I feel for you. Our Jack Russell has very bad separation anxiety. When we got him we are his 4th owner and he was just 18 months old. He never had a chance to really bond with any owner, just when it started to happen he went to a new owner. While he was in the living room with the DH I dropped a pan lid and you know what a noise it makes....Low and behold he NEVER reacted to it.......HE IS DEAF. No wonder he was given away so many times.
He is now crate trained, is learning sign language, but the DH can't leave his sight at times. We are trying the "Thunder Shirt" to see if that helps with the anxiety.
We put an old blanket in his kennel, when we leave I hide special treats in the blanket. Also going to try something new that I read about. Put treats and peanut butter in a Kong and freeze it, so that he will have to work for his treat.
Maybe it will help. We have now had him for 18 months!!!!
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Deb and Phil
Anna Belle
2016 Toyota Tundra
2011 Greywolf 26rl
A thunder shirt will help a small amount. For a dog with that much anxiety, you'll probably not see much effect. Same with Rescue Remedy.
For crate training, let her go in on her own. Tell her "kennel" (or "crate" or "bedtime" or whatever key word you choose to use). If you clicker train, click immediately. Otherwise, use "yes!" and treat IMMEDIATELY. Tell her "ok" to come out. Keep going. Small periods of time, like 5 seconds in the crate, is all you're going for.
HUGE amounts of praise for small intervals is where you need to start. HIGH value treats - cheese, peanut butter, hot dogs. Something she loves. And throw a freaking party when she goes in willingly.
The goal is to get her to want to please you and for it to be fun. Keep training sessions short, 5 to 10 minutes max. Only a couple times a day.
Shoving her in a crate, locking it closed, and hoping for the best is only going to reinforce what she is already doing. You have to take massive steps back and be willing to commit the time to doing this. Otherwise you will both end up too frustrated and she has got to be confused.
Darlene, thanks for the advice, and thanks for reminding me about 'hotdogs'. I agree that crate training sessions should result in alot of praise when the dog does something right, on their own. And that the sessions should only be 5-10 min.
But I live alone, so what should I do with my dog when I have to leave the house....let her run thru the house and destroy whatever she wants? I don't have friends or family that can come over at the drop of a hat to stay with my dog....besides if I did it often, that would be a good reason for people to NOT answer their phone when I call.
I understand, and wish I had an answer for you. That's why I'd suggest hiring a doggie behavioral therapist who specializes in positive reinforcement to come to your house. They can walk through the house, discuss your dilemmas, and try to find solutions. If you had a laundry room with nothing she could chew up, do you think she'd attack the door? Or a bathroom with no mats or anything on the floor. Perhaps that could be a temporary solution, until she is more comfortable? A professional can help you run through scenarios, and try out some options before putting them into action.
use the metal crate, cover it with a towel/light blanket so she can't see.. weigh it down so she can't flip it over. and leave her be till she calms down.
when she calms down, return, praise her for being good, then reward her by letting her out. repeat several times a day and then extend the length of stay in the crate.
she is training you right now. do not deviate from your goal. any compromise and you are getting trained, not her.
X2 .... We have will also leave a tv or radio on, not sure if it works for sure, but the theory is, it makes them think someone is still home if they here voices.
The issue is more than just throwing her in the crate and making her stay there. It's building up her comfort level in the crate and in her confidence level. Putting someone in a prison, no matter now long they sit still, is still a prison.
My pup has separation anxiety, but I have the advantage of having him since he was a pup. He loves his crate. When left home alone, and not in his crate, his separation anxiety is exhibited by chewing. Not panic. When in his crate, he feels safe (although probably bored) and is not destructive. He is now three and we are able to leave him home out of his crate for longer periods, but at least we have the crate to fall back on.
As she works on her acclimation to the crate, have an arsenal of great chew options for her when you do have to leave. A Kong, filled with peanut butter, and then frozen is a great option. Petrified bones also filled with peanut butter and frozen.
Well, this past weekend was our 2nd campout. We went 1st time, prior weekend, with a fair amount of damage. This time I took small metal cage, that at home I had put Cinnamon in several short amounts of time, to get her used to it. Well she didn't escape this time but she completely tore the plastic tray in half.
When I had to leave the trailer, I didn't want to put her in the crate with no tray in the bottom, cause I didn't want her to paw at the floor and damage the flooring. An online 'tip' said to keep the curtains closed so the dog couldn't see outside, so that is what I did last weekend, and she somewhat damaged the curtains so that she could get to the screens...so this weekend I opened the curtains all the way, figuring that she would leave them alone...wrong.
This weekend she totally destroyed 3 sets of curtains, 3 curtain rods were severely bent when she pulled the curtains off the windows, and tore out the "pet resistant screening" that I had installed in the door...twice. And when she still couldn't get out the door, she took out her rage on a new 'welcome' mat by the door. Oh by the way, I had put a baby gate infront of the door, which she was able to dislodge and get to the screening.
I had given Cinnamon the anti-anxiety meds the Vet gave me....didn't work. I even gave her a Benedryl....didn't work. I really think the meds made her worse.
We have another campout this weekend.....I wonder how many sets of curtains and re-screenings I'll have to make, before she gets it? And all the while, I am still working with her at home to get her used to be alone.
