The Anxious Dog

The Problem

The anxious dog is one who suffers from feelings of social isolation. Dogs are pack animals and many do not take it very well when they are left on their own to “defend their territory.” There is safety in numbers for pack oriented animals, and what the anxious dog needs is a secure and comfortable place to stay when he is left behind. Once again, a kennel crate may be the tool of choice. Introduce the dog to the crate in a positive manner. Never use the crate for punishment. This is your dog’s den — he should be happy and secure when he’s inside. As with the lonely dog, there should be no long, emotional goodbyes. However, before you leave his chew toy with him in his crate, rub the toy between your palms. This action imparts your scent to the toy and tends to focus the dog on this object rather than something else.

Some dogs can become anxious when left alone or when their family isn’t present. One common symptom of separation anxiety can be destructive chewing. While treatment can sometimes be tricky, here are tips that may help your dog feel more comfortable when alone.

How to help your dog

Give him plenty of physical and mental stimulation prior to leaving.
Crate or confine your dog to a single room when he’s home alone. If your dog is not crate trained or the crate causes additional stress, try switching to confining him one room.
Be sure to remove things from his environment that he should not chew.
Never use the crate for punishment.
Consider adding a daily supplement like Calming Care to his food to help manage anxiety.
Provide him with a high-value treat like a Kong. Before leaving him in his crate, rub the Kong or toy between your palms.
Once the acceptable treat has your scent, it may help focus your dog on this object.
Make your departure and return home calm. No prolonged goodbyes or excited hellos.
Start with leaving your dog home alone for very short periods of time. The goal is to return before he becomes anxious and starts chewing everything and anything.
Once your dog becomes comfortable being alone for shorter periods of time, slowly increase it.

If your dog is hurting himself trying to escape the crate and suffers severe separation anxiety, speak to your veterinarian about recommendations on how to calm your dog. Another way to help your pup is to contact an animal behavior consultant.

Excellent results have been obtained by using the following exercise to re-orient the dog’s chewing habits. Take away all of the dog’s former chewies, and replace them with a meat-scented nylon bone (NylaboneTM is one such toy). Make this bone the focus of a fetch and play session at least twice a day. The combination of the owner’s scent with the meat scent makes it an appealing object on which to chew. Since the toy bone has now become the focus of intense interaction between the dog and the owner, the vast majority of dogs will aim their chewing at it.

As with the lonely dog, the anxious dog should be confined to his crate for the first two weeks when home alone. Beginning with the third week, leave the dog in his crate with the door open for a period of time not to exceed 20 minutes. If you return home to any signs of destruction, shorten the length of time that you are gone until you arrive at a time span that is successful. From that point on, SLOWLY increase the length of time that you are gone until you have reached your goal. If at any time, you come home to destruction, go backward in time at least two steps and maintain that time frame for at least a week; then proceed with the schedule as planned.

If you find your dog is bloodying his paws or otherwise hurting himself trying to escape the crate, another course of action needs to be taken. For cases of severe separation anxiety, an applied animal behavior or other behavior consultant should be employed. This serious problem will need an individualized behavior modification program and possibly drug therapy to be resolved.

The Puppy

The Problem

Chewing is a common complaint among those caring for dogs younger than one-year-old. Part investigation, part teething, and all fun, chewing is a rewarding activity likely to be repeated.

How to help a teething puppy

Create a safe puppy-proofed area or crate.
Get down at puppy eye level to scope out potential problems.
When you cannot supervise your puppy, place him in the approved, safe area with an inedible chew or puzzle toy.
Invest in a variety of chew toys appropriate to the size and chewing preferences of your dog.
Always observe your puppy chewing in new toys closely to make sure they’re suitable.
Throw away any damaged toys or sticky remains.
Alternate the chews to maintain interest.
Save the most desirable chews and toys for crate time or when the puppy is left alone.

Every new puppy or dog owner should expect a certain amount of destruction from curiosity-based or tension-relieving oral tendencies of the pet. The solution to the problem lies in removing the environmental cause and guiding the dog towards the appropriate objects to chew. The above-mentioned preventive and corrective approaches will help to minimize and ultimately solve the problem while allowing the dog to develop a healthy relationship with you.

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