Lots of travel and parties happening during the holidays, which means your pet may be left alone a lot more than usual.  If that happens, they can act out: barking, howling, urination in the home.  So how can you prepare you pet?  Dr. Jyl will discuss ways to prevent it and deal with it, including exercise techniques and sprays.

1.    What causes separation anxiety?
2.    How severe can separation anxiety get and does it vary from type or age of dog?
3.    What is bad for treating separation anxiety?  Like should we punish the dog for peeing on the carpet while we were gone?

Dogs with separation anxiety exhibit distress and behavior problems when they’re left alone. The most common behaviors include:
Scratching at doors or windows and digging in an attempt to reunite with their owner
Destructive chewing
Whining, howling, and barking
Urination and defecation

How to treat minor separation anxiety

People have some great options for treatment now beside just the prescription anxiety meds.
1. Desensitizing exercises.

Establish a safety cue—a word or action that you use every time you leave that tells your dog you’ll be back.

Don’t make a big deal out of arrivals and departures. For example, when you arrive home, ignore your dog for the first few minutes then calmly pet him.
Leave your dog with an article of clothing that smells like you, such as an old T-shirt that you’ve slept in recently.

2. Pheromone Products (Plug ins, collars)
3. Calming Sprays (Pheromones, Lavenders, Rescue Remedy)
4. Natural herbals, Homeopathic, Whole Food Supplements( Nutraclam, Homeopathic drops, Stress Away Tabs, etc.)
5. Leaving toys or Kongs out while gone.

How to handle a more severe problem

Use the techniques outlined above along with desensitization training. Teach your dog the sit-stay and down-stay commands using positive reinforcement. This training will help him learn that he can remain calmly and happily in one place while you go to another room.

Create a “safe place” to limit your dog’s ability to be destructive. A safe place should:
Confine loosely rather than strictly (a room with a window and distractions rather than total isolation)
Contain busy toys for distraction
Have dirty laundry to lend a calming olfactory cue or other safety cues.

More aggressive Veterinary Treatments

Acupuncture (for stress and anxiety)
Prescriptions (Prozac, like meds)