While as much as 50% of dogs appear to be exhibiting signs of separation anxiety according to a recent survey, few dog owners are aware of what the symptoms of separation anxiety in dogs are, let alone how to spot them early on.
Of the many forms that dog anxiety can take, the hardest symptoms to miss are the extreme ones such as your dog being destructive while you're out. If they've chewed up your furniture or scratched your paintwork to pieces, its difficult to miss! Yet more subtle symptoms, such as your dog following you around the house all day like your permanent shadow may go unnoticed.
Don't Confuse Bad Dog Behaviour with Symptoms of Dog Separation Anxiety
Lots of dogs suffering from separation anxiety are just labelled as badly behaved by their owners who aren't aware of how many different ways that anxiety can show itself in dogs.
Some dog owners believe that their dog behaves badly to punish them for leaving the dog home alone. They think that the dog has urinated or pooped in the house on purpose - almost to teach them a lesson. It's amazing how many times I've had it said to me in my role as a dog trainer and its clear that many dog owners have no idea what anxiety can drive a dog to do.
While problems of dog anxiety remain unidentified the likelihood of treating it in the right way is greatly reduced and the chances of treating it in the wrong way, and even making the problem worse is increased.
Increasingly, the dogs that end up in rescue homes because dog owners are unable to correct their behaviour through training or other means, show signs of dog separation anxiety behaviour.
How To Tell The Difference Between Attention Seeking Behavior and Dog Anxiety
One of the difficulties of identifying dog anxiety symptoms lies in trying to tell the difference between this and attention seeking behaviour, because from the outside it can look like exactly the same piece of behaviour.
You could attribute 3 different reasons to a dog urinating in the house, for example:
*A clear sign of anxiety
*A dog who does it to get your attention
*A dog challenging your status as leader of the pack
The key here is that it's only separation anxiety if they do it while you're out. A dog that is urinating in the house while the owner is in, is much more like to be to trying to get their owner's attention or trying to assert their dominance.
All dogs are different, which means the kind of behaviour they show will differ too, so the only way to correctly identify anxiety is to watch your dog carefully for a while. For example, notice whether they are chewing your favourite shoes while you're around and can see them, or only when you've left them alone. Remember that even negative attention like you being cross is still attention to your dog.
Symptoms to watch out for include excessive barking, whining or howling while you're out, destructive behaviour such as scratching at doors and furniture, chewing everything in sight, or peeing and pooping in the house.
The Right Information and the Right Approach to Training Will Make all the Difference to Your Dog's Anxiety
You can get more detailed information on all the major dog anxiety symptoms and learn what their behaviour means and why they're doing it so you can approach getting rid of the problem with confidence.
If you think your dog is suffering with dog separation anxiety, you really need to start to sort it out now, before it gets any worse. It's simply not going to disappear without your help. Though that doesn't mean it has to be hard work - doing the right things in the right way at the right time is all it takes.
Of the many forms that dog anxiety can take, the hardest symptoms to miss are the extreme ones such as your dog being destructive while you're out. If they've chewed up your furniture or scratched your paintwork to pieces, its difficult to miss! Yet more subtle symptoms, such as your dog following you around the house all day like your permanent shadow may go unnoticed.
Don't Confuse Bad Dog Behaviour with Symptoms of Dog Separation Anxiety
Lots of dogs suffering from separation anxiety are just labelled as badly behaved by their owners who aren't aware of how many different ways that anxiety can show itself in dogs.
Some dog owners believe that their dog behaves badly to punish them for leaving the dog home alone. They think that the dog has urinated or pooped in the house on purpose - almost to teach them a lesson. It's amazing how many times I've had it said to me in my role as a dog trainer and its clear that many dog owners have no idea what anxiety can drive a dog to do.
While problems of dog anxiety remain unidentified the likelihood of treating it in the right way is greatly reduced and the chances of treating it in the wrong way, and even making the problem worse is increased.
Increasingly, the dogs that end up in rescue homes because dog owners are unable to correct their behaviour through training or other means, show signs of dog separation anxiety behaviour.
How To Tell The Difference Between Attention Seeking Behavior and Dog Anxiety
One of the difficulties of identifying dog anxiety symptoms lies in trying to tell the difference between this and attention seeking behaviour, because from the outside it can look like exactly the same piece of behaviour.
You could attribute 3 different reasons to a dog urinating in the house, for example:
*A clear sign of anxiety
*A dog who does it to get your attention
*A dog challenging your status as leader of the pack
The key here is that it's only separation anxiety if they do it while you're out. A dog that is urinating in the house while the owner is in, is much more like to be to trying to get their owner's attention or trying to assert their dominance.
All dogs are different, which means the kind of behaviour they show will differ too, so the only way to correctly identify anxiety is to watch your dog carefully for a while. For example, notice whether they are chewing your favourite shoes while you're around and can see them, or only when you've left them alone. Remember that even negative attention like you being cross is still attention to your dog.
Symptoms to watch out for include excessive barking, whining or howling while you're out, destructive behaviour such as scratching at doors and furniture, chewing everything in sight, or peeing and pooping in the house.
The Right Information and the Right Approach to Training Will Make all the Difference to Your Dog's Anxiety
You can get more detailed information on all the major dog anxiety symptoms and learn what their behaviour means and why they're doing it so you can approach getting rid of the problem with confidence.
If you think your dog is suffering with dog separation anxiety, you really need to start to sort it out now, before it gets any worse. It's simply not going to disappear without your help. Though that doesn't mean it has to be hard work - doing the right things in the right way at the right time is all it takes.
About the Author:
Tony Knight has been training dogs for over 10 years and has used his knowledge of successfully helping many dogs and their owners, to create a free report to help you interpret dog anxiety symptoms. Get your copy by visiting his blog which is all about Dog Anxiety
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