LIFESTYLE NEWS - Dogs are social creatures. Like us, they really hate it to be away from a person or other dog they had formed a strong bond with. In dogs that develop separation anxiety, stress hormones get released when they are left alone. 

To them such an event is very stressful. Signs that your dog may experience this might include continuous barking, howling, pacing, destroying things, urinating, defecating etc. 

If they destroy your shoes or bite the furniture, they are not trying to get back at you or to be spiteful. They are experiencing more stress than they can handle and these behaviours are their attempts at coping with it in any possible way. 

In some severe cases, such dogs will even hurt themselves trying to get out of their situations. They might jump through closed windows and chew on wooden doors.

So if your dog has these symptoms, what do you do? For starters, such dogs should not be left alone until treated. Ask a home-based friend if your dog can stay at their place during the day, or take him to a doggy day care. 

To leave such a dog alone will worsen the condition and he might cause serious injury to himself and pretty much destroy your house. You might also end up getting angry neighbours in the process. 

Then, get help from a qualified behaviourist to evaluate your dog and to work out a behaviour modification programme. This will differ from dog to dog and in severity with each specific case.

Firstly, to diagnose separation anxiety, you need to make sure he is displaying symptoms. That can be done by setting up a video recorder when you go out. In most cases, a dog that just barks when you leave is not experiencing separation anxiety, but pure boredom. 

When they are bored because they don't have anything to do, they keep themselves busy by barking. It is self-rewarding to them and fun. Why? Because they are dogs and that is what dogs do. Such behaviours are much easier to handle, as a good quality stuffed toy, or trying to find nice treats you had hidden all over the place, will give him something to do. 

If he is chewing on something, he will stop barking. Enrichment tools work well too. And no, to get another dog might not be the answer. You might end up with two barking dogs.

For more information on separation anxiety in dogs feel free to mail us at george@rehabdogworks.com.

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