Separation Anxiety

[Discussing Labradoodles & Goldendoodles]

Hi all!  My Roxy girl is about 8.5 months old. 

 

Since she is quite the Houdini, we keep her caged when we leave the house.  It is rarely longer than 4 hours, usually 2 or 3 hours here and there.  If we will be gone longer (like a date night), we drop her off at my moms (usually with our kids, but not always) to hang out there.

 

My boys started kinder almost 3 weeks ago. The other day I caged her when I brought the boys to school. When I got home (within a half hour) she had completely shredded her cage bottom (it used to look like a giant black plastic cookie sheet).  It was so badly shredded, I was able to put it in a plastic walmart bag with plenty of room to spare in the bag still!  There was some blood on the carpet (minimal amounts), but no cuts I can see on her paws. **See first picture at bottom

 

That night we figured we would move the cage  from our master bedroom to the front door, thinking she would possibly be more comfortable where she can see more.  The next day I caged her when I left to bring the kids to school and she tipped her cage over -unlocking the cage door and happily GREETED me in the driveway when I got home.  She escaped from her cage AND our fence.  Houdini indeed :)

 

Today she was shaking like a leaf when it was time for the boys to go to school. When I came home, her cage was moved about 2 feet and one of her paws was wet.  I am thinking she is starting to lick it out of nervousness?

 

She has NEVER been put in her cage for being naughty. She has a time out corner, but we have only used it twice.  She is a great dog, never gives us a lick of trouble (except the escaping thing, lol) and is so loved.   I swear she is the best puppy imaginable, and it really stumps us to why she is suddenly (just in this past week) having these issues -and what we can do to help her.  

 

Thanks so much for any advice you can give!

 

 

[Carol and Banjo]

OMG! I can't believe she shredded the tray of her crate! Do you typically give her something "special" when she's going to be crated while your away? From the beginning, if we had to leave Banjo (during the day or evening) he always gets a "goodie" which is a frozen Kong stuffed with a little kibble and topped off with p-butter/oatmeal. He gets soooo excited as soon as he sees us in the freezer he runs to his crate. If this is new behavior you might want to try giving her something extra special and leaving her for very short periods several times a day and see if that might help. Good luck!!! She's a cutie!

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

We had an old rescue dog that we had trouble crating. We had to get a trainer for some other issues too, but she helped us with some desensitizing techniques. Try to figure out what starts making your dog nervous when she senses you are leaving...like putting on your shoes, grabbing your car keys. Then start doing these things so Roxy can see, but don't go anywhere. Grab your keys and then go sit down and turn the TV on or something. After a while, Roxy should start to become immune to these triggers. Next, try walking out the door for just a second and then coming right back in. Increase the time until she seems calmer about this too. Leave something delicious for her that she can't resist while you are gone...a kong stuffed with peanut butter to keep her busy. Try freezing them, so it takes her longer to get to the goodies.

My dogs are so spoiled. They have everything, but a Las Vegas entertainer show up, when I leave to go somewhere. I turn on a fan to mute outside noises, the TV, and leave a kong with peanut butter or something else to eat that I only give them as an extra special treat in their crate.

I also (when they were young) got them one of those stuffed dogs with the heartbeat and I swear that helped them calm down in their crate, but Roxy might shred that toy. Finally, when you leave or return try not to make a big deal out of it. No big hellos or goodbyes and you staying calm will help too. What about trying to gate off an area and see if she does better in that area?

The last two suggestions I have are to exercise her before you have to leave so she is tired or think about doggie daycare when you need to be away longer. Good luck!!!

[Pam and Ginger Snap]

I do the same thing for Ginger.TV, Judge Judy, Price is Right....Music..I am trying to figure out her favorite....maybe country.....Treats...toys....

[Frannie & Callie]

The wet paws could be sweat. All three of my sister's dogs got sweaty paws when they were nervous.

[Diane Marra]

I had the same experience with my rescue shredding the cage bottom a few months ago. She too escaped, but it was because we had only used the top lock and not the bottom, and she is small enough to get out.
I need to use the cage, so I just have a black plastic bag under it and many blankets inside. Once she destroyed the black plastic, she seems to be ok going in there. I too use the treat method for getting her into the cage when I have to leave the house. She seems to be ok now, good luck!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I'm wondering if she's kept crated when you're gone because she's destructive? Have you tried creating a "safe room" where things that she might ruin have been removed, and tried leaving her there while you're gone? Am I reading this correctly that this behavior just started a week ago....had she been fine in her crate while you were gone prior to that?

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I think you're absolutely right...it wasn't about destroying the blinds but about looking for you. I leave my two guys (and the younger one is her age) in the kitchen and foyer area while we're gone. They can freely look out the window and watch for us to come home. I also remove anything that could be destroyed, and I never leave food for them to get into. I really think you may be okay if you keep her in a room where things that are destructible have been removed, and she can look outside....maybe just pull up the blinds (or what's left of them). I would definitely never leave any dog alone with the garbage for that length of time. Also, I think you were absolutely right to close off the doggie door. If she can escape the back yard, that could be very dangerous. I would not trust her in the crate when she's alone based on what's happened the past few times, but that may not be a problem is you're able to create a safe space for her.

[Rose Ann and Amante]

If it were me, I would go with the safe room idea. I think she is looking for you.