5 Tips for Dogs with Separation Anxiety

December 16, 2018

The heartbreaking whimpers can be heard down the hall.

The cries and door scratching every morning when you leave for work. Separation anxiety can come in many breeds including the Mastiff puppies for sale at Petland. If you are concerned and wondering how to help your dog, read on for five tips for dogs with separation anxiety.

Limit How Much Time Your Dog is Left Alone

This one is tough especially if you work full-time, but you may need to adjust your schedule or hire a dog walker to come once or twice a day so your pup isn’t alone for too long.

Create a Comfortable Confinement Zone

Pick a place in your house where your dog will stay when you leave. In our years of connecting parents with Mastiff puppies for sale, we know that these larger breeds can become destructive when left alone. If your dog is destructive when you’re gone, try and pick a place where minimal damage can be caused to both your home and your pup.

Ease Into the Confinement Area

Place your dog in the containment area along with a nice dog bed and a soft item such as a t-shirt or towel that carries your scent. The scent item provides comfort. Scatter a few treats in the confinement area. Close the gate and move a short distance away but remain in sight. How far you should go depends on your dog. If he normally becomes distressed even when you move just a foot away, start that close to him. Sit on the floor or on a chair just outside the confinement area. If he’s already comfortable with you sitting a few feet away, start there.

Desensitize the Cues of Departure

Most dogs with separation anxiety pick up pretty quickly on all your departure cues and start getting stressed before you leave. So you need to desensitize your dog to those cues and throw him off his game. Start picking up your keys, but then just sitting down. Put on your jacket, then don’t leave. Put on your shoes, but take him out. Do this many times during the day. When you do actually leave, put him in his alone zone and very mellowly leave. No big, long, goodbyes.

Setting Boundaries

If your dog sleeps in your bed under the covers, We recommend doing what you can to get your dog on his own bed in your bedroom. In addition, if your dog is constantly on your lap or is incapable of leaving your side, try to encourage him to play with stuffed toys or bones on his own. Use games of tug or fetch at times when you can really interact with him versus just letting him velcro to you whenever you’re home. Take him in the car and on field trips to the pet store or park to help broaden his world beyond just you.

The above exercises need to be practiced every day. There’s no quick fix, but there is hope.