The Anxiety Wrap can help relieve dog separation anxiety.

Separation anxiety in dogs is a real problem for many pet owners.  Does your dog bark non-stop, or tear up the house when you leave?  Do you dread coming home because you don’t know what kind of mess is awaiting you?

Do You Have An Anxious Dog Or A Bored Dog?

How can you tell if your dog is just bored, or if he really has canine separation anxiety?

Here are several ways you can tell if he has separation anxiety:

• He only destroys things when he’s by himself.  A bored dog will indulge in destructive behavior anytime, just for something to do.
• He’s learned what you do before you leave, like take a shower, get dressed, and grab your keys.  As soon as you start getting ready, he’s already getting upset.
• He’s “hyperattached” to you.  What this means is that he won’t let you out of his sight.  He follows you around the house, and wants to be close to you all the time.  While this is flattering, it’s not healthy behavior, so you shouldn’t encourage this.
• He’ll bark, sometimes for hours, with repeated high-pitched yips.  This is the kind of behavior that will drive your neighbors around the bend, and with good reason.
• He may urinate or defecate in the house, even though he’s housetrained
• He may even hurt himself by chewing on his own tail, licking himself until he bleeds, or yanking out his own fur.
• He’ll try to destroy barriers.  Many times he’ll go after the last door he saw you go out of, in hopes of finding you.

What Can You Do?

Separation anxiety in dogs is often related to dominance issues.  In the wild, the pack leader can leave the pack, but the followers never leave.  If your pet thinks he’s the top dog in your home, he’ll get upset when you leave.  It’s important that he knows you’re in charge, not him.

While you’re working on training him, you may want to look into a product called the Anxiety Wrap.  This is a  wrap that calms your dog by putting pressure on certain acupressure points on his body.  Many pet owners have found that it can help correct many dog behavior problems.

Many canines are put down every year because of dog behavior problems related to separation anxiety.  If your pet is showing signs of this condition, you need to deal with it quickly, before it becomes a major problem for both of you.

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Dogs with separation anxiety are too attached to their owners.

Dog separation anxiety sounds like a joke, but it’s a serious problem for many pet owners.  You may be surprised to learn that you could be making this bad dog behavior problem worse.  Here are some dog training do’s and don’ts for dealing with an anxious dog.

First, The Canine Separations Anxiety Don’ts

If your pet tears things up when you leave, or barks non-stop, it’s tempting to whack him with a rolled-up newspaper when you get home.  Big mistake.  First, unless you catch him in the act, he won’t have a clue why you’re mad at him.

Second, the reason your dog is doing this is because he’s scared when you leave him alone.  Punishing him will only make him more anxious.

Dogs with separation anxiety are too attached to their owners.  If there are other people in the household, take turns feeding and walking him so he doesn’t get too dependent on just one person.

Never let him sleep in bed with you.  He shouldn’t even be in the same room.  Get him a dog bed, and train him to use it.  And put it in another room.

Keep him at arm’s length when he tries to lie down next to you, or in your lap.  In fact, he shouldn’t be closer than about three feet.  Rearrange the furniture if you have to, so that he has to keep his distance.

Separation Anxiety Can Be Related To Dog Dominance Issues

In a wild dog pack, the leader can leave his followers, but the followers can’t leave the leader.  If your dog thinks he’s the head honcho, he’ll get anxious when you leave him.

To show him you’re the one in charge, try these dog training tips:

1. Feed him after you eat.  Pack members only get to eat after the alpha dog has eaten.
2. When you go for a walk, make sure he’s walking at your side or behind you.  The Big Dog always goes first.  So don’t let him pull ahead of you on his leash.
3. Don’t give him attention every time he asks for it.  You should be the one initiating contact.

OK, Now For What You Should Be Doing

The following dog training tips can help.

Avoid making a fuss when you leave, or when you come home.  Don’t encourage him to do his happy dance when you come home.  In fact, you should ignore him for at least twenty minutes before you leave, and when you come home.  He needs to know that your comings and goings are part of life.  Your coming home shouldn’t be the high point of his day.

By the way, you may be surprised to know that Fido knows you’re leaving much sooner than you think he does.  You do certain things before you leave, like take a shower, get dressed, look for the car keys.  These are cues that you’re about to leave, and your pet is certainly aware of them.  So he starts getting upset long before you actually leave.

Desensitize him by doing these things, and then staying home.  This is a slow process, and it will take several weeks, but eventually he’ll stop associating these cues with your leaving.

Plenty of exercise is essential to burn off his excess energy, and tire him out so that he’ll spend more time sleeping when you’re gone.  A long walk before and after work will take his mind off his problems.

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Nuisance barking annoys your neighbors!

If your dog is a barker, you need some help, fast.  Excessive barking is a fast way to escalate disagreements between neighbors into full-blown feuds.

