# First time owner, 10 week old Keeshond with separation anxiety



## bdjansen (Aug 15, 2011)

Hi, 

My family has a 10 week old Keeshond pup that we have had for the past 2 weeks. He has some very serious separation anxiety, and has had it since we brought him home. I have been reading on separation anxiety in dogs and we are considering returning him to the breeder. 

My question is, does this go away as he gets older? Also, would neutering help his anxiety? 

Thanks!


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## Niraya (Jun 30, 2011)

He's a puppy. I wouldn't peg this as SA at all. There's a very nice post around here somewhere about SA (I'll try and find it). It can't be self-diagnosed - you'd have to have a behaviorist diagnose it for you.

My husky was terrible when we brought her home at 10 weeks. She'd scream and howl bloody murder at the top of her little lungs if she was left alone. She's now 6 months and doesn't make a peep when we're gone. It's just all part of having a puppy. He'll eventually grow out of it with the right guidance from you.

It's a shame that you're considering returning him only after 2 weeks for basically just being a puppy.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

I agree! Lots of new puppy owners assume their pup has SA, but, they're just scared and being new puppies. Can you describe what you mean by "some very serious separation anxiety"?


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## lisahi (Jun 19, 2011)

When I got Coco at 8 weeks she used to whine and cry every time I wasn't within her sight. She would even whine if she could see me, but couldn't get to me. She whined when I left the house, she whined when I left the room. I would ignore her.

I didn't make leaving a big event. Sometimes I gave her a stuffed KONG to occupy her, sometimes a ball with a few treats in it that she could get out by rolling it around. Other times I left her with nothing but a "bye!"

She's almost 19 weeks now and while she still occassionally whines if I'm in the kitchen and she wants to come in, too, she doesn't make a peep anymore when she clearly sees I'm leaving the apartment. When I get home I can tell she's either been sleeping or playing with her toys.

Sometimes it's just a puppy thing and they've got to outgrow it. Just ignore the crying when you leave and don't make a big deal about leaving or returning.

If your dog gets older and he's still displaying anxiety, inappropriate bathroom habits, destructive behavior, etc. when you leave, then you should contact a behaviorist to determine whether he truly has SA.


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## HerdersForMe (Jul 26, 2011)

bdjansen said:


> Hi,
> 
> My family has a 10 week old Keeshond pup that we have had for the past 2 weeks. He has some very serious separation anxiety, and has had it since we brought him home. I have been reading on separation anxiety in dogs and we are considering returning him to the breeder.
> 
> ...


You do know you brought home a baby dog right? Surely during your research you read that an 8 week old pup will cry if you try to leave it alone. Especially if you confine it to a crate! SA is a pretty complex and misunderstood condition. I'm not sure a 10 week old pup could even have developed SA yet. 

Not sure what neutering even has to do with it since he's several months if not a year away from being neutered. But no that's not a cure for SA.


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## Sendiulino (Jun 20, 2011)

bdjansen said:


> Hi,
> 
> My family has a 10 week old Keeshond pup that we have had for the past 2 weeks. He has some very serious separation anxiety, and has had it since we brought him home. I have been reading on separation anxiety in dogs and we are considering returning him to the breeder.
> 
> ...


You don't mention when this is happening. Are you trying to crate-train and the puppy cries when you walk away and leave him in the crate? If so, this is normal. Totally normal. 100% normal. 

If the puppy cries... do not "comfort" the puppy. This is the worst thing you can do! Puppies aren't humans, they don't need "comfort" like we do. The puppy will be just fine. If you run to the puppy when he cries, you will create massive headaches for yourself down the road. The puppy will learn crying = I get my way, and that's when down the road you'll end up seeing problems that you then have to correct.

Your pup is just a baby. Babies cry. In this case though, puppies and human babies are not the same thing. If you crate the dog, walk away, and the dog cries? Don't worry. It's hard but just let the pup cry it out. If the pup STOPS crying? Then you can go ahead and give him some attention if it's time for some attention (play time, etc). 

So don't panic  It goes away as they get older, yes, but in as little as just a week or two if you are just consistent in not "rewarding" the behavior. My pup took two weeks to break the whining habit.


