# Seperation Anxiety???



## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Hello, I have an 8 year old golden. He is great but recently it seems that his seperation problem has grown very bad. We leave him in our very open and finished basement with lights and t.v left on for sound. He has water, and also lots of toys. He has been breaking things, moving random objects all over, such as vacuums, a 40lb punching bag, containers of rock salt, pretty much anything. He also was throwing his water bowl around so i put an elevated bowl down there and screwed the wooden frame to the wall. Now he chews the wood and also digs his nose into the wood causing cuts to his nose. He also chewed a baseball sized hole in the door to the garage. Just today he actually started chewing on the door knobs and I don't know how he knows that opens the door?? Could anyone help with this issue? I don't want to crate him because he never has been and I heard it's not good for a dog of his age. ANy help is very appreciated. 

Thanks.


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## Florabora22 (Nov 30, 2008)

Has he always had separation problems or did this come on suddenly?

If he's always had issues, what have you done in the past to help? Does he get enough exercise before you leave him? How do you behave when you leave him?

Right now, the best advice I can give is to pick up EVERYTHING that he can get into (containers of rock salt? Get that out of there!) before you leave so you don't have to come home to such a mess.

I think not crating him is probably a good idea if he gets this upset when you leave. He could seriously harm himself in a crate, although it sounds like the poor guy is already harming himself digging into the wood. Have you spoken to your vet about anti anxiety medication? Have you tried a thundershirt?


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Hi and welcome. You didn't say how long he's there alone? Does he get exercised beforehand? There are a lot of variables to this type of behavior. It might be anxiety, it could be plain boredom. 

If he's there all day, perhaps a midday dog walker would help. There is a lot of info "out there" about separation anxiety and you could check it out. There are ways to desensitize dogs and make them feel more secure. There are medications. Thundershirts are a big help for many dogs. Some people calm their pooches with melatonin. But first, I think you should have him checked out by a vet to make sure nothing else is going on. 

Good luck. Hope you'll keep us posted. I'm sure others will have ideas for you, too.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Thanks for the replies. The vet has told me he has always had a separation anxiety but it seems that recently it has gotten much much worse. He is going to see the vet again in a couple days. He finds things on shelves (rock salt, which is now gone) that I didn't even know was there. He is 8 years old and he has always basically been home for 6-8 hours a day with no problems. I am not gonna crate him in fear he might hurt himself, another site said put him on a chain attached to the wall while your gone, but I don't like the idea. Should I leave some pieces of my clothing so he has the smell?? Also I have never heard of a thundershirt. Thanks. for the help.


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## inge (Sep 20, 2009)

Would it help to create a dog proofed area in your basement, like a big kennel? You could make that as large as you want and put 'safe' things inside for him. Then he would have a lot of space but still be safe. And no, I would never chain my dog up either...


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## Amberbark (Oct 5, 2011)

We build a 10x20 ft. kennel in the basement with a bed, antler for chewing, raised bed and water bowl. Amber tried to chew the wood once, so I lightly sprayed it with Bitter Apple. She has been fine since for the last year. I have heard good things about the Thundershirt and the plug-in Dog Appeasing Pheromones (D.A.P.). :wavey:



inge said:


> Would it help to create a dog proofed area in your basement, like a big kennel? You could make that as large as you want and put 'safe' things inside for him. Then he would have a lot of space but still be safe. And no, I would never chain my dog up either...


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Took him for about a mile run before we left the house for about 3 hours. We come home to find his nose cut from biting/digging on the wooden frame of the elevated bowl. He again took both bowls out of the stand for them and threw the water all over the foor. Pulled down a bunch of things off shelves in the basement, also chewed again really bad on both door knobs of the basement. I forgot to mention in my original post that my wife is pregnant and is due to have the baby the end of next month. Would this have an effect on his actions??


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Bought a thundershirt today, so tomorrow will be the first day it will get tried out.


