Speration Anxiety

[mumtoshelley]

Hi I think my Shelley has got speration anxiety when she shes me grab my bag she gets all anxious pacing back and forth from door to door. Same goes when she sees me putting on my shoes. She follows my every move. Also when we come home we come home to a hole been dug, Where not sure if the hole is from her or from my aunties dog who also digs. Shelley has been like this since the day i got her at 14 weeks old. Shelley also almost got stolen from me within a few days of bring her home. I don't know what is causing her speration anxiety she gets plenty of attention maybe not 24/7 but she gets enough. She sees us all the time and some one is always around her when we are home. She gets about 40 t0 hour and half of exercise a day mostly all offlead runing and swimming. She is very obedient in everyother way. She did go to obedience and is going back this monday. There are no behaviourists here were i am and i can't really afford one either. I thought she would out grow this as of the time i spent with her playing,training and patting her.

[aussielover]

It sounds like mild separation anxiety. Digging a hole may have a number of causes, and as you said, you dont know which dog dug it.

Do you leave her with plenty of interactive toys such as kongs, treat balls etc.

How long do you normally leave her for?

Start leaving her for very short periods (eg. 5 minutes at a time) and leave her with something really fun/yummy. You could even start by just leaving her in a separate room for a few minutes.

Don't fuss over her when you leave or when you arrive back.

My dog follows me wherever I go, she would even follow me into the bathroom/shower etc. Most days she is not left on her own, but sometimes I have to do stuff without her (like have a life :D) and she never fusses. She usually sleeps- I always make sure I have done a big play and training session or walk with her before I leave so she is tired.

I leave her with toys, and a treat ball or kong.

Sometimes she rips the leaves off my trees and bushes, but I think this is fun for her, rather than separation anxiety. I think it is funny, as i dont really like the bushes anyway lol.

Dogs with severe separation anxiety would destroy your home or backyard due to the stress.

[SparkyTansy]

Do not talk to her/eye contact/attention for at least 5-10 minutes before you leave. Ignore her when she is anxious when you are puttin on your shoes etc. By correcting her you are rewarding the behaviour by giving it your attention.

When you arrive home, same thing. Wait until she is calm before you address her. This may take a few minutes or it may take half an hour. come in and go and get changed, or make a cuppa - just pretend she isn't there.

when you give her attention never give it to her if she comes up to you. ignore her until she leaves you alone and then call her over when you are ready. if she doesn't come over when you call her, and meanders over later, do not give her attention. If you give her your attention when you ask for it, you can give her as much or as little as you want. When you have finished giving her attention, make sure you end the affection, do not let her decide when she has had enough.

She needs to understand that you are allowed to come and go as you please and that you decide whether she comes with you or not.

[mumtoshelley]

thatsthe thing i can't give Shelley a kong filled with food cause of my aunties jack russell cross fox terrier. Also the same with toys as my auntie dog chews them all up in tiny little pieces. The leaving the kong filled with food won't work cause Shelley and my aunties dog Lady fight when food is involved. They already had a fight over a bone lady didn't want and Shelley ended up grabbing her dog and leaving a wound on ladys cheek. When were not home the dogs are outside. At most were normally only gone for an hour,Some days could be longer. The anxiety only happens if were all not home shes completely fine if someone is home.

[Max#1]

I agree with Aussielover - it doesn't seem too severe. I think owner's have the separation anxiety half the time! I know I do! We have a routine when leaving Max that he always gets a kong stuffed with something yummy when we go out, and something else to chew on. I'm often a bit miffed when we do leave him, and I peak out of the curtain and he's completely happy bouncing his kong around. Growing up we had dogs with separation anxiety. We caused it - we'd make a big fuss when leaving them, saying goodbye, then another big fuss when we got home. Knowing how awful this was for us and them, I made a point of making sure Max was okay to be left. No attention before leaving, no big deal when we get home - even if its against all your instincts!

[Erny]

I tend to separate these sorts of behaviours into two terms. Separation Anxiety and Separation Related Behaviour.

Separation Anxiety is over diagnosed, IMO. Probably because of its label, people think that any stress by their dogs when they leave is separation anxiety. But it's not necessarily. Separation Anxiety is a very complex neurological disorder where the dog believes that without that particular person (or dog or whichever other animal .... but usually it is 'person') being present it is not capable of functioning.

Then there are other behaviours that are related to being separated. I refer to these as "Separation Related Behaviours". These can be behaviours that are learnt and along the way become ingrained. Cause and effect, if you will. And often it is inadvertent reinforcement by owners, perhaps coupled with not teaching their dog about denied access or that being alone is ok. But with these behaviours they are less likely to be about a particular person. With many dogs it is about being alone and provided the dog is with someone it knows (or even just someone, for some dogs) then it's ok or not so bad. (Note that it is not always the owner at fault - some dogs are predisposed to being anxious/nervy in general and this can often become worse when they are alone. In those cases it is a matter of working so the dog can be the best it can be.)

The way we address Separation Related Behaviours is often the same or similar to how we might approach Separation Anxiety but the latter is generally more difficult to overcome.

One of the first things you can do that even though I've not met your dog should cause no harm, is to randomise what you do. Shelley is responding to what she has learnt are pre-cursors to you leaving. Many and most dogs do this, but some do it to extreme and it is with these we want to make it more difficult for them to recognise it as a stress trigger.

Also, making it so that she can occupy her mind against her fears of being alone can assist. A bone before you leave. Treasure hunt to keep her busy after you've gone and so forth. Finding something/somewhere where she feels as comfortable and as safe as possible to rest is also always a bonus (eg. a crate covered by a blanket).

