Last Updated on October 11, 2021 by Dogs Vets
Separation Anxiety in Dogs: Here’s How to Calm Your Dog Before You Leave
Is your dog getting nervous when you are ready to leave the house? Do they feel extra happy when you come back home? Are they destroying your shoes, chewing the corners off while you are gone?
Well! Dogs are social animals. But if you don’t equip them to stay alone from time to time, it will start showing in their behavior. And in case your dog is showing all the symptoms mentioned above, it might be suffering from separation anxiety.
You might be thinking, why is it happening to your bundle of joy, right? Read on to learn more about separation anxiety and what you can do to avoid it.
For now, let’s understand why your dog is feeling this way!
Separation Anxiety: Why is it Happening to Your Dog?
Separation anxiety is a phase where your dog gets super attached to you and starts getting stressed the moment you leave your home. Remember, it won’t be whining alone. It will begin to cause ruckus the moment you are out of your house.
But what causes them to behave like this in the first place?
Many reasons might be triggering their anxiety levels. These include:
- They aren’t used to being alone, or you left them alone for the first time.
- There is a change of ownership.
- Change in the home (from shelter to home).
- Change in routine.
- Loss of a family member.
So, how do you know they are suffering from separation anxiety? They might start chewing things, digging holes, scratching doors, along with other obsessive patterns. Besides that, dogs with separation anxiety often bark or howl excessively, and might even show signs of insomnia where they are unable to sleep at their usual scheduled time.
Spotting any one of the signs indicates that you need to act fast, or it will start impacting your dog’s health severely.
How to Treat it?
First, make sure to talk to the veterinarian to rule out any other medical condition. If that’s not the case and the problem is still mild, you can try the following tips to help your dog.
- Prepare a special treat for your dog and give them while you’re gone. Make sure to take it back when you’re back.
- Don’t include a lot of greetings when you go or come back home. Try and ignore your dog for the first few minutes when you’re home.
- You can leave behind a piece of cloth or more that smells like you for your dog.
- Consider giving them natural calming supplements like CBD oil for dogs.
You can also trick your dog. For instance, if you think they are feeling anxious when you put on clothes. Do what you do before going out, but don’t leave for some time. Let them sit down and distract them somewhere else, and then go away when they aren’t looking.
Wrapping up
Doing the tips mentioned above repeatedly will help them understand your routine better and get back to their usual self pretty quickly. You can try leaving them for smaller time frames and gradually increase their time, so they get accustomed to this and don’t suffer from separation anxiety anymore.
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