Need help with dog that wont be left at home alone

[olop]

We have owned my little staff x JRT for almost a year now & she is just a pain to leave at home alone.

At the moment I am not working so spend the majority of my time with her but have started to leave her for short bursts at a time to get her used to the fact that I will be working again soon (I only work part time 4 hours max a day)

I left her for 10 minutes this morning whilst I put the washing out (our garden is down an alleyway so I locked her in the house & stayed there for a little while) & the whole time she howled & she also ripped up my entire DVD collection (almost 50 odd DVDs!!)

We went out for dinner yesterday lunch time & she ripped all the curtains & nets in the front room & we could also hear her howling as we drove off up the road.

Aside from the fact that she is ripping our stuff up I am worried that we will start to get noise complaints as the howling is really loud.

We normally leave her some dinner down, a kong & various chews to get her teeth into but she doesnt eat any of it & would prefer to rip our furniture & howl.

She gets plenty of exercise (she is out pretty much all day down the yard with me hooning around) & we take her for long walks at the weekend (sometimes in excess of 4 hours)

Im at my wits end with it & I just dont know what to do for the best, like I say we are not exactly leaving her for long periods of time (we was out 2 hours yesterday & I sat in the garden for 10 minutes this morning to see what she would do)

Anyone have any tips??

She is coming up 2 years old & has been spayed (although this did nothing to help with the situation which we thought it might do!)

TIA.

 

[Toffee44]

First thing can you shut her some where other than your living room? Teal would do what she does but he stays in the hall with nothing un his reach other than toys and a Kong. Also have you tried shutting her away from you for short periods and then coming back and and praising her after a period of time. I can leave Teal 1.5hrs now but preserving and patience was the key.

 

[Toffee44]

Sorry as in while your in so she doesn't expect you there all the time?

 

[Kaylum]

Has she got any toys? Kongs are brilliant if you stuff them with food and I got loads of advice from this forum on whats best to fill them with and then put them it in the freezer so it takes ages for dogs to get through.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

our northern inuit was the same wrecked loads brushes etc. try a dog cage when u go out that way cant wreck your stuff ours used to panic when we went onto back yard to muck out so we chained me up on long chain and he worked out if we went we did come back now he is fine

 

[olop]

I unfortunately cannot use a dog cage as she was a rescue case & she was locked in a cage previously - she is absolutely petrified of them & I just dont want to put her through using one.

She used to be left previously for upto 6 hours a day before we moved, but we had quite a few noise complaints from the neighbours & she also used to destruct things then, its just getting worse & with the noise of it I can see it being an issue for us at our new place.

She has loads of toys, I put them on a pile on the floor - she just isnt interested in them at all & will always be left in the same place I put them whenever I come back.

I will start shutting her in the kitchen for short periods, its right next to the living room so will be able to hear what she is up to. Thanks for the replies

 

[Kaylum]

Have you tried a Kong. Toy stuffed with food = distraction from the situation. They are brilliant toys.

 

[olop]

Have you tried a Kong. Toy stuffed with food = distraction from the situation. They are brilliant toys.

Yeah she has one - but wont touch it when we are not there, as soon as she knows we are back thats when she will start to "attack" it & eat all the other bits & bobs we have left for her

 

[lexiedhb]

Surely if you make the cage a nice place for her to be, her den, her cill out place she will eventually accept it? I know Cayla (amoung others) will have some sort of guide for this.

Can you also NOT be with her constantly when you are home, as in she can hear that you are there but not see you? I was told to leave the radio on for Dex when we got him 2 months ago as we did not know what he would be like alone- thankfully he is fine, but the radio is still on.

Where does she sleep?

 

[olop]

I just dont want to have to do it to her as she was a very sad soul when we first got her.

I am going to start shutting her in different rooms for various amounts of times & see how she gets on with that.

I do leave the TV on for her - I try to put it as loud as I can without causing a disturbance to our neighbours but she has no interest in that either & her howling is louder than the TV!