Leaving the TV or radio on can help some dogs as well. But don't only turn the radio on when you are leaving. Have it on sometimes when you are home as well.

More than this and you may be better off to consult with a professional about it - this person would be able to meet you and your dog and assess the relationship and situation.

"Plenty of Attention" might actually be feeding her separation related behaviours. Many people mix that around and believe it helps the dog. You need to know when to give attention, when not to and when it is too much and/or badly timed.

ETA: I now see there is a second dog in the household and yes .... this does make leaving bones/food around problematic. I've had some people separate the two dogs (can see each other) but whether that's the thing for yours or not depends on the layout of your home/land and also the relationship between the two dogs.

Edited February 16, 2011 by Erny

[mumtoshelley]

So am i doing the wrong thing by patting her when she comes to me without being called? should i stop this? when i am leaving i don't pay her any attention at all i do look at her but thats it. When i get home i ignore her for like 10 minutes then say hello to her but don't touch her. I wait another 10 minutes before i actually pat her. I have noticed she does nudge peoples hand to get pats which the family then does pat her. Maybe i raised her wrong from the begining? maybe she was to old when i got her? I have read a dog socialization is between 8-12 weeks old. Shelley did have a bad habbit of eatting dog poo and i use to tell her no when i saw her then finnaly gave up and ingored the behaviour now she doesn't touch poo. For a female she is very clingy, From what i've read females are more love me love me eg more independent then males.

[Erny]

So am i doing the wrong thing by patting her when she comes to me without being called?

I don't know. What is she doing when she comes to you without being called? Is she being confident or is she being sooky? Under what circumstances?

when i am leaving i don't pay her any attention at all i do look at her but thats it.

Looking at her (ie eye contact) IS giving her attention.

When i get home i ignore her for like 10 minutes then say hello to her but don't touch her. I wait another 10 minutes before i actually pat her.

That's longer than I'd suggest is necessary. I just suggest to wait until she has stopped vying for your attention and then count 60 seconds. Then call her over to you and you're free to interact.

I have noticed she does nudge peoples hand to get pats which the family then does pat her. Maybe i raised her wrong from the begining? maybe she was to old when i got her? I have read a dog socialization is between 8-12 weeks old. Shelley did have a bad habbit of eatting dog poo and i use to tell her no when i saw her then finnaly gave up and ingored the behaviour now she doesn't touch poo. For a female she is very clingy, From what i've read females are more love me love me eg more independent then males.

IMO it's never too late to train a dog and that includes improving on undesirable behaviour. Don't worrying about blaming yourself or anyone for how she is now, but better to do what you're doing and wanting to seek to help her be happier .

Edited February 16, 2011 by Erny

[mumtoshelley]

When she comes to me she is noramlly lying of her bed she always seems to have to feel sorry look to her all the time. She begs anyone who walks in the yard for a pat and won't leave them until she has got a pat. I often call her to me and pat her, When i stop she trys to go to another person often that other person is my dad which he pats her but as soon as he stops she nudges his hand for more. My dad often tells her go to bed which she listens and goes. But as soon as someone else appears she straight to them begging for attention. Werid thing is she seems to ignore other people on our walks. Other people on our walks can call her and she won't go to them at all. Ok so I'll stop looking at her when we are going to go out.

[SparkyTansy]

Dogs rely a lot on body language so if you are looking at her, you are giving her attention.

This is just my opinion though... you can take what you like from it. I had a behaviourist out for my girl a little while back and the advice above was part of the things I have learnt and it all made a difference within a week of practicing it.

if your dog comes up to you and forces you to give the attention by nudging, standing there, pawing - this is all on the terms of the dog. All attention given should be on your terms and this is just an extra thing to do on top of the ignoring behaviour.

And no use blaming yourself or anyone else for how this all happened... the dog doesn't care about yesterday, only right now and tomorrow is a new day.

[mumtoshelley]

Thank you i will stop giving her attention when she wants the attention and only give her attention when i want too. I will also try to work on all of us leaving for a little while then coming back.

[Erny]

When she comes to me she is noramlly lying of her bed she always seems to have to feel sorry look to her all the time. She begs anyone who walks in the yard for a pat and won't leave them until she has got a pat. I often call her to me and pat her, When i stop she trys to go to another person often that other person is my dad which he pats her but as soon as he stops she nudges his hand for more. My dad often tells her go to bed which she listens and goes. But as soon as someone else appears she straight to them begging for attention. Werid thing is she seems to ignore other people on our walks. Other people on our walks can call her and she won't go to them at all. Ok so I'll stop looking at her when we are going to go out.

Sounds like she has you and your friends trained very well.

[corvus]

AFAIK the only reason to not use the term "separation anxiety" is because we aren't sure that the dog is actually anxious. In the literature it is generally referred to as "separation-related behaviour" for that reason alone. It's an academic argument, though. Some people think that not all dogs with the symptoms are anxious and others think they are. It is a fascinating topic. Multiple possible causes, much the same symptoms, and sometimes treatment is elusive.

One of the most broadly effective treatments is simple counter-conditioning. Erik has a mild case, as does my mother's Vallhund. Both were pretty much fixed by giving the dogs a special treat upon leaving. I can't give my dogs Kongs, either, as Erik is a hoarder. I can give them dried cow ears or pigs ears, though. Something that takes them a few minutes to get through is ideal. It takes their attention away from us leaving and they get through it too quickly to have an argument about it.

It's definitely worth looking up Karen Overall's Protocol for Relaxation, which is good to do anyway and certainly won't do any harm. It is always a good place to start IMO. Also Aiden on this forum has a good exercise that is called the Calming Yo-Yo. You should be able to find it through Google.