Please Help - Doggy Destruction!

krlyr

I would maybe try to think of some alternative ways to avoid leaving him alone. Any family or friends who can help - even if it means dropping the dog to them for the day? Could you possibly work from home, or even take the dog to work?

I would, at the very least, have a thorough health check done to see if there's a medical condition that could be causing issues. Injury or illness could be to blame, and it could be a relatively easy fix for the issue. If not, then at least you've got a clean bill of health which may reassure potential new owners and make him a bit easier to rehome.

Do you have insurance? Many people don't realise their policy may cover behavioural therapy. My AXA policy would cover a behaviourist up to £250.

Kevie192

Tried friends and family but nobody can have him during the day.

I don't have the money to pay for a full health check.

Insurance does cover behaviour but I can't afford the excess.

krlyr

In that case, it may indeed be best to rehome him to someone with the time and money to address his issues. It won't be easy rehoming a dog with issues though - but please be honest about his behaviour, it won't do anyone any favours if he's passed pillar to post because people aren't expecting separation issues.

DaveTheMus

Kevie192 wrote: »

He gets walked for an hour every morning and another 20 mins at lunchtime, as well as usually a walk in the evening.

Your dog sounds like it is getting enough exercise.

A lot of people make the mistake of greeting their dog as soon as they come home, giving him lots of pets and claps. This is the worst thing you can do for a dog with anxiety, it puts the dog on a pedestal and is seen by your dog as a reward for the howling and destructive behavior.

In your dogs mind he thinks that the howling and scratching is what has prompted your return, and you interacting with him before you've got your coat off reinforces this.

It sounds as though there is a power vacuum in the house, with the dog believing that he's on an equal footing to the humans in the house. Your dog feels it's his responsibility to look after you and keep you safe, which is why when he doesn't sense your presence he goes crazy.

When I come home I ignore my dog for at least 20 minutes until he's calm, then if I decide to interact with him, it will be when I choose.

krlyr

It is not that simple with true separation anxiety - it's a phobia, and the dog's emotional status will change hours before the return of its owners. It's a bit like a spider phobia - you get terrified by a spider in the bath, if someone removes the spider and then gives you a hug to calm you down, is that going to affect your phobia? Are you likely to get more scared of spiders because they've "reinforced" your reaction? Chances are, you were far too panicked to have your emotions swayed either way - if anything, the hug probably helped calm you down after the anxiety you experienced. My dog calms down much quicker if I greet her on my return - I don't make a big fuss of her, but a hello and then redirecting her excitement onto a toy helps her channel that energy onto something more appropriate. She now will often automatically greet me and go and fetch her toy .

IMO the issue needs to be dealt with far earlier than the returning home regime, the main point is to try to avoid putting the dog in the distressed state in the first place. I know first-hand that it's not easy, and that life can make it impractical, but equally it's an important step in dealing with and treating separation issues.

monty-doggy

Rather than locking him in a crate is there a small room you can put him and his crate in but leave it open so he isn't locked up? Bathroom or kitchen is ideal.

You can get tablets for dogs with anxiety from pets at home, doggy equivalent to kalms in humans
There are a few different ones and they start around £3 a pack. Takes a few days to get into their system.

DaveTheMus

krlyr wrote: »

It is not that simple with true separation anxiety - it's a phobia, and the dog's emotional status will change hours before the return of its owners. It's a bit like a spider phobia - you get terrified by a spider in the bath, if someone removes the spider and then gives you a hug to calm you down, is that going to affect your phobia? Are you likely to get more scared of spiders because they've "reinforced" your reaction? Chances are, you were far too panicked to have your emotions swayed either way - if anything, the hug probably helped calm you down after the anxiety you experienced. My dog calms down much quicker if I greet her on my return - I don't make a big fuss of her, but a hello and then redirecting her excitement onto a toy helps her channel that energy onto something more appropriate. She now will often automatically greet me and go and fetch her toy .

IMO the issue needs to be dealt with far earlier than the returning home regime, the main point is to try to avoid putting the dog in the distressed state in the first place. I know first-hand that it's not easy, and that life can make it impractical, but equally it's an important step in dealing with and treating separation issues.

I really wish people would stop humanising dogs......

Trying to compare a humans phobia of spiders to an animals anxiety from being separated from its pack is laughable.

It's that type reckless humanisation that leads to some child getting their face ripped off because the owner treats it like a furry child it's whole life.

Dogs need a defined pack order to have a healthy balanced state of mind, not the 'alpha' in the pack fussing over them the first moment they are reunited....

How many times in the wild do you see the alpha in a wolfpack groom it's underlings when it returns to the den?

krlyr

It's not humanisation, I am probably one of the people least likely to do so to my dogs. I may joke about slightly human aspects of their personality, but I know I'm joking - dogs are dogs! And not that it is really related at all, but I was the one who made the decision to keep my dogs separate when we had a baby in the family, despite his dad being keen to introduce the dogs, who he felt he could trust. I completely understand the nature of a living animal like a dog does not make them predictable - so my dogs are very unlikely to get the chance to rip a child's face of, thank you very much.

However, your opinion is based on the pack theory, which was retracted by the scientist David Mech who originally came up with it, and has been disproved time and time again. Dogs are not pack animals, therefore arguments about being alpha do not hold up to me.
http://www.apbc.org.uk/articles/why-wont-dominance-die

My dog has suffered separation anxiety for a while and develops anxiety as a result of her medical condition. She showed clear signs of being absolutely distressed, often in ways that seem irrational, and it is my experience that makes me compare it to a phobia.

catkins

DaveTheMus wrote: »

I really wish people would stop humanising dogs......

Trying to compare a humans phobia of spiders to an animals anxiety from being separated from its pack is laughable.

It's that type reckless humanisation that leads to some child getting their face ripped off because the owner treats it like a furry child it's whole life.

Dogs need a defined pack order to have a healthy balanced state of mind, not the 'alpha' in the pack fussing over them the first moment they are reunited....

How many times in the wild do you see the alpha in a wolfpack groom it's underlings when it returns to the den?

My dog trainer would think this post laughable.


No decent trainer or behaviourist believes in the pack theory anymore

DaveTheMus

krlyr wrote: »

However, your opinion is based on the pack theory, which was retracted by the scientist David Mech who originally came up with it, and has been disproved time and time again. Dogs are not pack animals, therefore arguments about being alpha do not hold up to me.

If you consider that every sub-species of wild dog that roam the planet on this very day are pack animals....

The African Wild Dog - pack animal
Coyotes - pack animal
Wolf - pack animal
Dingo - pack animal

and you say that dogs aren't pack animals.

If you've ever seen hounds on a fox hunting expedition, you'll see them hunting as a coordinated pack.

Or if you see terriers digging into a rabbit burrow, they do this as a pack, not a number of single entities, but in unison.

When a couple of collies are rounding up some sheep and they have to bring an errant lamb in, they move and coordinate just as they would in the wild if they were hunting the lamb.

But why take any notice of tens of thousands of years of nature?

An animal behaviourist has said it's nonsense, plenty of books to sell after all.

Dogs hunted in packs long before you and I were born and they'll hunt in packs long after you and I are dead