Separation Anxiety: Does your dog go crazy when you leave? Here’s what to do!

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You Today’s videos carpenter by you and Sponsored by s local dogs are species That coexist with us as people because We bred them to interact with people so It would certainly make sense that many Dogs would kind of stress when we leave Because they can’t be with us all the Time so if your dog whines or barks or Chews and claws at the door there’s a Good chance they might have separation Anxiety I’m going to tell you what to do About that in today’s video make sure You are subscribed to my videos so you Get to see all of them and get the Latest advice I have to offer also click Thumbs up to show your support for our Videos like me on Facebook to get the Most out of our dog training community At facebook.com slash these act Georgia And consider becoming a patron on Patreon comm slash Zac George with a Contribution of two to five dollars a Month that will help us make even better Videos for you how does your dog act When you leave him or her alone tell me In the comments below now let’s go in And meet Meera and Colston and find out What’s going on Meera tell me a little Bit about Colston’s personality he’s a Very happy dog he’s very playful he is Extremely extremely sweet um he loves Love people wait wait you say he loves People and I’ll tell you something when

I met him a couple of days ago I came Over here to meet you guys and he went Crazy when he saw me out there he was Like who are you what are you doing over Here What was all that about whenever he Needs someone for the first time it’s Often what happens he just needs a Little bit of time just to get to know You and then there’s a switch that Happens and it’s just okay let me go get My ball I’m ready to play we actually Got him right before he made it to the SPCA so he’s we think he’s a little Older than three and we’ve had him for a Little bit more than two years now the The foster house where we got him from Told us that he was a German Shepherd Weimaraner man yeah he’s a giant dog he Really is he’s a gentle giant though Exactly he is usually he’s about usually The main issue we have is that he has Really really bad separation anxiety um So he hates when we leave he’s really Really attached to to my husband and I And we unfortunately whenever we go to Work every day we have to kennel him Because otherwise he destroys everything Whenever one of us leaves in the car He’s crying Trying to jump over the fence you Actually put him in the kennel when you Leave now for some dogs with Separation anxiety that can spell

Disaster and it depends on the dog Though when he’s in the kennel does he Tend to bite at the kennel or anything Like that to your knowledge in the past – we’ve tried to put an old t-shirt in There no piece of clothing so that he Feels more comfortable but then we come Back and it’s in a million pieces oh Gosh alright so if you leave things in There sometimes he’ll destroy those but He doesn’t necessarily cause himself Harm while in the crate and that’s good Because there are varying degrees of Separation anxiety it really just Depends on the dog with the dog that is Likely to cause themselves harm we would Never want to put them in a crate it can Vary tremendously as to why certain dogs Behave this way do you have any Knowledge as to his past we were told That with his first family he was in the Kennel for extended periods of time 24 Hours 36 hours so we think that he got That from his first family I see so even Being in a kennel he has this like early Experience signs of this behavior are Often following you around the house or Pacing does he do anything like that He’s definitely following us more than Other people he also likes to be in the Same room where we are so let’s say we Take a nap he’s gonna be taking a nap Right next to us Shooing and barking or digging at the

Doors or anything does he do anything Like that these are also very common Signs of separation Zac if one of us Leaves um he’s definitely gonna be at The door barking I’m scratching he’s Been up in the windows to try to get out He loves you guys really that people There are worse problems to have in a Dog than a dog that wants to be with you All the time the plus side is you have a Dog that’s incredibly bonded to you and That is the most essential ingredient When teaching a dog other things the Actual cause of separation anxiety is Unknown there’s not a lot of hard Science on why dogs go through this but In reality I suspect there are a lot of Reasons for this including a traumatic Life experience kind of like you Described early on in life I’ve noticed In my personal experience too when I Work with dogs that have been separated From their mother at a young age that They often will have increased rates of Separation anxiety all that being said Puppies Of the age of five months old will Exhibit a lot of the symptoms of Separation anxiety but the fact is if You have a really young puppy you need To be spending a lot of time with them Anyway it’s also important to mention we Never punish a dog who’s going through These issues we have to be very patient

This can take anywhere from weeks to Months to years to a lifetime with some Dogs depending on their severity one of The things that I hope we can do today Is get him comfortable with being left Alone in a controlled environment in a Room that’s not necessarily his kennel So I think that might help as well so Meera I’d kind of like to assess the Degree of separation anxiety that Colston has what would happen if you Guys drive around the block do you think He’s likely to exhibit this behavior or Definitely he’s already like circling You look at that that’s a sign sometimes That a dog is a bit anxious we can see How he acts here okay wow wow that’s What we call separation anxiety if you Look into his eyes you can tell that He’s like okay where are you going it’s Gonna be okay buddy I’m gonna try and be Sure because I don’t want to freak out Too much here it was clear that Colston Had pretty immediate effects of coping With being left alone I decided to try And engage him to make him more Comfortable and this took about two Seconds to get him into a playful mood Trouble is I’ve got a busy few months And I can’t be here when he’s left alone Colston has now made the decision okay Parents are gone let’s party Definitely textbook separation anxiety He wanted to be with you and was very

