Top 5 Separation Anxiety Myths
Separation Anxiety is a panic disorder in dogs where, when left alone, a dog experiences outsized and high levels of panic, stress and fear. Many trainers shy away from taking on Separation Anxiety cases due to a lack of understanding of how to effectively treat it. There is no lack of misinformation on how to help the Separation Anxiety dog on the internet, from friends and even from pet professionals. This can lead to dog guardians feeling hopeless and burnt out. The good news for guardians is that there is effective treatment for Separation Anxiety.
Let’s get in to dispelling some of the most common myths about Separation Anxiety and what we recommend instead:
The Crate Training Cure:
Many well meaning guardians try crate training for their Separation Anxiety suffering dog. The thought Is that dogs will find a den like space comforting. Unfortunately, confinement doesn't address the anxiety and panic that the dog experiences during alone-time. In fact, many dogs that present with Separation Anxiety also experience confinement distress. So, leaving them alone In confinement can actually have the opposite effect than originally Intended, making the anxiety much worse. It can actually be dangerous to leave a stressed dog In a crate. As dog pros, we know that dogs can break teeth, nails or even get limbs caught in the bars trying to escape. Or, sadly, an unknowing guardian can easily mistake the signs of learned helplessness (when a dog shuts down as a result of being exposed to a fear inducing stimulus without an option for escape) as the dog “calming down”. But the truth is that dog is suffering internally.
The most effective treatment for Separation Anxiety is desensitization which involves exposure to the fear inducing stimuli, in the case of separation anxiety it is alone time and departures, at an intensity that feels safe to the dog. Our desensitization protocols are straight forward and do no add any extra steps like crate training. We aim to teach the dog to feel safe with alone time without trying to trick them or suppress behaviors. Instead we slowly build a history of safety with the actual trigger.
The Outrunning Anxiety Cure:
Exercise is an incredibly important piece of a dog's overall physical and mental wellbeing. We've all heard the saying "a tired dog is a good dog". However, we have to take that with a grain of salt in the case of the Separation Anxiety dog. We simply cannot exercise Separation Anxiety away. If it were that simple, we would not see the Separation Anxiety cases in the frequency that we do.
Of course, CSAT trainers will often encourage and coach clients on making sure their dog Is receiving adequate exercise and enrichment to ensure the dog's needs are being met. But we want to look at this as a supplement to the training plan and not the training plan itself.
The Eating our Feelings Cure:
Many trainers suggest that guardians use puzzle toys, chews or other food enrichment to help their dog overcome Separation Anxiety. The intention is to pair absences with something yummy to help ease the dog's stress. Although well intentioned, this strategy rarely works. Typically, the guardian buys 20 minutes where the dog Is distracted by the food puzzle, But what about after the food Is gone? Most dogs return to their SA symptoms. And I don't know about you, but I can certainly still experience stress and eat at the same time. Hello feeling feels over a pint of Ice cream! It's no different for our dogs.
Not only that but the presentation of stimuli is out of order. When focusing on associative learning, which includes desensitization, the order of presentation is paramount. When done correctly, we want to present alone time with safety so over time alone time feels safe. When we use food enrichment to distract a dog during an absence that is too long for the dog to handle we are presenting food with a scary absence. Over time we can create a scenario where puzzle toys become the boogeyman. The dog learns that those items predict your departure which can lead to inappetence, food refusal and anxiety around enrichment. We certainly don’t want that! Instead, we recommend working at a level that is centered around the dog’s tolerance and needs. Once your dog has worked up to a comfortable 30-45 minute absence food toys can be reintroduced to help with boredom. But we want to avoid masking anxiety and discomfort with food toys.
The Double Trouble Cure:
You may be thinking getting your separation anxiety dog a buddy will help ease their anxiety. And while I appreciate the thoughtfulness and intention, I do not recommend going down this road. Many dogs with Separation Anxiety need a human present to feel safe. We have observed this time and again with dogs in mutli-dog households where the dog couldn’t care less that a fury buddy is home. If the humans are absent, they are stressed. And if it does work to calm the Separation Anxiety dog to have a buddy, you will still be faced with the same issue if the second dog needed to go for grooming, to the vet or any other scenario occurred where the dogs were required to be separate. The second dog is acting as a security blanket but hasn’t done anything to address the underlying separation anxiety. Finally, my last word of caution about the second dog as a fix scenario: I, of course, love dogs! And multi-dog households can work out beautifully. But that is not always the case. Adding an additional dog can be a complex endeavor itself and a new dog can come with their own behavior hurdles. There’s no guarantee that the second “helper” dog doesn’t turn out to be an additional layer to an already complex issue. So, while I would never police someone’s decision to add another dog to the mix, I do provide my insight so folks can be informed while weighing the pros and cons.
The Cry it Out Cure:
So many of my clients have been advised by well-meaning friends to “stop coddling” their dog and the dog will “get over it” eventually. This is simply not true with a panic disorder like Separation Anxiety. Dogs with separation anxiety experience panic when left alone, so when exposed to long periods of absence they experience what is known as flooding. When flooding occurs the outcome is often sensitization, the opposite of desensitization, which makes the dog more sensitive to absences over time. Another possible outcome of flooding is learned helplessness which can be easily misread as calmness but in fact is a dog that has given up as opposed to have gotten over it. It’s the difference between depression and calmness. Using desensitization treatment leads to a dog that feels calm, secure and safe. Using the right methods for training takes your dog from surviving something scary to thriving around their triggers.