Please Help! Ruby barks for hours when we leave her...

[Leslie Kurnick]

We are so happy with our 6 month old Golden Doodle. She is well behaved, smart and loves everyone. The only problem is we CANNOT leave her alone without her going nuts. We installed an iCam on our computer and phone so we can watch and see what she is doing. For the last few months, every single time we leave her she barks loudly the whole time. She paces in the kitchen and we leave her bones, kongs (with peanut butter and treats) and a bed, toys, etc. We sometimes leave her for 30 min, sometimes an hour or sometimes 2. Without fail every time she barks the whole time...Maybe 30-60 second quiet spells here and there. We have neighbors upstairs and down, so this is a problem. She gets plenty of room locked in the kitchen and we always make sure she has had lots of exercise and bathroom time before hand. She does the same thing if we leave her in the car btw. Oh, getting another dog isnt an option unfortunately.

How long should this go on before we get a trainer? ANY suggestions are welcomed. My husband tries to leave her even if just for 5 min at least once a day..She paces and barks. I feel bad for her, but she has to be able to be alone.

Please help!

Leslie

[Judy, Meg & Polly Wolly Doodle]

I don't have the answer for how to fix this but wanted to make a few comments.  First of all for your neighbors sake you obviously want to get this taken care of as soon as possible, but I also believe the longer a dog stays upset the more upset it gets, I know when Meg starts pacing if I don't put her down and make her stay there she just keeps going.  So for everyone it is best to fix this.  Second, is it possible that neighbors are stomping floor or knocking on ceilings trying to startle her into stopping?  That will only make things worse...but it is hard to train neighbors when they are being disturbed.  I would definitely talk to a trainer as soon as possible or go to the Doggie Dan site and see what he has on this...he is pretty clever at fixing problems.  I hope for all of you that you get answers quickly.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Doggie Dan does address this but he says that the first step is putting into place the 5 golden rules for becoming the pack leader.  That is much more than I can explain to you here.  I would suggest going to his site theonlinedogtrainer.com and joining for at least a trial period (you can get 3 days for $1) and looking at all of his information on becoming the pack leader and then his videos on addressing this issue.

[Leslie Kurnick]

Thanks for the suggestions, ya'll. Neighbors are being great about it and arent trying to get her to hush at all. Just left her for an hour and barked for about 30 min of it...a little improvement, but we left the poor cat in there with her. seemed to help a bit.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I totally agree with this!  This problem doesn't have a "quick fix" and six months is definitely time for training.  Good luck...and  please keep us posted.

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

A thunder shirt helped yogi.

[Enid Ferner]

I read an interesting article on dogs that get stressed when we leave. It's so important to establish yourself as the " pack leader", otherwise if your dog feels it's job is to be YOUR pack leader then when you leave it feels stressed because it's not with you looking out for you. This becomes a very stressful situation and they can't relax.
So this really isn't an easy "stop the barking" fix, it's more of a start at the beginning and get your dog to respect you and see you as it's leader, then when you leave (very calmly, no big good byes) then it is in a calm and relaxed state as well, knowing you're safe because after all, YOU are the leader, not him.
I'm pretty sure this was a Doggy Dan article, I would definitely check out his website and start with his Golden Rules.

[Ginny Nightingale]

Just a thought to add to the good advice--she MIGHT feel more comfortable in a crate--I know it seems counterintuitive, but if the crate is introduced as her safe place to eat, sleep and generally relax, it might help her to be confined when you are not there. When you leave and gates locking her in, she is  not in her usual arrangement, so it stresses her and winds her up more and more...if she is kept in a crate that she has become used to over time, it might help her to feel like she is safe.

[Jennifer Tramell]

Might I suggest a technique I've used in horse training?  Basically you expose the dog to a teeny bit of whatever makes her uncomfortable and then remove the "pressure" right before she reacts.  It would look something like this:

Put Ruby in the kitchen/crate/wherever you choose to keep her.  Stand there without speaking, touching, anything - stand there in a confident yet relaxed manner.  Wait for Ruby to get bored of waiting for you to do something - she will probably go lay down.  At that point, walk away for a few seconds - maybe just step out of sight and come back immediately.  Call Ruby, greet her, let her out.  Then repeat only this time wait a few seconds more.  The trick is to make sure you end the exercise BEFORE Ruby thinks about getting agitated. 

With horses, I used this to teach mustangs to accept new things with a calm and relaxed state of mind.  It started with teaching them to let me touch them.  Maybe the first step was to make eye contact and then turn away before the horse showed agitation - maybe only 1 second.  When eye contact was comfortable - lean in then back off, 1 step then away, 2 steps then turn away, etc, etc.  All the way to the saddle on the back for a second then removed, and finally me on the back. 

If you are wanting to teach Ruby to relax and accept the "pressure" of solitary life, this might be an easy way to start.

[Emily, Bentley, & Maserati]

Have you ever used a crate? 

When we leave we've found that leaving the dogs in a smaller space (one room versus the whole house, and access to the crates makes a big difference for us. They feel more secure which allows them to relax rather than pace and bark. 

[Jen W]

Dory used to do this, too.  I know how bad you feel.  I contacted her breeder for help and he pointed me to The Dog Listener which mentions that separation anxiety isn't like a child missing their mommy, but is more like a mom pacing the floor at midnight because her teenager daughter still isn't home.  That's why the pack-leader stuff is important.  In the wild, the leader gets to go off and leave the pack whenever they want and the rest of the pack doesn't worry b/c they are confident in the leader's ability to stay safe.  Ruby may not be confident that you are the pack leader and thus cannot take care of yourself when you are out.  She might be worried.

The author of The Dog Listener lays out 4 ways to establish yourself in this role as leader, to deal with this:

1) Eat first.  Let Ruby see you put the food in her bowl up on a countertop.  Have some oyster crackers (or whatever) next to the bowl.  After you put her food in, eat the oyster crackers, making sure she is watching you eat first.  In the wild, the leader eats first.

2) When you've been gone and come home, ignore her.  When you first step through the door you should not make any eye contact, pet her or talk to her until she is completely calm and then you can call her to you.  In the wild, when the pack reunites the leader does not engage in the greetings immediately.

3) Lead the walk.  This means you go out the door first and Ruby follows you.  She should not be allowed to lead.  Dogs see the walk as the hunt, and in the wild the leader leads the pack on the hunt.  (This step wasn't easy for me.  I could always get out the door first but getting her to follow required lots of training.)

4) Address perceived threats as a leader would.  When Ruby barks at a doorbell or someone walking by the window, as the leader of the pack you need to take her alert seriously (even though you know the letter carrier coming up the walk is not a threat).  Get up, look at the situation she has alerted you to, thank her for alerting you and then walk away to show her you have seen the issue and determined it not to be an issue at all.  In the wild, the leader protects the pack and this is your way of showing her you've got her back.

This is just a short overview so you can see what the book is about.  I highly recommend it.

Good luck!