Frustrated by the fact that he couldn’t Be with you I’m curious to see what your Existing communication is with MB one of The characteristics of the domestic dog Is that we created them for all intents And purposes to work on our behalf to Work with human beings so it would be Natural that when we leave them that They are a little thrown off by that Dogs like to be with people this is one Of their most interesting and unique Features and one of the reasons they’re Such a special species very smart dog Looking to you directly in the eyes Trying to see what Going to ask next but when you’re Dealing with separation anxiety it’s not A matter of step 1 step 2 step 3 to Teach like we do in obedience does that Make sense we have to address the Underlying issue and why they’re feeling Anxious and try and make them more Comfortable the reason many people Become frustrated with teaching their Dogs as they wait for a real life event To take place like when they’re Confronted with a squirrel and their dog Starts pulling the time to address Behaviors is before they occur and to Set up actual training instances so in The case of separation anxiety we want To make sure that we get our dog Comfortable with being left alone for Six minutes before we leave them alone

For six hours in general with separation Anxiety it’s a good idea to try and get Your dog comfortable in a controlled Area but not necessarily an area that’s Too confined like a crate I wanted to See how Colston did when we left him in Room alone for just a second while we Remained in the house you can see that The second the door closes he Immediately starts to whine because he’s Feeling anxiety and scratching at the Door When you’re rewarding your dog for calm Behavior and not being too anxious you Have to identify those very small Moments of anything that indicates that Their anxiety is subsiding even a little Bit we’re not looking for a calm perfect Dog in these initial stages and Encourage him to be really calm as well You which you would do with a young Child it’s gonna be okay I’ll be right Back that’s kind of the vibe we’re Trying to communicate to our dog right And then you’re gonna shut the door and We’re just gonna wait a few seconds here One two three now go in there reassure Him let him know that you like it focus On tiny bits of progress whenever Dealing with anxiety one of the primary Reasons that dogs become anxious when we Leave is just because they’re bored and They want something to do something like A Kong goes a really long way to

Preoccupying a dog and keeping them Interested in something so they don’t Get so bored so they don’t bark so they Don’t whine and so they don’t become Destructive now the way these work is You can put treats like this inside of Them or you can put peanut butter on the Outside or frozen chicken broth I mean You can get really creative with this And it’s kind of hard to get the treats Out so it keeps them interested engage This their brain a little bit and what Is no cure for separation anxiety it Does help to alleviate any anxiety that Many dogs might be having pet flow has Toys treats accessories and especially Dog food what I love about pet flow comm Is that you can have your dog food Shipped straight to your door you never Have to think about it again you can set Up recurring delivery and you’ll get 15% Off of your first purchase when you Enter code Zac George 15 when you Checkout your free shipping on all Orders over $49 after all discounts are Applied Just visit pet flow comm slash Zac George today hears so much dog do you Understand that petting your dog calmly Encouraging calmness are all things that Will contribute to reducing anxiety Within your dog what I’d like to do Right now is put Colston in the room see If he stays pretty preoccupied with the

Kong and the toy and hopefully his Anxiety will be reduced a little bit if Your dog is an extreme case of Separation anxiety and you’ve got to be Gone for eight hours a day and they’re Likely to hurt themselves if you’re not There then you might want to consider Doing something like doggy daycare where They can be around people while you’re Working through these issues now I’m About to show you guys the single best Thing you can do to dramatically reduce Not only separation anxiety but most Types of anxiety altogether You guessed it exercise now if you have A low-key dog I’ll walk around the block For 10 to 20 minutes first thing in the Morning might do the trick to reduce Their anxiety however if your dog is Really high-energy You’re going to want to play lots of Fetch with them or do something that Really gets their energy out think about How you feel when you exercise you feel A lot better when you’re buzzing after a Workout and you just feel relaxed and Happy your dog won’t feel the same way So get in the habit of doing this before You have to go anywhere for any Significant period of time He’s like a dinosaur okay there are lots Of various aspects of teaching fetch the Most problematic one is letting go or Bringing it back to you I have a

Playlist in the description that will Tell you everything you need to know About teaching your dog fetch if you Have any issues tell me if your dog has Separation anxiety like this if so how Bad is it tell me in the comments below In my next video we’re gonna meet crazy Hyper excited 7 month old puppy Zeus He’s a German Shepherd dog he’s exactly The kind of dog that I knew a lot of you Have We’re going to attempt to teach him how To walk on a leash without pulling that Will definitely be a challenge now if You enjoyed this video click thumbs up Like me on Facebook and consider being a Patron on patreon comm thank you to all Of our patreon supporters you guys are Really helping us go to the next level Can’t wait to see you guys in the next Video it should be a blast We’ll see you next time you need help Teaching your dog how to play fetch Check out 10 tips for teaching fetch did You ever wonder about the dominance myth And dog training that video will explain Everything is your dog nervous of Strangers I’ll show you how to get them More comfortable do you ever wonder how To reward your dog with toys this video Will show you exactly what’s You