Help! I Think My Dog Has Separation Anxiety!
Does your dog bark it’s head off when you leave the house? Perhaps you’ve even gotten noise complaints from neighbors.
Or, maybe you’ve come home to your house utterly destroyed (how can they do THAT much damage in such a short period of time!?)
And what the heck, now they seem to have suddenly forgotten all of the potty training you’ve taught them because you’re finding puddles and piles everywhere upon your return. You took them out right before you left, surely they could have held it!
Is it separation anxiety? Are they mad that you’ve left them home and they’re trying to get back at you? Maybe they need more obedience training? They never did master the “stay” command after all.
Let’s unpack exactly what separation anxiety is, how to determine if it (or something else) is the cause of their home alone behavior, and what to do to resolve it.
What is separation anxiety?
Separation anxiety is a profound fear of being alone. It’s a true panic disorder that is debilitating and severely impacts the quality of life of the dog suffering from it (and the guardian’s quality of life, but that’s a topic for a different day). Separation anxiety can manifest in many ways but the most prevalent behaviors are vocalizations when home alone (barking, howling, and/or whining), destructiveness and potty accidents in an otherwise potty trained dog. Other common behaviors include pacing, panting, repetitive behaviors, escape attempts through doors, windows or crates, and excessive grooming or scratching, just to name a few. Separation anxiety is NOT an obedience or stubbornness issue. Dogs who get destructive, bark or have accidents are doing so due to the terror and panic they are feeling, not to be spiteful or to get back at you for leaving them and basic obedience training will not cure them.
So, if your dog exhibits some of the above mentioned behaviors when home alone, they must have separation anxiety, right? Not so fast. There are many reasons why a dog may bark, become destructive and/or have accidents in the house that have nothing to do with separation anxiety.
Ruling out other causes:
Let’s take a look at some other potential causes of unwanted alone time behavior:
Reactive barking at triggers/outside stimuli: Does your dog tend to bark at people or animals passing by outside? Do you have a lot of foot traffic in front of your house? Does your dog have a clear view of said foot traffic through windows or doors? Do you live in an apartment building with a lot of noise? If so, your dog may be barking due to environmental stimuli, not separation anxiety. This may still be causing fear, stress and/or anxiety but it is important to distinguish between reactive barking and separation anxiety to be sure your dog gets the help he or she needs.
Lack of enrichment: How much activity does your dog get on a regular basis? Could the destructiveness be due to boredom? Your dog’s age, breed and personality will determine how much exercise and enrichment they need. There is no one size fits all exercise regimen for all dogs, but be sure that they’re getting both physical activity and metal stimulation, such as opportunities to sniff and explore novel environments, puzzle toys, chew toys and other activities that work their brain (check out these easy DIY dog enrichment ideas from the ASPCA). It’s important to note that exercise and enrichment is important for all dogs but if your dog is suffering from separation anxiety, no amount of exercise will cure it. You cannot exercise the anxiety out of your dog (contrary to popular myths).
Not fully house trained: Is your dog fully house trained or do they still sometimes have potty accidents throughout the day? If your dog still has potty accidents when you are home, the accidents they are having when you are not home may be due to inadequate potty training, not separation anxiety.
Noise phobias/sensitivities: Does your dog get scared or anxious in response to noises like thunderstorms, construction or fireworks? There is a very high correlation between noise phobias and separation anxiety, which means that in order to fully resolve your dog’s anxiety and alone time behavior, you’ll need to resolve both the separation anxiety and the noise phobia.
Underlying medical problem: Animals are fantastic at masking pain and discomfort. It’s a deeply ingrained survival instinct. So anytime separation anxiety is suspected, it’s always a good idea to start with a vet check to make sure there are no medical concerns that may be causing or contributing to the behavior. Pain, hearing or vision loss, GI issues, and allergies are common health concerns that can cause or contribute to separation anxiety behaviors. Another thing to pay attention to is the age of your dog and the onset of these symptoms. If you have a senior dog and the separation anxiety behavior started out of the blue with no obvious reason, it’s a good idea to get your dog evaluated for canine cognitive dysfunction as this is a common reason for sudden onset of separation anxiety in senior dogs.
Next Steps
If you have ruled out any other causes for your dog’s alone time behavior, the next thing you’ll want to do is observe your dog when they are home alone by setting up a camera to watch them while you’re away. You’ll want to pay very close attention to their behavior and body language to determine what, if any, stress signs and separation anxiety related behaviors they are displaying. Like I mentioned, vocalizations, destructiveness and potty accidents are the three most common signs of separation anxiety, however, they are far from the only ones. Dogs have numerous body language cues that signal stress and anxiety. Here are some to look out for:
Lip licking
Yawning
Pacing
Excessive scratching and/or grooming
Panting
Vocalizations
Restlessness/inability to settle down for more than a few minutes at a time
Destruction/door scratching
Urinating/defecating
Cowering
Freezing/body tension
Tightly closed mouth
*This is not an exhaustive list. For more info on canine body language, check out Fear Free Pets here or here, or this wonderful blog post from eileenanddogs.
If you have observed one or more stress signal from your dog during their alone time, they may have separation anxiety. The more stress signals that were observed, the more likely it is that it’s separation anxiety. However, like I mentioned above, there are many reasons why your dog may be struggling with alone time and numerous factors that may be contributing to the behavior, so it’s best to get the help of a trained professional. Separation anxiety requires a systematic desensitization training protocol to resolve it. That means starting with very short absences and gradually working up to being able to leave your dog for longer and longer intervals, while helping your dog learn to feel safe and cope with the alone time. Separation anxiety is a true panic disorder and requires a carefully planned treatment protocol.
If you would like help navigating your dog’s home alone struggles, reach out to book a free phone consultation so we can chat about your dog’s behavior and get started on the journey to resolution! Separation anxiety can be a really frustrating problem but it absolutely CAN be resolved!
With wags and aloha,
Cori Tufano- Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer (CSAT)