Separation Anxiety - Dogs in Lockdown

Happy_Sloth

Before lockdown my dogs where used to both me and my husband going out to work each day, they where fine to be left in the house they would just potter about and where pretty well behaved.  we where rarely out all day, with us and the kids someone was always coming and going so they where never left for really long periods.  

Since lockdown the we've been home alot more and my little girl has gotten very clingy to her dad!  as it stands if he even going the toilet she sits outside the bathroom and waits for him and if heaven forbid he tries to get a bath, she howls outside the door.  

A couple of weeks ago we wanted to visit Mum having not seen her since last September. We where got for about 4 hours and came home to find she had destroyed her dog bed having torn it to shreds and she was a total nervous wreck.  She wasn't 'alone' in that she has 2 other dogs in the house and we left her a filled Kong to play with.   The other dogs seemed fine but she hadn't touched her treat and she was soaking wet from slobber etc and it was clearly very distressing for her.  

It's gotten so bad that other day Dad left the house for 30minutes  to walk down to asda and she went completely mental, even though i was in the house i couldn't calm her down, she howled and barked and went totally nuts I tried to play with her to distract her but she wasnt having any of it.  

Work want my husband back in the office full time from next month but i have no idea how to handle my distressed girl. 

sheramber

I have a leaving routine with my dogs,
I will tell you what I do and you can adapt to suit your circum stances
When I am ready to go out I tell them 'you stay home.' 
I then  cue them to go to their bed.  
To begin with they  are left for a few minutes ( I would be giving them a small treat at this  time to avoid them putting on weight, or a portion of their daily ration.
Shut  the door , count to 10 or 20 and go back in.  Make sure you go into the room to them rather than let them out to come to you as that could encourage them to come and look for you.
Gradually increase the time the dog is left. 
Use everyday routines to include his  such as going to the toilet. going intot the garden , hoovering the carpet etc.
The dog learns that the cue means they settle down until you come back.
One of mine was very attached to my husband and when he went out to work or in the evening the dog would bark and whine and pace about even when I was there. 
 So when he went out he went through the routine of telling the dog to stay home and he would run to his bed and wait for his treat. 
5 minutes later I would go in and praise him and he would come with me quite happily.
If we both wen tout without the routine we would hear him bark as we walked to the car. It was as if he thought he had been forgotten but if we told him to 'stay home'. he accepted it.
This was despite having another dog.
A friend told her dog she "would be   back in 5 minutes' when she was leaving her dog.

elsien

Have a look at the flitting game.
The idea is that if the dog is upset, it’s already too late so you need to look at small steps before they get to that state.
It’s in here if you scroll down a bit, 

https://www.thecanineconsultants.co.uk/post/separation-anxiety-fact-vs-fiction

HampshireH

We have Labrador who a few years go destroyed all our furniture as he had too much space and was struggling with boredom/being left. We reduced his space to the kitchen, gave him a long and introduced " we will be two minutes - good boy" and give him a biscuit before leaving the house. He did chew a few small bits to start with but then was fine. Our dog trainer advised us to reduce the space as they can get more anxious with more of it.

We have now had the downstairs refurbished and he has free reign again. He is very good now but we still always do the 2 minute routine. And he knows.

We went out last week for a few hours and he didn't even get off the sofa to say hi when we got back. 

NickJohnson

elsien said:

Have a look at the flitting game.
The idea is that if the dog is upset, it’s already too late so you need to look at small steps before they get to that state.
It’s in here if you scroll down a bit, 

Thanks! I can't watch my buddy is struggling when I'm out...

lemontarts

I agree with sheramber! Having a routine will help your dog get adjusted to the signs that you're leaving her alone for some time.