Treating Dog Separation Anxiety
Because dogs are such social animals, separation from their human family can be a very traumatic experience once the attachments have been formed. Dog separation anxiety can become a serious issue if not treated correctly, but it is a controllable behavior when given care and time.
This dog separation anxiety can manifest itself in a variety of forms. Some dogs tend to get depressed, sullen, and downright moody as many humans can get when presented with a separation. They will stop eating and drinking, and they might not leave very familiar areas to use the bathroom. This kind of dog separation anxiety can even be dangerous for the health of the dog, as it will allow itself to become ill and malnourished.
Other dogs will show their problems with separation anxiety by extremely destructive behaviors. This behavior can take the form of extreme whining, barking, or howling, or destruction of property through means such as urinating or otherwise relieving themselves in and around your belongings. No one who owns pets needs to cope with this kind of dog separation anxiety, which is relatively commonplace.
Your dog will experience separation anxiety if it is afraid that it will be away from you for any period of time. Obviously this happens most frequently when dogs have an unhealthy level of dependence on or attachment to the owner. This can happen when a dog spends all of his time with the owner when the owner is at home. They will be constantly looking for attention, and following their owner throughout the house all day. Usually, it’s completely the owner’s fault if their dog has been wrongly conditioned to be hyperattached to them. It may be great to have a constant, loyal friend at your side, but a dog also needs to learn to be independent. Otherwise, the dog will suffer if the owner is away.
The emotion of separation anxiety is extremely hard on the dog, as well as the owner. In order to fix this issue, the attachment needs to be broken to some small degree. The dog needs to be taught a measure of independence. It is critical to the success of treatment for your dog’s separation anxiety. Other people in the house can start taking care of the dog, you can teach the dog to play on its own more, and try not to give constant attention. Doing this may be difficult and you might feel as if you are being insensitive, but this is the beginning of the treatment that will end up dramatically improving both your and your dog’s quality of life.
Next, it’s essential to desensitize the dog to separation anxiety. Even before you have left the house, a dog starts to have feelings of anxiety. Whether you know it or not, your dog is always watching and quickly learns to associate actions like turning off the TV, putting on different clothes, or picking up your car keys as signs you will be leaving the house. Obviously when they see this they realize you will be leaving and fear begins to set in. You can divert this behavior by acting as if you are leaving the house, but not actually going anywhere. Eventually, the dog will not be fearful while these things are happening, and their separation anxiety will abate.
Dog separation anxiety can also be aided by a variety of other methods. A lot of people have found that dog appeasement pheromones are successful in creating a sense of calm within the dog’s environment. Human’s can smell these pheromones, but they can certainly work well on your pets’ mood. Leaving a radio or television turned on while you are away can also help to relieve your dog’s anxiety until you return.
