# My Dog Cries When I'm Gone



## TexUs (May 7, 2011)

I always knew she was upset when I left, heck most loyal dogs are... 

But today the neighbors said something. They said while it didn't bother them and it wasn't loud, they were in the yard and heard her crying at the gate. Said one day she did it all day long off and on. Wasn't loud, didn't bother them, but they said she sounded pitiful.

I give her stuff (bones, ropes, kong toy with peanut butter) to try to keep her occupied but apparently, that doesn't help.

She's a Dachshund

Anytime I come home I don't see this behavior going on. Even if I park away (where she knows I'm not there) and walk up to the yard I've never seen her doing this. 

But I don't question the neighbors. She has also started chewing the wooden gate keeping her from getting inside the rest of the house (She has a little porch she can go into- dog door). I don't know why, she has toys, stuff to chew... She still does it anyway.

With what the neighbors told me it seems to be that maybe she's just upset I'm gone.

I know she gets bored (She's the most hyper weenie dog I've ever seen) so I take her to family sometimes so she can play with their dogs to not be so bored but that's only every couple of weeks.

What can I do? Does she grow out of this?


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## Puddin's Training Tips (Apr 9, 2011)

Daily walks. A good long walk before leaving. 
Obedience training classes to help her get focused and calmer (a good trainer who uses only positiv reinforcement - not leash yanking, no spray bottles, etc..)

No long sorrowful good byes, no excited giddy hellos
Desensitive your coming and goings.
Reward calm behaviors, ingore excited, hyper behaviors

Your dog may or may not have separation anxiety. Even if she doesn't have SA prevention is in order:
More on Separation Anxiety (copy of an email I sent to someone whose dog has SA)
from this post: http://www.dogforums.com/dog-training-forum/94928-somewhat-odd-but-bad.html#post1002439

Walk out the door for a second, come right back. When the dog can tolerate that well, then walk out for 2 seconds then come right back. And so on and so forth. And I don't mean just do this in one day. This is over an extended period of time.

Try to make sure there aren't other cues that the dog associates with leaving. Most of the time the dog is getting anxious before you leave the house.

Jean Donaldson says that a well executed "Nothing In Life is Free" program along with desensitization and counter conditioning can work well.
i.e. ask for a sit before feeding, ask for a lay down before petting. Ask for a shake before opening the door, etc..

The hardest part about treating SA is the ability to stay below threshold during treatment. Which means you don't want the dog to get upset because that will set back the treatment. 

You can't work your way up to 5 seconds then all of a sudden leave the house for 4 hours while puppy eats the bottom of his crate.

Donaldson suggests a plan B. i.e. Using a different door for real life times when you have to go and using another door for SA desensitization training. This doesn't always work though.

Other things to consider:
Doggie Day Care - Make sure the business is well-established and has a great reputation. You don't want to leave your dog with some inexperienced people who could make your dog worse. 

You can try leaving him for a few minutes or an hour then see how he does. Then increase the time. 
My Puddin has SA. But she seems to be fine with any human. She's pretty much okay if I'm not there as long as some human is there. This might not be the case with your dog.

Professional dog sitters or dog walkers - once again make sure they are well-established and reputable.

Friends or family who can check in on the dog.


The above is just an overview of things you can do. I suggest a couple of books that provide a lot more details.

"I'll be Home Soon by Patricia McConnel. This is a small book that can be read it one sitting. It is also available on Kindle so you an download in a couple of minutes. You don't even need a kindle.You can install a free Kindle app on your computer and download it directly to your computer. 
It contains some very detailed info on how to go about desensitization and counter conditioning.
http://amzn.to/hWYfC6

Oh Behave! By Jean Donaldson - this is a book that contains answers to lots of behavior issues. It has one Chapter on SA
http://amzn.to/hizLwX

"How to be the Leader of the Pack" by McConnell.
It's only 16 pages. Has good info on a Nothing in Life is Free Program
http://amzn.to/e2lCks

I haven't read this book but someone on another forum said that Patricia McConnell Recommends it: "Don't Leave Me! Step-by-Step Help for Your Dog's Separation Anxiety" 
http://amzn.to/lhUnig

Also see some info from Turid Rugaas on Separation Anxiety: http://www.canis.no/rugaas/oneqanda.php?id=469

I don't know if any of her books adress this specific issue but I highly suggest any of her books. She has one on barking that may or may not be useful in your situation:
http://amzn.to/ispOrq



TexUs said:


> What can I do? Does she grow out of this?


She will NOT grow out of this. She will get way worse if you don't start keeping her more stimulated, challenged and socialized.
Make sure she has all her shots and take her on at least two walks a day. Let her visit other small,frienldy dog often - at least once a week.
Don't expect her to entertain herself. Spend time with her.


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## samsa (May 8, 2011)

Puddin's Training Tips said:


> Walk out the door for a second, come right back. When the dog can tolerate that well, then walk out for 2 seconds then come right back. And so on and so forth. And I don't mean just do this in one day. This is over an extended period of time.


I agree with this. At least, this is the approach I took with my dog when he was a puppy and it seemed to work well. I was moving into an apartment, so I knew that he'd have to be well behaved when I wasn't home with him (i.e. no crying or barking). Otherwise, we were sure to receive some complaints given the demographic and less-than-friendly dog atmosphere.

So, I crate trained him by doing little intervals each day. If he was crying, I wouldn't let him out. I would only let him out when he was silent - and I'd typically wait for at least a couple minutes of silence for it to be considered "legitimate". I didn't want him associating the crying with being let out in any way, shape, or form. Gradually, I increased the amount of time - and now it's at the point where I don't crate him at all and can be gone for up to 10 hours and he's just fast asleep (he couldn't care less).

Good luck!


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