Barking, Chewing, Destroying: Is It Separation Anxiety - Or Something Else?
Separation anxiety can cause a dog to act out. image: “The Dog & The Devil,” 1807, artist: Thomas Rowlandson, © Creative Commons
We love our dogs and they love us. For us, they’re a part of who we are and what we do. But for most dogs, we are everything.
Dogs are naturally family-oriented and most would prefer to spend the vast majority of their time with their humans or with the other dogs in their household. In years past, many neighborhoods were more active. But now our suburbs are quiet from early morning until evening when the humans return from work or school. Often, you can walk through a neighborhood during the middle of the day and hear only the sounds of birds singing – and of dogs barking.
Some of the dogs are alarm barking; some are barking because they are lonely. Some lonely dogs don’t just bark once or twice; they bark and bark and bark. Or when they’re not barking, they’re ripping up the house, the yard, or the garage. Their owners don’t understand and just want the dogs to settle down. But of course, the dogs cannot. They are either bored and understimulated or they are miserable because they are alone.
Coming home to a destroyed house is no fun. But solving the problem begins with some detective work. Is your dog just bored and lonely? Is his panic mostly centered on the time you leave? Could it be a noise phobia? Or does he have true separation anxiety? All the behavior modification techniques for these issues are fairly intense and time consuming. That’s why it’s important to identify what you’re dealing with before you try to work on it.
Is It Boredom or Leaving Distress?
If it’s separation distress or leaving anxiety (as opposed to true separation anxiety), your dog might whine or cry when you leave or even become aggressive as you are going out the door. But within a few minutes, most dogs with separation distress settle down.
If it’s boredom, loneliness, or lack of stimulation, your dog may bark, whine, or howl when you leave, but it will usually stop after a while and may, in fact, go to sleep - or not. A bored dog will also chew on a Kong™ or other items when you’re not present and then look around for more distractions. In fact, a bored dog may chew on pretty much anything they can get their mouth around – especially remote controls, glasses, and toilet paper.
Many dogs who destroy or damage property fall into one of these two categories. They’re also usually under the age of two-and-a-half or three, and more than anything else, they just need more structure, activity, and training. A typical example would be a youngster of seven or eight months. A dog this age looks like an adult, but isn’t - much like teenagers may look like adult humans but definitely aren’t!
Could It Be a Noise Phobia?
Many dogs are very sensitive to unexpected sharp or loud noises. This tendency often gets worse with age, so dogs over seven or eight may sometimes develop destructive or anxious behavior after years of being totally trustworthy. Sometimes something as innocuous as a garbage truck making its rounds can trigger their phobia. For many dogs, a thunderstorm or fireworks may cause a state of panic that can last for hours.
Is it True Separation Anxiety?
If it’s true separation anxiety, your dog will likely exhibit some or all of the following symptoms:
Your dog may continuously bark, whine, or howl when you leave. Often, the vocalizations will be in a pattern; he’ll howl or bark for a time, then quiet down, then start up again.
Most of the destruction is aimed at exits or perceived exits from your home: doorways, windows, etc. Often they will destroy doors, shred curtains, or break windows in their frantic attempts to locate their owner.
Dogs with true separation anxiety generally won’t eat food or chew on toys left for them. They’re too anxious to care.
Your dog may defecate or urinate near doorways or possibly on your bed.
You may notice pools of drool near exits or the hair on the dog’s front paws may feel stiff from constant licking.
Your dog may develop lick sores on feet, legs, or flanks.
We can’t be with our dogs every waking second. But the first step toward addressing their anxiety when they’re alone is identifying the source. Once you’ve done that, you can get to work with an experienced, force-free trainer to help you create a solid behavior modification program or at least suggest some management techniques to lessen the destruction in the meantime!