Separation Anxiety - Rescue Dogs Help!

[Paddo Pup]

Hi there,

We adopted a maltese,shitzu x jack russel in November 2011. We ADORE her but she suffers from pretty bad seaparation anxiety and nothing we have done has solved this to date. We've tried it all and we've read up on everything we can, we've seen behaviour therapists, been on Reconcile, Thunder Shirts you name it! We've also completely changed our working weeks to be at home more, or take her into the office so she has minimal time at home alone. We are committed to keeping our dog despite the fact that she wees/poos inside even when left alone for even 30 mins. This happens 3-5 times a week.

We can't put her outside alone when we got out as she yelps and disturbs the neighbours.

SO as a final resort we are trying dog diapers. Has anyone else had to put their dog in these? Will this be a permanent thing? Will she be stressed if she wets/soils them and is in them for a period of time? Has anyone else had this kind of issue? We found Reconcile just made her dopey and antisocial, she is a much more energetic and social dog off this (she was on it for 9 months)

Any advice really appreciated, we are at our wits end and our cream carpet is destroyed!

[megan_]

I have never tried them but I suspect she'd get burns if they're left on for hours.

[minimax]

Why do you need the diapers? because she pees inside? Have you tried to train her to pee inside in one certain spot, like on pee pads or fake grass etc?

My dogs are duel toilet trained, to go outside if the door is open, but inside on pee pads if the door is shut.

[~Anne~]

Your post is a little confusing. Is she toileting inside because of the anxiety or has she never been toilet trained?

Can you confine her while you are out to an area where the floors are easier clean? For example, the laundry, bathroom or kitchen?

If it is purely just toilet training then this shouldn't pose too big of a problem. There are ample threads already on here with detailed information on how to toilet train an adult dog.

Edited June 6, 2013 by ~Anne~

[Leema]

Have you tried crating her?

[persephone]

What else does this little dog do when you're away?

bark./chew/dig/ drool/ scratch /howl ?

When you say she pees/poos ..how many times, say ? Diarrhoea or normal poo?

It sounds very frustrating .... I'm hoping we can help you somehow ..

What training/excercise does she get each day?

Is she well toilet trained when you're home?

I would NOT recommend diapers.... it is not healthy for her at all to be walking around with all that bacteria attached to her body It would also be another stressor .

[sas]

We have a separation training pack that has yet to fail, feel free to email me at [email protected] if you would like a copy.

I'd be looking at the toileting a bit more though i.e. is the dog actually toilet trained and does it have the capability to hold when it can't access the toileting area - does it know that it should? It could just be a toilet training problem? The condition of the poos will be a good indicator of stress.

[mita]

If she's pretty OK inside the house.... except for the weeing & pooing... can you keep her to one room only? And in that room, put an 'inside' toilet for her.... as well as a day bed with the things said to help separation anxiety.

An 'inside' toilet for a small dog, can be made by finding the biggest plastic lid (for a box) at somewhere like Bunnings. Put good quality artificial grass in it. And train her to use this toilet. I've heard some people put some of the outside grass & soil on the artificial grass at first.... if you get some from a spot she's used in the garden.... it'll have the scent for her to follow. Dogs follow their own scent to go back to their 'toot' spots.

I don't know what advice you've got from behaviourists.... but I assume it's similar to what we got for our sheltie. Set up spot in that room which is her day bed. Always leave something with your scent on, like your unwashed T shirts. Rub your palms over all her toys, chewy treats etc to transfer your scent. Owner's scent can comfort. And she is left here sometimes with all her 'good' things, even when you're home. Make it the only place where gets all the 'good' things.... including meals.

We were also told to emphasize obedience. Dog must obey 'Sit' before getting anything she likes.... meals, treats, any attention. And she must be quiet & sitting. Any jumping up, squealing etc to demand your attention.... don't keep eye contact.... turn back until she's quiet.

We were told to keep doing these things consistently and, with time, the penny should drop with the sheltie. We saw changes in the first few weeks. Finally, she had no problem.

