I need help with my beagle. Sorry sooo long

Hello all--
I guess this is more of a vent because I don't know if anyone has any suggestions. We got Maggie in September when she was 10 months old. The lady who gave her to me told me that she had to get rid of her because she shed too much. (big lie!!!!) I then find out that she suffers from major separation anxiety.

I tried to put her in our bathroom while we were at work and she destroyed the molding and scratched the door. I then tried to put her in a large crate and she would freak out, poop and roll in it. I would come home to a house that smelled like poop and she had the poop smeared all over her. I would have to give her a bath and wash the crate every day. I told the vet and she gave Maggie an RX for Clomicalm and had me talk to a trainer. He told me to put her in a (really) small crate. I did and she didn't poop. She still freaks out and scratches to get out, pants, and howls but no poop.(She might have an occasional small accident but I think she eats the evidence. ) Whenever I try to upgrade the crate to a bigger size she poops and rolls in it. I have also tried to leave her alone in the house (no crate) to go to Dunkin Donuts or even get my nails done. She freaks out, poops, pees, destroys screen windows and jumps 6 feet in the air when I return.

So, my hubby's controlling aunt loves animals and dog sits Maggie when we are out of town. She is excellent with Maggie and gives her lots of love and lets her sleep on her bed like she is at our house. (Since the aunt still lives at home, her 83 year old mother is home during the day while aunt works- so they don't have to deal with separation issues.) Anyway, she feels that I am abusive because of the small crate and says if I ever come home to find Maggie dead in "that damn box" she will never forgive me. She wanted me to promise her that I will have my contractor build a special fortress for her in one of my bedrooms. I explained to her that I can't build a special place for her in the bedroom. She claims that she can't sleep at night because she worries so much about Maggie.

My hubby had a fight with aunt over this and told her to butt out. Aunt gave me a number for a trainer/behaviorist who she spoke with. So, trainer tells me that she will come to my house for $125 and give me a plan. I am not sure how this will work since she will need to be crated 4 days out of the week until I'm off for the summer. (I teach.)

I want this to work out--I was crying last night because I'm afraid that when the behaviorist comes to my house she will tell me that I need to find a new home for Maggie

I'm sorry this is so long.

--ladybug

PS--now hubby is a little upset because he feels I'm "giving in" to Aunt. I just want my dog to relax.

Re: I need help with my beagle. Sorry sooo long

I am sorry you are going through all of this.

My DH is a veterinarian in Suffolk County, and has heard several raves about Peter Borchelt, a behaviorist. A good friend of mine just used him and is really happy (she reached the end of her rope, also tried Clomicam, different trainers/behaviorists and was ready to put the dog down...her dog was biting guests). She ended up not putting the dog down and as far as I've heard, all is well, and Peter felt the case was a very common one and treatable.

Some people call themselves trainers or behaviorists, and all they did was take some random course, etc. Peter is an expert and well published in the field. Here's some info:

Peter L. Borchelt, Ph.D., received his doctorate in comparative psychology/animal behavior from Michigan State University in 1973. He held a post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Animal Behavior at the American Museum of Natural History from 1972-74. He taught as Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Fordham University from 1974-78. Since 1978, he has worked exclusively helping owners prevent and solve behavior problems in dogs, cats and other animals. He is Director of the Animal Behavior Clinic at the Animal Medical Center, New York city. Dr. Borchelt is President of Animal Behavior Consultants, Inc., Brooklyn, New York. Dr. Borchelt is certified as an Applied Behaviorist by the Animal Behavior Society and has published over 60 articles and chapters in a variety of animal behavior and veterinary journals. He has co-edited four books on applied animal behavior."




Last but not least, here's his phone numbers:

1-800-339-9505, and 718-891-4200.

I hope things work out.

Message edited 5/2/2007 7:51:11 PM.

Re: I need help with my beagle. Sorry sooo long

Many dogs suffer from separation anxiety. My Pug was the worst offender, and he had someone in the house for the majority of the day, but during the one hour that he was alone he would TRASH our house. Because of how his teeth & jaw are, he actually broke his baby teeth trying to chew the tile molding in the bathroom.

We orignally had done things like put on talk TV, so that he would think that someone was home & it would work for a little while, but once DH & I got married & the dog was home alone more often it was not as effective.

Since it was so long ago, and we had very litle involvement in the "pet community" we did not know how to seek quality private training. I would ABSOLUTELY do this first.
Instead we got another dog to keep him company. Although I love all of my dogs, I would not recommend this as a solution, because it does not solve the anxiety issues. I would think that any trainer of good quality and intention would genuinely try to help you, rather than try to tell you to re-home your dog.

Good Luck!

Re: I need help with my beagle. Sorry sooo long

Thank you ladies. Part of me thinks that I should go with a different behaviorist. (not the one that the aunt suggested) She would probably call the behaviorist to check up on Maggie. I know that she is just looking out for the dog but I think that she needs to take a baby step back and not get so involved.
Thanks again