I have heard that somewhere... and maybe that explains why they go CRAZY every time my boyfriend gets home from work...
2006-11-05 15:32:10 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
dogs by nature are social and a pack animal and you are (or should be) the pack leader, so if you leave your dog behind when you go out they can think you are abandoning them, more so when they are young. however as time goes by they should adjust and get used to it. some dogs do seem to suffer "separation anxiety" more than others but from my experience they also tended to have slightly neurotic owners as well. lol.
2006-11-05 15:55:51 · answer #1 · answered by robsta 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Dogs really have no concept of time. They don't know how long you have been gone. BUT, they sure know when you are returning. We have watched our dogs and they know when someone is coming home before they can even see the car in the distance. They also have short attention spans. If everyone is home and the dogs haven't seen you in a couple hours, just walk in the room where the dog is and you get the same attention as when you return from the outside.
They seem to make up for the senses we don't use to the fullest. They don't have to tell time. Besides I think a lot goes on when we are not at home and they are not going to share that with us. Does your dog (s) ever have a guilty look?
2006-11-05 16:13:57 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Puppies have a distorted conception of time. You may be gone for an hour to them it seems like days. To break my 13 week old Bichonpoo of the crying habit I would put her in her pen and walk outside to the drive to get the paper a 5 minute trip. After doing this a few days I extended that to make it a 10 minute period I was gone. I gradually increased the periods I was gone so that she saw I was always coming back. Now when I put her in her pen whether it is for bedtime or for me to go out without her she does not cry.
2006-11-05 15:48:48 · answer #3 · answered by ESPERANZA 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Dogs have no concept of time (or the future for that matter) - they are living for "now". They don't know about "later" or if your intentions are to come back in a few minutes, hours, weeks etc.
Maybe, when you return, they remember that you left and they are so thankful that you came back to them.
2006-11-05 15:48:42 · answer #4 · answered by David R 1 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I think it's quite possible. This would explain anxious chewing when the owner isn't home. Some dogs feel more strongly than others on this subject (those who have previously been abandoned, for example).
2006-11-05 15:52:33 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I dont think so. Sometimes it seems like my dog knows when I'm coming home. And I always tell him and my cats that I will be right back and for my dog to watch over the cats. It's weird, sometimes I think he understands me.
2006-11-05 16:27:36 · answer #6 · answered by valerie v 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Mine seemed to think so for a few days when we had first gotten them. Now they know better. They still get excited when I get home, but that's just because they love their mama!
2006-11-05 15:35:29 · answer #7 · answered by Courtney 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
i dont think thats true. dogs are smarter than that! if youve had your dog for years, and your dog has seen you come and go PLENTY of times, im sure they'll get the point that youre not leaving forever.
2006-11-05 15:36:05 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Definitely true. My pet Chihuahua has been diagnosed with separation anxiety.
2006-11-06 06:51:32 · answer #9 · answered by Mr. BIG 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes
2006-11-05 15:34:51 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