You May Be Fueling the Fire On Your Dog's Separation Anxiety

When allowing a dog to be a velcro dog, it is important to remember that it can create a co-dependency and can even start feeling like emotional blackmail when you need to leave the house without them.

Allowing a dog with separation anxiety to have no rules in the home can lead to a number of issues. Without boundaries and discipline, the dog may cause destruction or mess around the house, bark excessively, and display unwanted behaviors such as digging, chewing, and jumping.

It could also lead to conflicts between the dog and other members of the household, as well as issues with visitors. In addition, the lack of rules and discipline can increase the stress and anxiety levels for both the dog and its owners.

Dogs are incredibly sensitive to energy, so they can pick up on when you're about to leave the house. This can cause them to become anxious and frantic when they're placed in the kennel.

They are creatures of routine. When you start bustling around your house, putting your shoes on, gathering items like your purse or wallet, the car keys, your dog knows you're about to leave. The anxiety reaction is set off because the only time you put your dog in the kennel is when you leave.

This is a good way for kennel time to become frantic time.

Practice kenneling your dog while you are at home. Good times are when your are on a conference call. You're taking a shower. You're making dinner. There are guests arriving. There's chaos going on in your house. Feed your dog treats in the kennel. You can even feed your dog's food in the kennel. All good things come from chilling out in the kennel.

It is important to remember that making a big deal when you are getting ready to leave your dog alone can cause them to become anxious and frantic. Hugging and kissing your dog, cuddling, petting and telling them it will be alright can actually fuel the fire of their anxiety or alarm when you are about to leave. By reinforcing the freaked out behavior when you tell your dog "it's okay", you are inadvertently reinforcing this as the way to act.

Remember that your own emotions can affect your dog's behavior. If we are feeling anxious about leaving your dog, they may pick up on this anxiety. In order to help your dog stay calm, it is important to stay calm yourself. You should take on the confidence that you are doing all the necessary things to help your dog, such as taking them on a 20 minute Calming the Chaos walk. By staying calm and confident, incorporating consistent exercise, and working your dog on knowing how to do a variety of simple dog good manners tasks, you can help your dog become a calm and confident being.