She has her own bed & she sleeps in it in our bedroom. She is never allowed on our bed & we also dont allow her on the sofa.

 

[Kaylum]

What do you do with her at night? i.e where does she sleep?

 

[olop]

What do you do with her at night? i.e where does she sleep?

She sleeps on her own bed in our bedroom - we never allow her on our furniture (our bed, the sofa etc)

 

[lexiedhb]

I just dont want to have to do it to her as she was a very sad soul when we first got her.

I am going to start shutting her in different rooms for various amounts of times & see how she gets on with that.

I do leave the TV on for her - I try to put it as loud as I can without causing a disturbance to our neighbours but she has no interest in that either & her howling is louder than the TV!

She has her own bed & she sleeps in it in our bedroom. She is never allowed on our bed & we also dont allow her on the sofa.

Am guessing the first thing folk will say is, slowly get her to sleep downstairs by herself..... Im no expert but have read an AWFUL lot of forums- some suggest inching the bed out, to the landing, then spare room, then bottom of stairs etc etc..... always makes me think it would be shed loads easier to live in a bungalow!!!

With regards to the crate, now she is with you and settled I imagine it would DEFO be worth a go- it is in totally different circumstances to before.... she may take to it

 

[Kaylum]

ok you need to get her out of your bedroom for a start I am afraid. Thats a starting point for you. Moving her away from you at night. She is too used to being with you. If you can get her happy away from you at night its going to help during the day.

 

[olop]

Am guessing the first thing folk will say is, slowly get her to sleep downstairs by herself..... Im no expert but have read an AWFUL lot of forums- some suggest inching the bed out, to the landing, then spare room, then bottom of stairs etc etc..... always makes me think it would be shed loads easier to live in a bungalow!!!

With regards to the crate, now she is with you and settled I imagine it would DEFO be worth a go- it is in totally different circumstances to before.... she may take to it

ok you need to get her out of your bedroom for a start I am afraid. Thats a starting point for you. Moving her away from you at night. She is too used to being with you. If you can get her happy away from you at night its going to help during the day.

Thank you both for the suggestions

Will definately try getting her out of the room at night - we live in a 1 bedroom place though & we dont have a landing its one of those open plan rooms on the top floor so it will just be a case of putting her downstairs & seeing if she stays, we do have a door though so we can shut it behind us

If that doesnt help will consider the use of a crate - will use it as a last resort though for the moment!

Thanks again

 

[Devonshire dumpling]

I knew the reply to the where does the dog sleep before youi answered it lol awwwwwwww


You have 2 choices, continue to let your dog be with you 24/7 including bedtime and take your dog everywhere with you for the rest of your life orrrrrrr start to be a bit tougher on her and don't let her be with you all the time you are home. Of an evening put her in her bed in the kitchen while you watch TV etc, she will soon get used to being on her own, and slowly build it up.

when you do go out , don't make a fuss of her saying I will see you later etc, and when you come back don't rush to see her straight away or make a fuss of her when you do walk in, wait a few mins. If she had wrecked stuff while your out, completely ignore it and don't tell her off etc, seperation anxiety can be a right pain. I know you feel sorry for her from her previous life, but by over compensating now you will be making life tougher for her.

Sorry if I sound mean, but humanising dogs causes lots of problems, there is nothing wrong with a cage as long as its her area, with her bed in it, let her sleep in it while your home with the door open, feed her in it, everything about the cage should be nice for her, you will soon find out she won't worry about it.

Do it for her safety, if she eats something while your out toxic you will wish you had popped her in her little cage.

HTH xx

 

[olop]

I knew the reply to the where does the dog sleep before youi answered it lol awwwwwwww


You have 2 choices, continue to let your dog be with you 24/7 including bedtime and take your dog everywhere with you for the rest of your life orrrrrrr start to be a bit tougher on her and don't let her be with you all the time you are home. Of an evening put her in her bed in the kitchen while you watch TV etc, she will soon get used to being on her own, and slowly build it up.

when you do go out , don't make a fuss of her saying I will see you later etc, and when you come back don't rush to see her straight away or make a fuss of her when you do walk in, wait a few mins. If she had wrecked stuff while your out, completely ignore it and don't tell her off etc, seperation anxiety can be a right pain. I know you feel sorry for her from her previous life, but by over compensating now you will be making life tougher for her.