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## bdjansen (Aug 15, 2011)

OK, thanks guys! I'm glad to hear that it's something that he will likely grow out of. We are all very fond of him and of course would never want to return him to the breeder. I'm just interested in what is best for the pup and our family and I was worried that if he had a serious problem that maybe we would need to find him a different home that he would be more comfortable in sooner then later.


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## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

It's a puppy. Puppies cry when left alone. They also poop and pee often. Puppies VERY RARELY have SA. Look up "Crate games" to teach your puppy that the crate is a good place.

As he gets older, he's also going to nip, but that doesn't mean he's aggressive. He'll also chew up anything he can get his teeth on, but that doesn't mean he's neurotic. He'll poop/pee in the house after you just had him out, but that doesn't mean he is untrainable. All of those things are what puppies DO. You just need to train him. (In a positive method...not scolding, not rubbing his nose in accidents). Puppy proof your home, and supervise, and be consistent. Make doing the right thing easy.


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## mbowman (Jul 31, 2011)

I second what everyone else has said...our puppy was very vocal when left alone for the first several months, and would literally THRASH when we left him in the crate (so I'd argue that he was showing signs of separation anxiety that maybe go beyond normal puppy). We left a webcam on when we left him alone so we could see what he was doing and he would howl and bark and thrash mournfully for an hour without stopping, and ignoring him and disciplining him did not help. After a month or so of no improvement in the crate behavior, we started confining him to the hallway with a kong (and distracting him as we left) if we left--he would still make some noise, but things started getting better. Slowly he got full run of the living room. Now, at 10 months, he seems to mostly sleep while we're gone...though I think he occasionally lets out a mournful howl if we leave him for 5 or 6 hours (according to our neighbors). All-in-all, way better than I would have expected given the first month or two! Now, we only crate him when we're home (i.e. if I want to do yoga and need him out of the way, or if we're dogsitting for a friend and can't handle the craziness), and he does just fine for an hour or two in the crate. My bet would be your pup will get better if you don't reward the behavior, don't leave him for too long in the beginning but make a point of doing it regularly in a low-key way, and if you don't participate in his excitement when you come home. Best advice I was given was don't let your dog know that you're excited to see him when you come back or that you're leaving (keep the key jingle and the leaving routine varied and not frantic), even if he's clearly been anxious and couldn't wait for you to get home. Wait 'till you take him outside and until he calms down and pees, and then give him love and praise. Every dog is different, so if you pay attention and are consistent you have a long time to develop good routines and habits! Good luck!


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## emilyholtane (Aug 17, 2011)

I know what you mean. He feels anxiety because he is separated from his old home. We took home a Siberian husky at 12 weeks from a breeder that rarely socialized them and also never allowed them indoors. He was cuddly and loving (as the breed generally is) but he was terrified of everything, especially our house! he would whine at everything and just wanted to lay in one spot. Slowly we found out what he liked and we started using certain treats and toys to encourage him to investigate our house and move into the other rooms. Believe me it is a slow process, it is hard to undo the mistakes of irresponsible breeders. Our Sibe still prefers the outdoors and now uses certain toys for comfort (it is borderline obsessive) But he is sweet, loves exploring the outdoors and greets all strangers with love and excitement. he has come a long way but still has more to improve on. getting our Australian Shepherd puppy helped him come out of his shell alot! He saw the fearlessness of our aussie and it gave him new courage to try different things. You might consider getting your Keeshond a companion.


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## petlover84 (Aug 2, 2011)

SA is a very complex topic. I would agree that if your think your dog is suffering from that behavioral problem then you should contact a behaviorist for proper diagnosis. But I think your puppy is too young. Whining and other disturbing activities is normal to all puppies. Young dog does not have yet enough sense of security. When they become a little bit older usually they will out grow the bad behavior.


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## chubby (Aug 18, 2011)

You should do some training activities with your puppy - just keep going in and out and never make a fuss when you leave or come back (I'd say ignore her 10 minutes before you leave, and for 10 minutes when you come back and only acknowledge her when she's calm in her crate) - jingle your keys, and pretend you're leaving, and then come back in 5 minutes, and keep doing that throughout the day. Eventually your puppy won't make a huge fuss over your coming and goings because they know you will always come back


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