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## vrmueller (Jun 14, 2008)

Have you ever tried calming music specific for calming pets with anxiety? The tv may be too much of an overload. Go on amazon and check out some of the great downloads available. I used the music when Ruby was about a year old & transitioning her from the crate for a few hours to the open kitchen & family room. Nothing had worked prior. She would destroy baseboards, walls, etc. the music worked. The minute I put it on she would lay down & pass out. It truly was a miracle.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

No, I have not. Ill check it out. Thanks.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Hope the Thundershirt helps! May want to give it a trial run tonite just so he can experience how it feels? Something else that may help is Rescue Remedy, it can help to calm or keep a dog calm, it can be added to his water, or given to him directly. It is possible that just 'being in the basement' might trigger his separation anxiety, as it is a 'predictor' of having to be alone, especially if the only time he spends there is when you are gone? Maybe consider spending some time there with him (if you are not), playing, or lounging, whatever? to help create a more positive association with it. or perhaps, is there another room, where he spends time with you during the day, he could maybe safely stay in when you are gone? Separation anxiety is tough on everyone, hope you can find some way to help your boy.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

I hope the thundershirt helps. Your wife's pregnancy could be having an effect on him if he's picking up tension and anxiety from either of you. But not otherwise I think. You might try him on melatonin and see if it works for him. It won't work for 8 hours but might help calm him in the beginning. If you google "dog and melatonin" you'll find info on dosage by weight. Another thing to try--stuff his morning meal into multiple Kongs (with yogurt, peanut butter, cottage cheese, etc.) and freeze them. Then hide them around the basement. It wil keep him occupied for a while, finding and emptying them.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

well I think the shirt helped today. He did bite the water bowl but did not throw water all over. He also did not chew door knobs or doors. He did pull down the hand vacuum off the shelf and got to the lint garbage from the dryer and threw it all over. I think there was some impovement though. He has a vet appointment tomorrow to see about maybe the melatonin or something to help.


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## crazy daisy (Jul 3, 2011)

frank571 said:


> Took him for about a mile run before we left the house for about 3 hours. We come home to find his nose cut from biting/digging on the wooden frame of the elevated bowl. He again took both bowls out of the stand for them and threw the water all over the foor. Pulled down a bunch of things off shelves in the basement, also chewed again really bad on both door knobs of the basement. I forgot to mention in my original post that my wife is pregnant and is due to have the baby the end of next month. Would this have an effect on his actions??


sweet!! another Northern Jersey person....

I'm a proponent of the crate

I would fear the prospect of the risk to himself during his rage of destruction... which can lead to a not so friendly vet bill and even more emotional pregnant wife.

Maybe try throwing your dirty clothes with him.... your scent is really what is more comforting.. and that is what he misses.

one of my friends has a Bernese Mountain Dog with severely separation anxiety...supposedly Benadryl helps....

mine isn't destructive... she gets stress colitis...


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## Florabora22 (Nov 30, 2008)

As I said before, I think a crate in this kind of situation may be dangerous for the dog. I temporarily rescued an australian shepherd that had horrible SA, but I did not know that the first time I crated her. She DESTROYED the crate (I'm talking bent wires, chewn up crate pan) and ruined the wood door of the room she was in. I don't know how she behaved while she was in the crate as we were out of the house, but my guess is she was frantic and extremely anxious. I, personally, would not use a crate right now.

I hope your vet is able to help you out and you are able to get this under control. It sounds like you're doing everything you can to work with your pup!


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Hi Frank571,

How was the vet visit? And how's your dog doing?


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Vet visit was not much of anything. Recommended pretty much everytihng I have read about. Said I can give him prozac, but I would not do it. Thought I was doing well lately with the music, thundershirt and treats before I left but today he actually destroyed the entire door. How can I add pics to show you??


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

here is the door


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

Can you setup a camera to see exactly what he does and how he acts when you leave? That type of destruction is pretty serious. You may want to see a behaviorist, there's one in NJ that is awesome. I took a class at a vet convention that she did and she is very good. 

AERA | Specialties - Behavior

Dont discount the meds. They may help! They are used as a tool to allow your dog to be able to cope with the anxiety as well as re-train him to get use to you leaving. Reconcile is the dog Prozac that we use at my clinic. It has helped some animals.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

we actually do have a camera down there with our alarm system. He usually starts barking and pacing. Then he might lay down for a few minutes, then I saw him up on his back legs reaching up as high as he could scratching the door. Then biting the knob and then sticking his feet under the door and chewing. Once he got through the door and went into that room he almost immediately came back out and layed back down.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

Put a kong down in the basement with him, as soon as he finished it he was right back to running around and barking, scratching doors, etc...


