is starting to show stress as it gets darker. My mother has just reported in, that all was quiet when she checked. (She stands outside the house. If he's at the front door upset, he will be scratching and whining.)

[Kavik]

You don't have to go to classes to train him Most training is done at home anyway, classes are only to show you how to do it, so you can get help with any problems and to have distractions.

Also doesn't have to be anything formal - tricks are lots of fun

[poochmad]

Poochmad, I know how hard you've worked on this issue with Henschke. It must be very disheartening to see one lapse in routine cause so much distress.

I firmly believe that you are at the stage where you need help from a qualified veterinary behaviouralist, especially if drugs are being suggested. I don't think that's a bad thing but you need someone qualified to assess the situation before you go that route IMO. I'm pretty sure at least one Sydney veterinary behavioralist has a clinic in Canberra - you may be able to book a consult for them on the way through.

Our vet advised that there are two ways to 'cure' the problem. One was using medication and the other was without medication. He did say that the medication should only be used as a last resort and must be used in conjunction with the behaviour modification. (Which is very similar to what is listed here by members of DOL...)

I would be interested in having a chat with a veterinary behavioralist and have done a search, but can't seem to find anyone...do you have any recommendations? Or be able to advise where I need to look?

[poodlefan]

Dr Kirsty Seksel, who works out of the Sydney Animal Behaviour Centre has a very good reputation.

[Cosmolo]

If anyone could find Dr Seksel's notes from the International Animal Welfare Conference- you may want to read these before seeing her, especially if you work full time.

I would look at the natural supplements i mentioned before medication as well as seeing a behaviour specialist.

[poochmad]

Dr Kirsty Seksel, who works out of the Sydney Animal Behaviour Centre has a very good reputation.

Thanks for that. I had a look, but at $595, I can't afford that.

[poochmad]

If anyone could find Dr Seksel's notes from the International Animal Welfare Conference- you may want to read these before seeing her, especially if you work full time.

I would look at the natural supplements i mentioned before medication as well as seeing a behaviour specialist.

That would be good, thank you. I understand there is also a good book I can purchase as well (the name escapes me at the moment).

Regarding the meds, I didn't know what they were...but will look at them. What do they do and where can I get them?

[Cosmolo]

IMO any of those products with some (not all) dogs assist in taking the 'edge off' while other behaviour modification techniques are taking place. You should be able to get them from most pet supply, stockfeed stores or online www.naturevet.com.au I have pm'd you too

[poochmad]

IMO any of those products with some (not all) dogs assist in taking the 'edge off' while other behaviour modification techniques are taking place. You should be able to get them from most pet supply, stockfeed stores or online www.naturevet.com.au I have pm'd you too

Thank you.

[fbaudry]

If anyone could find Dr Seksel's notes from the International Animal Welfare Conference- you may want to read these before seeing her, especially if you work full time.

I would look at the natural supplements i mentioned before medication as well as seeing a behaviour specialist.

That would be good, thank you. I understand there is also a good book I can purchase as well (the name escapes me at the moment).

Regarding the meds, I didn't know what they were...but will look at them. What do they do and where can I get them?

She is the lady I have been seeing with Archie... I'd be very interested in getting hold of these notes (and the book you mentionned) if someone has them handy somewhere

As you said, it is a combination of medicine + behavioural exercises therapy that will help; I do not believe medication alone would achieve long term improvements. Prior to going on these prescription medication (which is basically a generic form of prozac), i tried Bach Flower Remedy and PetArk Calm (http://www.petark.com.au/) but to be honest I didn't notice the slightest change.

But again each individual is different and reacts differently, and they might help Henschke, so they're probably worth a try.

Poodlefan, I understand your point. At the same time I was wondering is something like Agility not something that would increase the bond between dog and handler (team work / dog needing leadership etc) and therefore being seen by the dog as rewarding because it is happening with his owner?

This is something I wanted to do with Archie (before I got him) but that's been put on hold for now as I am trying to work on his hyper-reactivity towards other dogs. Yup, problems come in bundles in this little dog Trying to put into practice Click to calm (Emma Parson's book) with mixed results because I am such a crappy dog owner

[Cosmolo]

Sorry, i have just checked the website where the notes would have been available and they ahve every speaker but her. They aren't training notes- more about her (less than favourable) thoughts on having a dog and working full time.

[poodlefan]

Fbaurdry:

Poodlefan, I understand your point. At the same time I was wondering is something like Agility not something that would increase the bond between dog and handler (team work / dog needing leadership etc) and therefore being seen by the dog as rewarding because it is happening with his owner?

It certainly develops a bond.. but does require the dog to work away from the owner, developing self confidence as it masters new challenges. IMO also provides significant mental and physical stimulation.. an important outlet for dogs who spend significant parts of their lives alone.

I'd call it part of a process of encrichment, rather than a universal cure but I think many dogs need some kind of 'job' to satisfy their mental and physical needs. The dog must heed the handlers directions, but complete the course itself.

[Miranda]

The breed is naturally independent, so I'm hoping with our change in the way we interact with him, we'll be able to 'tap' into his independence so he can be more happy on his own.

Poochmad I know your breed standard states that the breed is independent, but I think you'll find that when the standard was originally written they meant to imply that the breed is independent in the field ie. able to work independently of its master. The American standard also says 'with a great affinity for human companionship' probably in an effort to avoid that precise misconception. I don't think 'independent' means that they're a dog that adapts well to being alone.

[poochmad]

The breed is naturally independent, so I'm hoping with our change in the way we interact with him, we'll be able to 'tap' into his independence so he can be more happy on his own.

Poochmad I know your breed standard states that the breed is independent, but I think you'll find that when the standard was originally written they meant to imply that the breed is independent in the field ie. able to work independently of its master. The American standard also says 'with a great affinity for human companionship' probably in an effort to avoid that precise misconception. I don't think 'independent' means that they're a dog that adapts well to being alone.

Oh. I wondered about that. That was one of the reasons I picked the breed as I thought they had a similar indepedence like a Basset Hound, etc.