Here are some tips for dealing with nuisance dog barking before it gets out of hand.

Why Do Dogs Bark?

If you’re really serious about ending nuisance barking, you need to figure out why your dog is barking in the first place.  Check out this list, and see what applies to your pooch.

• Attention-seeking:  puppies will often do this in a bid for your attention.  Ignore a barking puppy.  Otherwise you’re teaching her that barking will get her what she wants, which is your attention.  If your pup can’t get good attention from you, she’ll be happy with negative attention, which includes yelling at her to shut up.
• Warning:  to let others know that an intruder is approaching.  The barking will get faster as the stranger gets closer.  If the bark is low-pitched and combined with growling, this is a sign of canine aggression.  Pay attention to this one.
• Separation anxiety:  the barking gets higher-pitched as your dog gets more upset at your absence.  This is self-reinforcing because your dog thinks that her barking is what’s bringing you back.  You may not even know your dog is doing this until someone complains.
• Boredom:  barking is something to do.  Make sure she has toys to play with, and stuff to keep her occupied.
• Excitement:  a short, sharp bark while playing.
• Identification:  your dog barks in response to another dog barking nearby.  It seems like there’s always at least one dog in the neighborhood who keeps the rest of the dogs stirred up.
• Startle barking:  a sudden loud sound or movement sets her off.

Tips To Make A Dog Stop Barking

Teach your dog to come to you when you call her name.  Train her to lie down on command.  This helps because dogs don’t bark as much when they’re lying down.

Don’t get angry and start yelling at your dog.  She may think you’re barking right along with her, which she would think is really cool.  Besides, all you’re doing is giving her attention, which encourages her to bark even more.

Ignore her if she’s trying to get your attention by barking.  Turn around and walk away.  Come back when she stops barking.

Be consistent.  Use the same word, like “enough” when you want her to stop barking.  Make sure everyone in the household uses the same word every time.

When she obeys the “enough” command, reward her with a treat.  If she makes even one little “woof” after you say “enough,” don’t reward her.  And make sure she sees what she’s missing out on.  She’ll figure out pretty fast that she has to be quiet if she wants that treat.

The worst thing you can do is to try to soothe an anxious dog when she’s barking.  This only makes her more anxious because now she thinks you’re worried about the situation too.

Click on any link in the article for more dog training advice.

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Dog separation anxiety can become a big problem

Separation anxiety in dogs can become a big problem for your pet.  Here’s what you need to know to head it off before it gets any worse.

What Is Dog Separation Anxiety?

Your dog goes into panic mode whenever you leave him by himself.  Within a half hour of your departure your normally Good Dog may morph into Majorly Bad Dog.

Bad dog behavior may include:

• Urinating and defecating all over the house, even if he’s house trained
• Trying to escape by digging and scratching at doors and windows
• High-pitched whining and yipping, in hopes of getting you to come home
• Tearing up your furniture, clothing, or whatever else he can reach

All puppies show some signs of separation anxiety in dogs.  But most of them outgrow it as they mature.

Risk Factors For Canine Separation Anxiety

You may be wondering if certain dogs are more susceptible to this problem.  Long-nosed breeds of dogs, like herding and guarding dogs, seem to fall victim to this type of dog panic attack more often.  These dogs are usually working dogs who need lots of things to do.

Spaniels and setters are other susceptible breeds.  One vet noted that dogs with this problem are usually thinner and more prone to digestive upsets.

This is an equal opportunity condition that happens in both males and females.  It doesn’t seem to matter whether the pet has been spayed or neutered either.

Separation anxiety often starts between the ages of five months and two years.  Sometimes an older dog can suddenly develop it as well.  In this case, you may think your pet is becoming senile, but it could be dog separation anxiety instead.

What Else Can Cause This Problem?

A puppy that was rejected by its mom, or who was taken away from its mom too soon, could develop separation anxiety later in life.  A history of being bounced from one home to another may also be a factor.

Separation anxiety in dogs often runs in the family.  If one of your pet’s parents or litter mates shows signs of this problem, your companion may be at higher risk for this condition.

A dog who has lost a favorite person to divorce, illness, or death may show signs of canine separation anxiety.  If your dog’s favorite person goes off to college, it may have an impact, too.  Even a new baby that takes up lots of time that used to be devoted to the pet may result in an anxious dog.

You may want to take a look at yourself, as well.  Does your dog follow you around the house, not letting you out of his sight for even a second?  Does he bounce around barking joyfully for several minutes when you come home?  It’s flattering to know that your dog loves you so much, but you may be setting both you and him up for problems if you encourage this behavior.

How Can You Help A Dog With Separation Anxiety?

PetCalm is a homeopathic remedy that works naturally to calm anxious dogs.  Your vet also has medication that may help.

Dog training techniques include desensitizing your dog to your leaving.  This is a long process that can’t be rushed, but it can be very successful.

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