Treating Separation Anxiety in Dogs
by Claire Anderson, CSAP-BC, FDM, CPDT-KA, FFCP
Separation anxiety is no picnic. It causes severe stress for the dog and their human. It can also have a major emotional, social, and financial impact. But by teaming up with a veterinarian and a qualified separation anxiety trainer, you can dramatically improve both the lives of the dog and the human.
What is separation anxiety?
Separation anxiety is a term that is used to describe a variety of conditions. Generally, it is severe stress experienced when the dog is left alone or is away from another individual or group. It may also include separation or barrier frustration. The treatment is similar no matter what the case, and for many dogs, it’s a combination of these conditions.
When a dog is left alone or is without their person or buddy, they panic. The body is flooded with stress hormones. When this happens repeatedly, the dog becomes hyper-vigilant, constantly watching for signs they might be left behind. This constant state of stress, along with the panic brought on by actual absences, contributes to a cycle of stress chemical production. It makes it impossible for a dog to learn to feel safe without behavioral—and many times medical—intervention.
Hyper-attachment is a kind of separation anxiety in which the dog is attached to one person. When they are without this specific person, they suffer from severe fear and stress. Chronic anxiety and hyper-vigilance usually accompany this condition as they are always worried their person is leaving. Management can be especially difficult in these cases.
What causes separation anxiety?
Many people assume they caused their dog's separation anxiety by spending too much time with them, "babying" them, or not crate training them. This is simply not true, and blaming yourself does no good. Actually, separation anxiety develops due to many factors including but not limited to:
genetic predisposition
a scary experience when they are alone
moving or re-homing
illness, injury, or chronic pain
changes in the family dynamic
a traumatizing experience (not directly related to being left)
recurring, overlong absences
a lack of secure attachment (see Grisha Stewart's S.A.F.E)
The risk factors for separation anxiety are infinite and not entirely known. Most often, it is a combination of things. Usually, I find that there is a large genetic component, which is then added to with life experience and environment.
Signs of Separation Anxiety
If you’ve found this article by googling '“does my dog have separation anxiety?”, your dog very likely does have separation anxiety.
If a dog shows severe signs of stress when they are left alone or without a specific person, they likely have separation anxiety. What does this look like? Here are some of the signs that a dog might be suffering from separation anxiety:
panting, pacing, drooling, salivating, retching, freezing, hypervigilance, whale eyes, frantic destruction, escape attempts, accidental or deliberate self-harm, shaking, cowering, vomiting, tail tucking, sweaty paws, inappropriate elimination*, whining, howling, barking
This list is not exhaustive, but these are some of the major signs. Your dog probably won’t exhibit all of them, but if any of the above indications are happening then it is worth seeking help.**
*Inappropriate elimination may or may not be a sign of separation anxiety. Sometimes it’s just a sign of incomplete potty training or a medical condition that causes them to have to eliminate more often.
**If these behaviors are also happening when you are home, it is still severe stress, but may not be separation-related.
If you think your dog might be suffering from separation anxiety, the first thing to do is to contact an experienced trainer, consultant, or behaviorist. They will help you implement a customized and comprehensive treatment program that fits you and your dog. I can help!
You will also want to discuss it with your veterinarian. If your veterinarian doesn’t have separation anxiety experience, recommend a vet-to-vet consult with a veterinary behaviorist or seek a second opinion from a vet with more behavior knowledge. Effective separation anxiety treatment requires a team. It takes a village!
Action steps
So your dog has separation anxiety. You are not alone. Here are your marching orders:
Make a promise to your dog that you will never again push them past the point of discomfort.
Make a management plan. Rally the troops; it takes a village. The dog will need care whenever their people cannot be with them.
Look at present physical health (it's time to bring a qualified veterinarian on board now.)
Bring a qualified trainer on board (that’s me!)
Now that I’m on board, you can breathe easy. I will help guide you through this. You’ve got a team: you, your dog, your vet, your friends/family, and me. The following steps are ones we will do together:
Discuss nutraceuticals and diet.
Review your current exercise and enrichment plan; modify it if necessary.
Determine what amount of time your dog is comfortable being left (before stress signs appear.)
Create the initial mission and practice it.
Homework will be provided and should be completed as planned, taking a couple of days off for rest and decompression.
We will check in via video call once per week.
We will ALWAYS immediately come back if the dog is experiencing fear, stress, or anxiety.
How does separation anxiety treatment work?
No two separation anxiety treatment programs are the same. Every dog is an individual and every environment is unique. Generally speaking, the program will follow a similar outline but will vary depending on individual needs. With all separation anxiety programs, we use systematic desensitization.
SYSTEMATIC DESENSITIZATION
A gradual, controlled exposure to increasingly intense stimuli to increase the animal’s tolerance of the stimulus. The starting intensity and rate of increase in the intensity should be slow enough not to provoke an appreciable fear response in the animal.
-The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior
For dogs with separation anxiety, the stimulus is being left alone, so we gradually work toward longer absences, without provoking a fear response. The more the dog is exposed to absences they perceive as safe, the longer the absences can be. However, this must be done carefully.
Items needed for your program
You will need a few things to work through this with your dog.
A webcam (ideally two) connected to a phone/tablet and computer
An internet connection
A journal
A timer
A safe space
Window clings or coverings (in some cases)
Fan, white/brown noise (in some cases)
Baby gate or pen (in some cases)
Listen, I’ve been there myself. I know how hard it is. It feels exhausting, frustrating, and isolating. You feel like your whole life revolves around your dog, who you adore, but are beginning to resent (which you feel guilty for.) It is important to remember that your dog did not choose this. They are suffering very real panic when they are left. They are terrified. It is a condition that you are both suffering in different ways—together. But here’s the good news: together, you can beat it. By teaming up with a veterinarian and me, you can dramatically improve both of your lives!
