From paws to panic: Handling separation anxiety in pooches

Separation anxiety is quite common in pets and can often lead to destructive behaviour. Learn how to cope with it without causing any distress to your furry friend.

–by Garima Singhal

One of the most common worries that pet parents face is to leave their beloved furry friend alone at home. Some pet parents report that their pets are disruptive or destructive when they leave them alone at home. The pet might urinate, defecate, bark, howl, chew, dig or try to escape. These are often signs of distress at your departure because in the pet’s mind, he is not sure if you will come back or not. If these problems are accompanied with other distress behaviours such as drooling and showing anxiety when the human family is about to leave the house, they aren’t indication that the pet isn’t house trained or doesn’t know which toys to chew and which things aren’t his to destroy. These are clear indications of separation anxiety.

Beyond barks – understanding anxious behaviour

He is upset because the humans they are so attached to are about to depart the house and separation anxiety is setting in. Escape attempts by pets with separation anxiety are often extreme and can lead to self-injury and household destruction, especially at exit points like doors or windows.

Separation anxiety manifests itself in many ways. Some pets get distressed and anxious when the humans are about to leave. Others are anxious and depressed when the humans aren’t present. Some try to prevent their guardians from leaving. A pet with separation anxiety will start displaying signs within minutes of humans leaving, these are signs of distress. When the humans return, the pet will act like they haven’t seen you in years!

Symptoms to lookout for

• Urinating and defecating: When a pet urinates or defecates when left home alone despite being housebroken, this isn’t a sign of poor house training. This indicates that your furry friend is not able to deal with the stress of being left home alone.
• Barking, whining, and howling: Persistent barking and howling when left home alone, such that your neighbors complain is a clear sign of separation anxiety in pets. This kind of vocalization is triggered when you leave your pet alone at home.
• Chewing, digging, and destruction: Some pets with separation anxiety chew on furniture, door frames, bedding etc. They dig into beds, under door frames, and destroy household objects. These behaviours can lead to injury, broken or injured claws, broken teeth, and damaged nails.
• Escaping: Some pets may even escape from their homes. They might walk or trot along a specific path in a fixed pattern when left alone by their guardians. Some move in a circular pattern. These behaviours are generally caused by separation anxiety and should not be ignored.
• Coprophagia: When left alone or separated from their guardians, some pets defecate and consume all of their excrement. If your furry friend is showing coprophagia, or consumption of poop or excrement but in the absence of a guardian, this is a clear sign of separation anxiety.

Facets of Stimulated vs True separation anxiety

In the case of stimulated separation anxiety,the pet’s behaviour appears to be separation anxiety but it is, in fact, a learned behavior. It is often manifested when your furry friend lacks self-control. The pet knows that he will get attention if he acts badly. For some pets, even verbal reprimand for destructive or bad behaviour is attention and reward because he feels noticed.

Navigating the trials of doggy distress

Separation anxiety is often unknowingly encouraged by pet parents. We make a big fuss when we leave or come home and in doing so, we reward the pet’s concern with our absence, causing more stress every time we leave. We like them with us when they are puppies and take them everywhere we go, and then suddenly, we leave them alone at home. Staying peacefully at home is a training that should be imparted in pets since an early age.

We are their source of confidence and security and when this security blanket is taken away from them, they panic. A change in routine can also cause separation anxiety in pets. But keep in mind that destruction and stress can come out of boredom and lack of exercise. Often, change of owner or family membership or change of residence can also result in separation anxiety in pets.

Soothing the soulful whines

If your pet suffers from separation anxiety, counter-conditioning might help solve the problem. Counter-conditioning is a treatment process that change an animal’s fearful, anxious or aggressive reaction to a pleasant and relaxed one. It is done by associating the sight or presence of a feared or disliked person, object, or situation with something good and something that your pet appreciates.

Over time, your pet will learn that what he fears actually brings nothing but good things for him. For pets with separation anxiety, counter-conditioning focuses on developing an association between being left alone and good things that the pet really likes for example – food or treats. To make this association, every time you leave the house, leave a Kong toy, stuffed with food that your pet is find of. It will take him 20 – 30 minutes to get to all the kibble. You can even make a complicated kong recipe and freeze the whole thing so it will take your furry friend even longer to get to the very last morsel. Make sure you remove these special toys as soon as you get home.

For pets with severe separation anxiety, this approach might not work, because they won’t even be interested in food when you are not around. In such extreme cases, it is crucial to accustom the pet to be left alone for short periods of times and gradually increase the home alone time. This is an approach that will take more time and patience but it won’t trigger an anxiety episode in your pet.

Desensitisation and counter-conditioning are complex and can be tricky to carry out. Fear must be avoided at all costs or the technique will backfire and your pet will get more frightened. Since this requires reading the body language of your pet and acting accordingly, it might be wise to consult a behaviourist.