BTW with a later little dog that also had SA, some low doses of Valium helped during the re-training period. It's a muscle relaxant and doesn't fog the brain so the dog can still learn OK.

Edited June 6, 2013 by mita

[Paddo Pup]

Thanks for replies.

To clarify she only has accidents when left alone. If we are home she knows to go outside on the patio area and happily takes herself to the right place. She spends hours in my office with me and have never once had an accident there as she has never been left alone for a minute. We tried crating and she got so distressed her paws were bleeding from trying to get out. She is the most loveable happy little dog AS LONG as we are around. She has a lovely life with us but this is a big problem as we can't leave her with friends and family if we go away. We've tried confining her to the bathroom and she scratches at the door and howls, shakes. She needs to be able to see us to relax.

Example - I took her to the park for 45 minutes Wednesday morning then came home, put her Thunder Shirt on (she wears this when we are home too) I came back 45 minutes later to 2 wees and a poo on the carpet, the patio door was open the whole time.

We've tried puppy pads for months at a time but she used them as a matt to lie on, we also have a pet loo outside. Our behaviour therapist said she has incomplete toilet training, separation anxiety and anxiety with toilet training. A great combination!

The vet thinks this is most likely why she ended up dumped at the pound. She is terrified if we use stern voices with her and rolls over and submissive wees - essentially she pees herself if we tell her NO "toilet outside". I think she has been treated badly by her past owners in regards to peeing inside.

[BlackJaq]

Have you actually crate trained her or just locked in the crate?

I think you may need to revisit toilet training separately in any case.

Edited June 6, 2013 by BlackJaq

[Leah82]

You poor thing, separation anxiety is the worst coz at the end of the day you have no way of helping them when you're not at home. Our Cocker Spaniel used to howl when we weren't home, Thunder Shirts helped for a couple of days but I think he hardly notices it now. That's one of the reasons we recently adopted Sarah and because he's going blind from PRA (another dog will hopefully help him get around when he completely looses his sight). Although now it seems a 500sqm backyard is not enough to keep Sarah entertained so she dug her way out on Tuesday only to end up in another backyard and then of course Collie had to follow her

anyway it seems like you have your hands full with your current dog but have you considered getting another one, it's by no means an immediate solution but hopefully another dog will be enough of a distraction to prevent major damage and unwanted toilet breaks, the other option is to sneak her into work. This article may help with some ideas :p http://www.wikihow.com/Sneak-Your-Cat-Into-Work

[BlackJaq]

I would maybe hold off on the other dog until you solve at least the toilet issue because house training a second dog may be difficult if the first one keeps having indoor accidents

Edited June 6, 2013 by BlackJaq

[Paddo Pup]

Yes we tried crating and having her bed inside the crate while we were home and she rolled over and peed every time we went to put her in it, tried to feed her in there and she refused to eat.

We dog sat for a friend to see if another dog would help and he ended up peeing over her wet spots so we had double the wee to clean up and he apparenlty never wees inside at his own home.

Our behaviour therapist said her anxiety would only rub off on another dog as she is so focussed on humans. We try to ignore her for hours at a time when we are home and give her time out on patio so she doesnt only associate it with when we are not home but she still wees inside every time she is left alone. She panicks and walks through her urine so her prints are up and down the hallway. I've watched her from outside and she is pacing and crying in distress. It's heartbreaking to see.

[Paddo Pup]

I would maybe hold off on the other dog until you solve at least the toilet issue because house training a second dog may be difficult if the first one keeps having indoor accidents

We are definitely not ready for another dog while we are working through this! We have started toilet training from the beginning so many times but as soon as we go out, she pees inside

[BlackJaq]

I would give sas's training a shot, have heard a lot of good things (see post #7)

[Rosetta]

I have a dog with separation anxiety and can sympathise with you. I also will not advise you on strategies as I suspect there would be nothing you have not tried. The only suggestion I would have is to re-consider the medication. There are others besides Reconcile which I have heard can have bad side effects. Have you tried Clomicalm? Even a sedative type medication such as Valium would be useful when you simply must leave her alone. I would not crate this little one without a sedative. Crating can panic dogs with this problem.