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## Florabora22 (Nov 30, 2008)

You say you leave him in the basement... have you tried leaving him confined to a room upstairs with a window that he can see outside? Who knows, maybe he's feeling claustrophobic stuck in the basement. I know you don't really want to put him in a nice room due to his destructiveness, but at this point I would be trying anything and everything.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

We had talked about trying that, but the reason he originally went down there is he started doing things upstairs. Opening cabinets, removing dishes from cabinets/sink, taking food out... He seemed happy and fine down there since just about a month ago. He actually used to run down there once we opened the door. A lot of people seem to think it's that we are nearing the end of the pregnancy. I really hope so because its tough. Thanks for everyone's response.


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## Claudia M (Aug 8, 2012)

This is quite odd for an 8 year old dog.


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

I still highly recommend going to see the behaviorist. That type of destruction is not good for him, you or your home! He could seriously hurt himself! There are ways to help him but you need professional guidance. I hope you find a solution to your problems.


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## Miz B (Aug 29, 2012)

*We need help too*

Hi I'm new to the forum. Our 7.5 yo Golden has just started doing similar behavior however she has never exhibited this kind of thing before. She's always been fine when we left her while working or going out for the evening. In the last 3 days she's chewed our bedroom door frame twice, gotten into the room by opening a closed pocket door twice, shredded shear curtains and pulled down the rod, and shredded our cellular shades. We've noticed that when we get home and open the door, she has been drooling, leaving a puddle by the door and her leg is wet. At first we thought she had spilled her water bowl, but now we know it's drool. We are really stumped and very concerned. Had a vet look her over and could not detect anything wrong. She is a therapy and agility dog, has a great disposition, and has never shown signs of anxiety like this. There have been no changes to her home or the people in it. She gets a walk each morning before we leave. We need help! thanks!


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

It seems like he has cut back on the destructive behavior. We started giving him a spray of rescue remedy 1 hour before we leave and a kong. Sometimes he doesn't eat the kong until we get back home, which is weird to resist it. But it has been over a week since we have had a problem (knock on wood) hopefully this keeps up.


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## vrmueller (Jun 14, 2008)

That is excellent news!


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## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

Glad this are looking up. I'd still recommend a great trainer or behaviorist. The arrival of a new baby is also a stressful (and exciting) time in a household. It's probably a good idea to have some things in mind to help ease that transition.

Look up Pia Silvani and St. Huberts in New Jersey - not sure how close that is to you, but she's wonderful.


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## Suni52 (Jan 18, 2012)

We used to have a mutt, that passed away when she was 13yo. The last couple of years she was getting really anxious, and destructive, and she would just pace around, especially at night. We weren't sure if it was anxiety or a little bit of dementia, but we did end up putting her on prozac. We also had a new baby at home at the time, and couldn't take our chances with her unpredictable behavior. She was on the lowest dose, and we filled the prescription at walmart, it was only $4, as opposed to filling it at the vet for $30. It helped her tremendously.
If the dog starts back up with the destructive behaviour you may want to consider it, especially since the baby is coming home soon. You will have enough stress in your life with the baby, and the dog can sense that, and potentially feed off of that. What needs to be done with the dog, is you need to break the cycle of the destruction for several months so they don't make that association anymore. Then when maybe you can wean the meds.
Hopefully your dog is on the road to recovery and is going to continue doing better with the drops. I just wanted to share our story because the medication really wasn't that bad, and it really helped all of our sanity.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

thanks for all the replies and I will keep you posted.


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## frank571 (Aug 9, 2012)

The destruction in the basement has slowed very much to very small things being moved around. He actually does better with the tv off and only one of the lights on. The baby was brought home yesterday and my dog has been by her side the whole time. When she is in her pack and play he is there. When she makes a noise he is the first one there. If anyone goes by her crib/pack and play he is either watching very closely or puts himself right up to it. Is this a protective thing? Something to keep an eye on? I don't feel it;s something to worry about but just want to update everyone and see if anyone has had this. Thanks.


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## GoldenMum (Mar 15, 2010)

Congrats on the new addition! I hope that things continue to improve, and this had something to do with pregnancy. I want to commend you for all you're doing for your boy.


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