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| Separation Anxiety- Does your dog suffer while you |
Separation Anxiety can be resolved or even prevented with a little patience and training, although many pets
are abandoned because of this behavior. This common problem results in the destruction of your property and can
cause problems between you and your neighbors. How do you deal with a pet that destroys anything they can and/or
barks constantly while you are away? This is not a “crazy little dog “ syndrome-- it can effect even the largest of dog
breeds! Here are a few tips to help ease your dogs anxiety while you are away, for further information, please email
Jaymeey at jayh@ontheothersideofthefence.org or post your question at www.theothersideofthefence.org/.
As defined by Sarah Probst, information specialist, separation anxiety is “increased fearfulness of the dog after
the departure of the owner”. Dogs taken away from their mothers before 8 weeks of age often develop this problem.
Common problems are chewing /destroying or pooping on items that smell like you (such as your underwear or
pillow) and excessive barking.
You can try several approaches to ease your dogs anxiety while you are away.
1. Physical exercise such as playing tug of war or fetch for 10 -30 minutes.
2. Mental exercises such as exploring new places, smelling lots of new smells, and obedience training
sessions (even 1 minute sessions help!).
3. As Stacy Braslaw from Stacy’s Wag N Train says ”A tired dog is a good dog”.
4. Give your dog something to do while your gone. Kong’s are hollow rubber toys filled with treats.
Use peanut butter or cheeze whiz as an alternative to expensive pet store stuffers. Home made Kong’s
can be made from empty milk cartons or rubber hoses. Just make sure its clean and doesn’t become a
choking hazard.
5. Don’t make a big deal about coming home. Come in and ignore him for about 20 minutes.
6. Desensitize your dog to your leaving. For example, put your shoes on, watch t.v, put your coat on,
watch t.v., grab your keys, watch t.v., then leave, WITHOUT showing your dog how much you will
miss him while your gone, just walk out the door and leave.
7. Use a crate while you are away to prevent destruction of your home and injury of your pet. Crates
can be an invaluable tool that accelerates potty training and can save your dogs life. I am sure he would
rather be crated than sent to the pound.
You can also look into:
a. Doggie daycare, if there are any in your area. Maybe even get together with your friends to create
your own doggie day care.
b. Bach Rescue Remedy, you can buy Bach Rescue Remedy at The Bee Hive next to Orscheln’s. Bach
Rescue Remedy is wonderful for any pet in times any types of stress, including illness such as Parvo. It
has done wonders, for example, a dog who was laying seemingly almost dead with Parvo virus had not
moved in hours. I gave him 10 drops of Bach on his tongue. He stood up, walked about three steps,
looked confused and went and laid back down. I believe it has saved several animals lives. It is a non
toxic flower essence, marketed for humans, but used by holistic Veterinarians and animal welfare
organizations all over the world. I will post about Bach in the future, so stay tuned.
c. Dog anti depressants, which I do not recommend unless all else, including a professional animal
behaviorist has failed.
Some statistics state that every 6.5 seconds an animal is euthanized in the United States because they do not
have a home! While running an Animal rescue for the last five years I have met many people who have abandoned
their dog because they thought the dog was “stupid” or “unintelligent“. Most of these dogs turn out to be exceptionally
smart, however they were confused because the message that their owner was trying to send them was unclear. I hope
this article helps keep a pet from being dumped at a shelter, or worse!
Is you pet going potty in the house? Spraying? Join me again next month to read about improper elimination, another
common behavior that results in pet abandonment.
Written by Jaymeey Hatfield, Executive Director of Theothersideofthefence.org, a non profit animal rescue To see any
of our homeless pets, please visit our website Theothersideofthefence.org
Donate scrap metal and aluminum cans to help feed homeless pets! 573-686-7551
The grass is always greener on .... Theothersideofthefence.org
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Posted by jaymeeyh on 2009-10-01 20:24:05 | Rating: | Views: 10
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