My puppy has seperation anxiety. We would just let him get used to being alone in the kennel or even a room BUT living in an apartment, we don't want to get complaints about the yelping and howling. It sounds as if someone is beating him :-(. Here are the details:
- He is a "I wanna please you" puppy, who can already sit, down, drop-it, shake, and working on roll-over in a very short amount of time.
- When we kennel him, leave him alone in a room, or leave him in the apartment alone, he yowls
- when we are home he follows us everywhere... even to the washroom (he has designated himself a spot in there while we do our business
- When I go in the tub and let him in the bathroom so I don't have to worry about him bugging neighbors he will try to, and usually succeed at jumping in the tub. Needless to say, that isn't a relaxing bath
- we have tried leaving the TV on, leaving stuff with our scent in the kennel, leaving for short periods of time and for long periods.
Any tips?
2007-09-21 17:44:23 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
You're on the right track with leaving him for short periods of time - I would continue to pretend to leave your house whenever you think of it. Pick up your keys, put on your coat, go out the door....and then come back in again, ignoring your dog throughout. Don't let your dog follow you all around the house - shut the door behind you, and then when you re-appear, ignore your dog. Any fuss that you make over him will continue to make his anxiety worse - so make greetings nonexistent or as boring as possible.
Getting the D.A.P. diffuser may help:
http://www.medi-vet.com/DAP.aspx
as will Melatonin:
http://www.justaboutyourdog.com/A_New_Cure_For_Separation_Anxiety.php
Good luck!
2007-09-21 17:55:42 · answer #1 · answered by Misa M 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
More exersize.
Apartment dogs need a good run everyday. Tired dogs are well behaved dogs.
Boredom comes with intellegence. The smarter the dog (and you have a smart one, learning fast like that means his brain needs something to occupy it), the more it takes to keep them entertained. Consider taking up a sport. Look into Flyball, agility, and other clubs in your area.
Get the toys that dispense food while they're played with.
Kong filled with food and frozen is another good one.
Ignore him when you come home. For the first 10-15 minutes when you walk in the door, DO NOT talk to him, touch him or anything. Put your stuff away, sort your mail, fix a snack/start dinner, pretend that you don't have a dog.
After 15 minutes, tell him to sit, THEN pet him. QUIETLY! Do not rile him up with high pitch voices, or add any more "drama" to the situation.
Obedience training. Take a class or find a book.
Hire a pet sitting company. They will come in and walk him when you're at work. It might be a good solution if you have a high energy, high maintenence breed.
2007-09-21 18:06:23 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to crate train this puppy in a big way. Buy a book on crate training, and just do it. Yes for the first night or two, and first day or two away, the puppy will cry. Get over it. It's a small price to pay to not have that kind of issue. If you don't, he'll get destructive as he gets older.
The biggest problem is that you allow this behavior. By not doing anything to change it, you're condoning these actions. You're the boss, don't ever forget that. Put a stop to it before it gets out of control.
2007-09-21 17:54:32 · answer #3 · answered by joecon113 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Depending on how old the puppy is and how recently you got him, he may be missing the warmth and heartbeat of his mom and littermates. Try keeping a hotwater bottle filled with warm water, wrapped in a towel, inside the cage. If you happen to have anything that ticks (an old wind up clock or something), try wrapping that up and sticking it in the cage as well.
Another thing to work with him on is to "be quiet" or "enough." The moment he stops barking after you give him the command, reward him. If this doesn't work, then use a small spray bottle that you can easily squirt at him the moment he disobeys. You may also try closing his mouth with your hands and give him the command. You might have to use a bit of pressure for him to get the message. I have heard that mother dogs will sometimes do a similar thing to their pups in order to shut them up.
Hope this helps and good luck!
2007-09-21 18:09:10 · answer #4 · answered by jfluterpicc_98 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my dog Mason is 8 months old now. he was the same way when we first brought him home and we also live in an apartment. he has to learn how to be alone! too much dependency on "mom and dad" is bad, he'll develop seperation anxiety or stress disorder or something. only two possible solutions here..... one, get him a friend. two, suffer through it. he won't howl forever. puppies sleep alot.
2007-09-21 17:56:11 · answer #5 · answered by jenn842512 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He's really attached to you. You can try a sonic bark collar that beeps when he howls. It is really effective. Just take his tags off and put the bark collar on, and he'll learn not to howl very fast. Alternatively, you could ask your vet to put him on anti anxiety meds so he'll calm down.
2007-09-21 18:40:49 · answer #6 · answered by Bambi 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When the puppy howl horribly that means they need food or something
2007-09-21 17:56:03 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
sounds like you doing it right he just dont like to be a lone he will grow out of it soon keep doing what you are doing.... maybe get some toys
2007-09-21 17:56:10 · answer #8 · answered by infoman89032 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