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separation anxiety and crate training problems

Discussion in 'Training & Behavior' started by Rhinna13021, Dec 31, 2009.

  1. Has anybody here ever ran into separation anxiety with their dogs?

    I wanted to go out with my fiance and our son. So we left for 2 hours. First we put rihanna in the heavy duty plastic crate. Well we came home she was loose, howling screaming carrying on. Pooped in the cat room. And was on my bed crying(sounded like someone was beating her!)

    Now honestly i cannot leave my house if i do she screams/howls and carries on the whole time. If i go into thebathroom she also starts whining.

    She has attached her self to me.
    she chewed the crate and pushed against the door hard enough to escape. the door will still shut and the crates still functional.

    suggestions would be welcomed. This separation thing is a pain. She sounds so pathetic.
     
  2. BringBackup

    BringBackup Top Dog

    If you are dead set on crate training her, you need to get a crate she cannot break out of. If your dog learns it can break out of a crate, she is going to get into the habit of doing it and then you won't be able to contain her at all. You should look into the aluminum crates; they are pricey but I promise you she won't be getting out of them. With a dog who has anxiety or destructive habits, it can also be a safety hazard if she breaks loose. It's not unheard of for dogs to jump through windows or chew holes in doors and escape.

    How long have you had Rihanna? I adopted my Boxer mix at 18 months and she had separation anxiety for about year. She'd howl, cry, and scratched my bedroom door to pieces. Thankfully she loved the crate and that solved most of the issues. Her anxiety was actually calmed by the crate, which seems to be the opposite of your's. Sometimes it is an issue that resolves itself in time (especially if the dog is new to the household) but other times it becomes a life long battle. Perhaps she'd be more comfortable left outside on a chain set-up?
     
  3. i got her on december 11th. Im definately determined to crate her while im not home and at nights. We've been tethering her to the couch at night. first night she whined but she finally calmed down.

    Im going to get her a kong and work on the crate as a positive thing with her.
     
  4. BringBackup

    BringBackup Top Dog

    Also, and if it ever gets to bad that you do decide to get a heavy-duty crate, here is an excellent article that explains it a bit more. Some dogs do freak out when they realize they can't break open the crate, and some of the things the article lists might help in your current situation i.e. exercise before crate, crate her while you are nearby, kongs or knuckle bones, etc.

    http://leerburg.com/cratewarning.htm
     
  5. Zoe

    Zoe CH Dog

    My first girl had extreme separation anxiety so I feel you pain! lol Another thing you can try is the dog appeasing phermone plug ins. I got some during out daughters last hospital stay as the animals are used to us being here 24/7 minus leaving for errands and dog walks and such so leaving for two weeks and having someone else come into care for them is no doubt a big stressor. Not sure if it really helped but I know some people who swear by them. Here's a link anyhoo....

    http://www.pethealth.com.au/Page/dap-for-dogs

    As well, you can try the rescue rememdy...

    http://www.rescueremedy.com/pets/

    Are you practicing crating when you are home with her? You don't just want to be sticking her in it when you leave, or she may be relating the crate to being left alone. Practice all day, putting her in for a few minutes, but leaving the door open, then with it closed, give all her treats in there, feed her her meals in there, give her toys and bones in there, etc... Try to condition her to thinking the crate is the best place ever where all the good treats and such appear! lol If you have no other animals, you can also hide treats in there so she'll just randomly discover them on her own. Try ''fake'' leaving, too. Get all dressed up like you are going out, but only leave for a few seconds. Do it again, gradually building up her tolerance level with you leaving for longer sessions. Scarling is a bit of a screamer when we leave. Not full blown separation anxiety but I noticed just the process of ''getting ready'' would set her off, so I started now and again just gathering everything as if we were leaving, but not actually leave so everytime I touch my keys or my coat, they don't get all worked up. lol I probably look pretty silly wandering around my house in my coat, but it has helped! lol
     
  6. AGK

    AGK Super duper pooper scooper Administrator

    Sturdy crate + Bark Collar = Problem solved in most cases.
     
  7. I've used this crate with some of the dogs i've taken in over the years. This is the first time I've ran into this problem. I was shocked when i walked in the house and she came running down from our room nearly tripping over her self to get to me.:rolleyes:
     
  8. NMWAPBT

    NMWAPBT Top Dog

    do you walk her often??
     
  9. she gets walked ALOT. I go around the block with her about 6 + times a day. these arent short walks they range any where's between 25 mins to half hour, hour max.