Sorry if I sound mean, but humanising dogs causes lots of problems, there is nothing wrong with a cage as long as its her area, with her bed in it, let her sleep in it while your home with the door open, feed her in it, everything about the cage should be nice for her, you will soon find out she won't worry about it.

Do it for her safety, if she eats something while your out toxic you will wish you had popped her in her little cage.

HTH xx

Not harsh at all - thanks for putting it into perspective for me
I know I do mollicoddle her & its got to the point where I am pulling my hair out & in a way its my own damn fault

Will definately try & get her to be more independant, she is sat on the floor all puppy eyed looking at me now, little does she know what will be in store for her!!

xx

 

[Kaylum]

I dont know whether this will help or make things worse I am sure the others will be able to say what they think but put in her bed something that smells of you. Like an old t-shirt you have worn for a day. She may settle better. I dont think it will make her worse its just security for her.

 

[blackcob]

*hollers for Cayla*

If you really can't introduce a crate then I would look at reducing the space she is left in - can you close off the kitchen, with bolts on the doors or a stairgate or two? Firstly this reduces her access to things to chew, as long as you are not particularly precious about your kitchen units, and secondly a smaller space discourages pacing, running back and forth to a window etc. which can escalate the sense of anxiety.

Do not allow her to be with you all the time in the house. Strictly enforce times where she is locked in the crate/kitchen/wherever but can see you and eventually just hear you - this is why stair gates are so good, as you can wander round the house without her being able to follow you. The idea is to normalise being alone, rather than it being the exception.

Kongs are great but won't be bothered with if the dog has already escalated into panic mode.

 

[galaxy]

My life routine sounds much like yours at the moment as in there is very little need for me to leave my Harley home alone eithe (althought he has always slept downstairs). He used to whinge and howl when left and clearly upset, althought he was crate trained, so no destruction. It used to really stress me out as I worried about the neighbours.

So I made a point of making sure he was not with me all day long, even if I only popped out for 10 mins, or I shut myself in my bedroom away fom him.

It was so worth it. He is now out of his crate and I can just leave him with a biscuit and he's totally fine. He just sleeps on the sofa!!! It's such a relief.

 

[Devonshire dumpling]

Not harsh at all - thanks for putting it into perspective for me
I know I do mollicoddle her & its got to the point where I am pulling my hair out & in a way its my own damn fault

Will definately try & get her to be more independant, she is sat on the floor all puppy eyed looking at me now, little does she know what will be in store for her!!

xx

Bless you, but she doesn't think like you or I do, ok she feels love and pain etc, but she won't think you are being a mean mummy! Almost worse to be all over when your home then leave her alone when you go out?

I love my two terriers to bits, ones 16 and deaf with a grade III heart murmour and the other is 13 with one eye and a bit deaf lol, they have slept in the kitchen all their life, but lately they bark as unsettled with lack of eyes and ears lol, so they sleep in my room in their own beds, this works for me as it means they sleep soundly and don't bark at imaginary things, so I guess I am saying we all need to do whats best for doggies, we are all soft buggars lol xx

 

[CorvusCorax]

She will have to be curtailed in some shape or form so I would suggest baby gates or a playpen (I got a good, sturdy one from Mothercare for £70. Much cheaper than a Varikennel!!! Or seal off one room (utility room or something, a small hallway) and make sure there is nothing to entertain her except her Kong, chews etc.
She'll actually respect you more and settle down with a proper routine, promise!!!

 

[CAYLA]

The problem you have created her is easy enough to solve if you go about it the correct and least stressful way for the dog, as you know you have certainly now made a roof for you own back.