Good luck - it sure is a difficult problem. :)

[Paddo Pup]

I have a dog with separation anxiety and can sympathise with you. I also will not advise you on strategies as I suspect there would be nothing you have not tried. The only suggestion I would have is to re-consider the medication. There are others besides Reconcile which I have heard can have bad side effects. Have you tried Clomicalm? Even a sedative type medication such as Valium would be useful when you simply must leave her alone. I would not crate this little one without a sedative. Crating can panic dogs with this problem.

Good luck - it sure is a difficult problem. :)

Thank you. I will ask our vet about Clomicalm. I've been hesitanmt to try more drugs as we found with the Reconcile she was subdued but spent a lot of time hiding under the bed and would behave in a submissive manner for no apparent reason (ie on our way to the car when she is usually excited she would behave timidly)

Also worth noting we were paying AUD$86 a monthy for Reconcile only to be told the company had sold out for a few months and would have no stock until April. We were then given a prescription for human Prozac and told to give her this instead at a cost of $11 a month, The vet promised us it was exactly the same thing just not flavoured. Hmmmm. She was very antisocial on Reconcile and it didnt stop the peeing or anxiety so we took her of it after 9 months and noticed she seemed happier

[Rosetta]

I have a dog with separation anxiety and can sympathise with you. I also will not advise you on strategies as I suspect there would be nothing you have not tried. The only suggestion I would have is to re-consider the medication. There are others besides Reconcile which I have heard can have bad side effects. Have you tried Clomicalm? Even a sedative type medication such as Valium would be useful when you simply must leave her alone. I would not crate this little one without a sedative. Crating can panic dogs with this problem.

Good luck - it sure is a difficult problem. :)

Thank you. I will ask our vet about Clomicalm. I've been hesitanmt to try more drugs as we found with the Reconcile she was subdued but spent a lot of time hiding under the bed and would behave in a submissive manner for no apparent reason (ie on our way to the car when she is usually excited she would behave timidly)

Also worth noting we were paying AUD$86 a monthy for Reconcile only to be told the company had sold out for a few months and would have no stock until April. We were then given a prescription for human Prozac and told to give her this instead at a cost of $11 a month, The vet promised us it was exactly the same thing just not flavoured. Hmmmm. She was very antisocial on Reconcile and it didnt stop the peeing or anxiety so we took her of it after 9 months and noticed she seemed happier

Many vets are really not too knowledgable about the medications to treat SA - you really have to do your own research. Reconcile was supposed to be the new "wonder" drug for anxiety but Clomicalm has been around for a lot longer. I don't know about the Reconcile/Prozac connection but I was paying well over $100 per month for the Clomicalm. I have to say it was not very effective for my dog but it is for many other dogs apparently. My little poodle was an adopted dog we got at 2 years of age and he toileted inside the house when left alone many times. Eventually he stopped that and now uses a doggy door. We also have tried everything - including all the "natural" remedies - and now just manage around it and I think there is "some" improvement as he gets older so there is hope :) I would discuss with the vet trying Clomicalm in combination with a sedative for specific situational use.

[corvus]

Reconcile and Prozac are exactly the same (fluoextine), Reconcile is just chewable and flavoured so dogs will like it. Why did the dog stay on Reconcile for 9 months if it didn't have any positive effects? Clomicalm generally has fewer side-effects. Usually none, as it happens.

[Little Gifts]

I have to say that I did use disposable baby nappies on my old girl for the last year pretty much all the time because she would just stand up wherever she was and go. I bought them based on her weight and cut a large cross in the tail area about a third of the way down from what would be the front on a child, but which sat on the back of my dog. As soon as she went pee or poo everything in the nappy just dropped away from her body so I never even needed to wipe her clean. There is obviously something in nappies now that keeps the urine trapped.

I'm only suggesting this as an interim desperation measure while you address the key issues you have with her, especially given you wont be leaving the nappies on her for very long while you are out.

Also spray vinegar (and water?) over the wet patches to take the scenting smell away.