    Since we have a load of snow here i try to get her to play...but she acts like she is scared to play.


    a couple other things i have noticed:

    I have to almost literally drag her to her food dish to get her to eat. She is scared of the cats...:rolleyes: So I have a room i put her in and shut the door so she can eat in peace

    if there was a hierachy in the house, I'd say she is below the cats...? She gives up her spot to sleep in to my siamese, gives up the water and food dish to him(reason why she gets fed away from them so she will eat).

    She is a very submissive dog.
     
  10. Zoe

    Zoe CH Dog

    Oh man... I had a boarding dog here that was literally SCREAMING so loud I could hear her two blocks away. No joke. Her owner and I were trying to come up with a solution, so she went and bought her a bark collar. :eek: OMG. It made the dog INSANE! lol Seriously... she wasn't the most stable dog to begin with, but the fact the stupid collar would go off when she wagged her tail and it hit the crate wasn't helping. :rolleyes: She literally ripped my unescapable kennel to shit, destroying the welds holding the door together. This is a crate that no dog I've handled, even the worst of the worst escapers ever got out of and she ripped the door right off the welds. :eek: When the collar went off, she would go freakin ballistic! I still have the collar if anyone else wants to give it a go! lol Then my insane foster Tucker had the citronella one. She'd just bark until the canister was empty and then bark some more. :rolleyes: Ya.. I haven't had much luck with them! lol
     
  11. Zoe

    Zoe CH Dog

    Have you tried feeding her in her crate? My girl Scarling is like that. SUPER geeky. If you try to feed her outside her crate, she won't eat.. well.. maybe if the whole house went into shush mode and didn't move, she just MIGHT eat a kibble or two. lol Maybe try feeding her in the crate and instead the crate will start to become her ''safe spot'' and she might become more comfy in it.
     
  12. i could put a big juicy steak in there and she would go crazy. She still whine when i shut her in the one room but eventually if i creep to the door i can hear her eating her food.i think she was a tad bit spoiled by the person i got her from.
     
  13. Zoe

    Zoe CH Dog

    Well, I know that is part of what caused my first girls issues. I created a monster! lol TOTALLY spoiled rotten to the point of dependancy. :eek:
     
  14. i have been tethering her to teh couch at night so she gets the idea that my bed is MY bed not hers. I had some crying the first couple nights but now she is not crying anymore she just gets up on 'her' spot on the couch and goes to sleep and doesnt usually get off the couch until morning.

    the lady i got her from said its because she misses the other pit she was with...which i dont understand she wants to go after any dog we see on a walk...well except for the old basset we see on our walks thats the only dog she doesnt react too, she actually wags her butt when she sees him. :rolleyes:
     
  15. NMWAPBT

    NMWAPBT Top Dog

    yea id try this walk her then feed her works for diesel
     
  16. NMWAPBT

    NMWAPBT Top Dog

    lol she goes after dogs but is afraid of the cat must be a beast of a cat then like a tiger or something maybe that lady is right if she was raised with another dog then it is possible that she need a buddy ive heard of dogs becoming depressed if one of there buddy dogs dies
     
  17. no my siamese just thinks he is king of the house, even the other cats give in to him. :rolleyes: its not that she is afraid its more like she gives into him. They play together like she would with another dog...i treated this cat like a dog...i taught him to sit on command and beg on command as well. he comes when i whistle for him and call his name. :o
     
  18. NMWAPBT

    NMWAPBT Top Dog

    ik i figured something like that i was just teasing but still im surprised at her she gets along with cats but not dogs anywho yea good luck with your trainging but if all else fails and you have enough room and money get a buddy or try leaving the tv on for it it works sometimes like with my cuzins wiemeriemr or however u spell that hed leave the dog whisperer on and it would b all good
     
  19. Dreamer

    Dreamer Big Dog

    Separation anxiety IS a pain and I hear about it a lot in "rescue" dogs....dogs that have spent a lot of time in confinement and just don't handle it well and never will. As someone said, some never get over it and sometimes being put down is best for severe cases.

    If this dog truly panics when in a crate or other confinement, they can REALLY hurt themselves just TRYING to get out .... even if the crate is escape-proof, they will hurt themselves with their efforts...I think it's a true panic and they just can't help it...

    These are often pathetic animals, submissive and fearful of everything and you really need to think what normal, everyday life is like for them.

    Dreamer
     

  20. other than going nutty when i leave the house, she is fine. Not liking other dogs is something i can deal with.

    She is perfect to me in every other way, she adores the kids, and the cats. Lets me know when someone is at teh door downstairs. listens somewhat..working on that.
     

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