Separation Anxiety

Like humans, dogs are incredibly social creatures. They are used to being with their pack 24/7. Like children, they learn to handle being alone for short periods of time, but it doesn’t come naturally. It’s not surprising then that some dogs develop separation anxiety, a disorder which, in intense cases, can consist of panic attacks: urinating, defecating, frantically scratching and destructive chewing, barking and crying when the dog is left alone.

Separation anxiety can be triggered commonly by extreme change of living circumstances such as being re-homed, extensive time at a boarding kennel, the death of a family member, or commonly by another sort of high contrast situation like an owner being home all day to leaving the home for many hours at a time. Like humans, dogs are creatures of habit. A severe change in routine can really shake anyone up.

The good news is that separation anxiety can be prevented and treated. My treatment approach depends on the case. When I first go in for a consult, I have to be sure to distinguish that the behavior is in fact separation anxiety and not misbehaving out of boredom, spite, or fun. Dogs are such situation learners- I have seen cases where a dog is fine if the owner walks out of the house with slippers on to get the morning newspaper, but when the owner has shoes, a jacket, a briefcase- it is a different story.  Dogs learn the difference between long-absence situations and short-absence situations.

Stay tuned for tips to help separation anxiety.