Dog Anxiety

I have a puggle who was abused. Lately he cried whenever we leave. He also barks uncontrollably. He has woken up a few times we think having nightmares.

Any suggestions

TIA

Re: Dog Anxiety

It sounds like he's having some separation anxiety. How long have you had him? What kind of abuse did he have? Have you taken him to dog obedience?

Sorry to ask so many questions, we have 2 dogs that suffered from abuse before we got them, and both handle it in a different way.

One has much more anxiety. We took him to obedience school. He knew his commands and listened, but we needed to make a bond with him and build up his confidence, which it did.

I would suggest -
1. do you let him sleep in your room at night? - Not in your bed, in his own bed. Dogs are pack animals and don't like to be excluded from "the pack" which is you. That might make him feel more secure
2. if he's crying, don't pet him, or try to soothe him, he will take this as reinforcement of the anxious behavior. Try to change what is going on and distract him - pick up a toy, etc.
3. Don't make a big deal or fuss on him when you leave the house or come home. It is difficult, I still have a hard time with this.
4. You may want to take him to the vet if he's that bad to get him anti-anxiety medication, I don't how bad he is.
5. Try dog school, it gives them a huge bump in self esteem, even if he's well behaved otherwise. He'll bond to you more quickly, and it will increase his socialization with other dogs and people, further building his confidence.
6. It sounds terrible, but when we went to dog school, the trainer (she trained Suffolk County K-9), would use a bottle of lemon juice (the one that looks like a lemon) and squeeze just a bit in the dogs mouth when they would bark like crazy. It took 3 squirts of that and Logan decided this was not a good idea. There are also other methods, shaking a jar with pennies in it, they don't like that noise, you can find them on line. All I had to do was pull it out and he stopped. If you pet or try to soothe him when he is barking it is reinforcing the behavior.

Good luck!

Message edited 2/15/2011 7:56:10 AM.

Re: Dog Anxiety

I Irishlass What response!

Re: Dog Anxiety

What Irishlass said.

Another thing - don't undermine him. Abuse in a previous household is more likely our problem than theirs - we hold on to thoughts and feelings like that much more than they do. Form new, positive memories for him and it serves as a re-training of any bad associations.

Think about the dog he could be, and study how you may be affecting his reactions. Don't think of him as an abused dog. Think of him as a dog that needs you to be his rock. His leader, the one who tells him, in no uncertain terms, what to do and how to do it. Sounds bossy, right? It's not - it's what they want. Dogs that have anxiety thrive on repetition, structure, and schedules.

Lastly, the one thing that helps my girl's anxiety more than absolutely anything else is exercise. When I give her that extra 20-30 minutes of fetch or walking or something intense for her, she doesn't whine or lick herself or scratch on the door when I leave. She naps because she's tired.

Re: Dog Anxiety

Totally agree with greenfreak on the exercise - it's huge and they love it - and they also love the time with you! Overall - its' great for everyone!

Re: Dog Anxiety

Our dog is a rescue from the south, so we didn't know his history but I'm positive he was abused. When he arrived he had some serious anxiety issues. After a week, we caved and let him sleep in our room, he was still in his crate but in our room, he was fine. However, when we left the house it was awful. Like your dog, he would bark endlessly, so bad that he was soaking wet when we got home from his salvia.

Some things we did was:

1- buy toys to keep him/her occupied, we got the kong filled it with peanut butter and froze it so it took him a long time to finish.

2- I swear by bone marrow bones. You can get them at the grocery store, this would last days and he loved them.

3- Don't make a big deal when leaving the house, always give him a treat for going in the crate. Try keeping him in the crate for 15mins at a time when you are home so he gets use to it.

4- Training helped a lot. Petco does a training for 6 weeks for $100, well worth it.

Re: Dog Anxiety

I have a puggle too..although he was not abused, I did rescue him from save-a-pet he does cry whenever I leave the house and he is in his cage. I have a dog trainer for both my yorkie and puggle- Her name is Terry; she is wonderful and affordable!

Message edited 2/17/2011 6:33:38 PM.

Re: Dog Anxiety

Message edited 2/17/2011 6:32:34 PM.

Re: Dog Anxiety

I don't have any experience but it looks like others have provided great advice! Always makes me happy to read about a rescued pet getting the help and love he/she needs!