Understanding Separation Anxiety, SA-6

Another thing that can trigger separation anxiety is a change in household events, especially if the dog owner has reacted stressfully to that event. All dogs pick up on our moods and emotions. However, some dogs have more difficult time handling our unsettled moods and emotions. If these dogs already have a fragile sense of security the dog may begin to show separation anxiety issues when changes happen. It isn’t unusual that once the issue that triggered the first separation anxiety event is resolved, the dog often takes training to reverse the separation anxiety the dog took up as a result of the changes and stresses in the household.
    If you see separation anxiety crop up in a dog who previously didn’t have issues, ask yourself what may have changed in your household. Was a new member added to the family? Even new pets count. Did something happen that caused tension in the household? One family I worked with had behavior issues with their dog after the husband was deployed. The husband had been absent for periods of time before without incident. What made this event different was that the wife was stressed out because her husband was in a more dangerous location than before. Even after the husband returned and the household settled down, the dog still had issues. For the dog to settle down, the dog needed to go through some training to change those unwanted behaviors that cropped up during that time. The “I’ll be Back” training is just the right kind to solve separation anxiety that crops up in a dog who previously didn’t have issues.
    It may seem like I suggest this kind of training a lot. I do so because I have found that it has by far given me the greatest results. Just a few days ago I got a card from a Maltese owner who used the “I’ll be Back” technique on her 10 year old Maltese. She reported, “It really helped Joey.”

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Peggy Swager is a behaviorist and dog trainer. She has authored several books and many dog training articles. Two of her articles won awards. More information is available on Separation Anxiety and her other works at her website www.peggyswager.com.