Oh I forgot. I had my VCR connected to the TV and the cables hung down infront of one of the windows...you guessed it.
Bolt a pc of 3/4"plywood on the outside bottom of the crate and put the crate in the middle of the floor away from every thing. Give him/her a large chew bone. Worked on ours and now she can't wait to get in the crate either in the truck or the 5er. She evidently feels secure and just curls up and goes to sleep within minutes.
We had a stray dog that we loved dearly. He suffered from terrible seperation anxiety. Just like you, we left our house to come home to curtains and blinds ripped down, clothes and blankets shredded, he got into finger paints, paint all over, he even ripped out the aluminum rails on our windows, cut his mouth and blood was all over. It looked like a war zone. We learned the hard way about putting blankets or rugs in the cage. One day he ate part of a rug and he had to have emergency surgery to remove the rug from his intestines. After that (for 10 years) he was always put in a metal crate with a metal floor with nothing in it or next to it. He never liked it, but he was a goofy chow hound and he would go in the cage for a piece of ham etc. It was the only thing we could do. He definitely had his issues. It is a very difficult situation. You are certainly giving it a great try. You can only do so much.
You said the meds made him worse. There is a thing called a paradoxical reaction. I think that could be what happened. A paradoxical reaction is where a person or animal has the opposite effect of the medicine than what was intended..ie combative, aggressive or agitated from a sedative. Let the vet know about the response the dog had. Also make sure you are getting in contact with a good dog behaviorist. You might gave to back off camping some until you get the dog settled in and this a little more under control.
We have to turn the TV on when we leave our camper. Doesn't completely eliminate the anxiety but helps. Oh and the stereo doesn't work for us just the TV.
Still think you need to get a recommendation from your Vet for an appointment at your closest Veterinary training hospital. U of P Ryan really helped our Bella who has more than her share of problems (including Chronic Fear Syndrome and a host of allergies).
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Lou & Freya the wonder dog
2008 GMC Sierra 3000HD Allison Duramax
2019 Flagstaff 8529FL
Whenever a dog's behavior is strange, the first thing you need to do is a full workup of tests to make sure their health is ok. You mentioned a vet... has she had full bloodwork done, urinalysis, etc, to rule out any infections or chronic conditions?
Just had initial Vet exam last week, but no urinalysis or blood work. She has an appointment to be spayed next Thursday. Someone said to sleep in a T-shirt and put that in her cage, so that my scent would comfort her...I just now went outside for 5 min. [part of her crate trailing] and when I came back, she was hysterical and had chewed up my t-shirt, and the TV was on.
I like the clue about clamping a 3/4" piece of plywood to the bottom of the cage, when I get a chance, I'll try that.
Also I have a big mirror along side the crate, so that she can see herself/or a litter mate, so she would think that she's not alone. She doesn't have any problem going in the crate to get a treat or her Kong filled with peanut butter. I can close the door and she will lay down and go to sleep.
It's just when I am gone out of the room for more than a few minutes, all Heck breaks loose.
We don't have any canine behaviorists in my area [50 miles away], and I'm sorry, but PA is just too far away.
Part of me says not to give up camping just yet, figuring that she will get used to it. And I can't stay in my house 24/7, she has to go in the crate when I leave to run errands.
She is such a great dog for camping---she travels well, doesn't bark, likes other dogs and people, and kids.....and she loves to lay outside at just enjoy the day. And just look at that face....
Just had initial Vet exam last week, but no urinalysis or blood work. She has an appointment to be spayed next Thursday. Someone said to sleep in a T-shirt and put that in her cage, so that my scent would comfort her...I just now went outside for 5 min. [part of her crate trailing] and when I came back, she was hysterical and had chewed up my t-shirt, and the TV was on.
I like the clue about clamping a 3/4" piece of plywood to the bottom of the cage, when I get a chance, I'll try that.
Also I have a big mirror along side the crate, so that she can see herself/or a litter mate, so she would think that she's not alone. She doesn't have any problem going in the crate to get a treat or her Kong filled with peanut butter. I can close the door and she will lay down and go to sleep.
It's just when I am gone out of the room for more than a few minutes, all Heck breaks loose.
We don't have any canine behaviorists in my area [50 miles away], and I'm sorry, but PA is just too far away.
Part of me says not to give up camping just yet, figuring that she will get used to it. And I can't stay in my house 24/7, she has to go in the crate when I leave to run errands.
She is such a great dog for camping---she travels well, doesn't bark, likes other dogs and people, and kids.....and she loves to lay outside at just enjoy the day. And just look at that face....
Following up on Herk's excellent suggestion: Brown Mackie College - Akron, which I think is where you live, has a veterinary school, as does Ohio State. Perhaps one of those could work with you.
She's a great looking dog. Please don't give up on her.
Following up on Herk's excellent suggestion: Brown Mackie College - Akron, which I think is where you live, has a veterinary school, as does Ohio State. Perhaps one of those could work with you.
She's a great looking dog. Please don't give up on her.
I just called Brown Mackie College and they only have Vet Tech classes, not Vet School, so they couldn't help. I will look up OSU online to see if I can find a phone #.
No wonder he was given away so many times. 
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