In regard to the crate, you should be more in the mind set of "I will reintroduce it positively" there is no point in writin a potentially very effective tool in helping the dog over come this issues.
I must have crate trained 100's of dogs with SA and indeed we get the whole "i used a crate", but the problem was they used it (incorrectly).

There is not much point me going into detail if the methods are not going to be used but I can tell you, that the tools u need now are yourself, a small area to secure her (crate) would indeed be better and exercise (burning off the anxious energy).
No dog will glance sideways at toys or chew when in an anxious state, so forget her entertaining that idea, however you can introduce the positive rewards in the designated area when you are THERE with her, not when u dissapear.
If you want a crate guide and for me to explain very indepthly how to reintroduce one for her benefit and help her get over the SA then just reply or PM me.

 

[ladyt25]

I would say go for the crate! We got our rescue dog abou 5 odd years ago and have had plenty of dogs in the past. However she was quite clingy and her separation anxiety was awful (she's GSD x collie I think). We do have another dog so she was never left totally alone and never for that long but my did she destroy stuff! The final straw came when she obviosuly went on the rampage - she destroyed a load of plants, went into the toilet and pull out and shredded all the toilet roll, chewed an oranmental western saddle and also ripped up the carpet at the bottom of the stairs and half way up!! Needless to say she wasn't very popular but it was quite funny to see what tantrum she had got herself in to.

So, in came the crate. She had her bed in it so slept in it at night with the door open (she wasn't concerned being left then as people were in the house so she was ok). So, she saw it as her safe, secure place I guess and we would leave her there for the odd couple of hours when we went out. I don't even know if she even whined to be honest, she'd be given a treat as we went out so that'd occupy her initially and from what we know she just slept. Oh I think she may have ripped up one bed but that's alot less damage than she'd done previously!

After a while and once she'd really settled in she didn't need the crate anymore but she would still choose to go have a nap on her bed in the day when it was still in the crate. I think the thing is, although you think you're shutting them up and they will hate it, some dogs just like that security and it doens't have to be forever.

Also, try and get her to sleep out of your room. I have never had a dog allowed to sleep on my bed or be up on the furniture and I think that's how it should be.

 

[harrie27]

Hi,
I am currently working with a behaviourist at Bath Cats and Dogs Home. Have you heard or used DAP products? They are the new natural calmer that helps dogs to deal with situations more calmly. it is a synthetic version of the natural dog appeasing pheremone which mothers secrete to their pups to reassure and give them confidence is strange situations. It has been proven to help reduce stress behaviours like destructive behaviour!!

Don't know if this is of any use to you but the products are very good!!
Good luck

 

[Hebe]

Give her one of your jumpers after you've worn it. Perhaps she will settle if she still has your scent around

 

[AmyMay]

I am going to start shutting her in different rooms for various amounts of times & see how she gets on with that.

Just use one room - i.e the kitchen, with her own special area. Radio on, rescue remedy or dap defuser, kong and toys.

My neighbours dogs are a bloomin nightmare at times - especially if she's in the house, and they are locked away elsewhere. So I don't see that as a particularly useful tool for you in trying to get her used to being alone. I would also inist she sleeps in the kitchen at night.

It may be just a question of tough love for a few weeks - with a word to your neighbours about what you're going to do.

 

[olop]

Thanks for all the replies.

I have put her to bed downstairs the past 2 nights without much success The first night she was up & down the stairs crying so just ignored it & managed to get myself to sleep.

The second night she knew what was coming & did a massive c**p on the floor for me to wake to in the morning

Can the person that suggested the crate training please suggest how I might go aboout it as it maybe that is the next step.

I have been shutting her in the kitchen in the daytime fine - she just goes off to sleep as normal but I think she knows I am in the next room.

Thanks again everyone

 

[Cedars]

I would now be putting in the kitchen, with the radio on, then going out briefly and see if the radio works.

 

[blackcob]

With the best will in the world, with a dog with this level of separation anxiety a radio left on or a kong left out won't do anything - an anxious dog will not suddenly sit down to eat, nor are they daft enough to believe that a radio is their master's voice.