5 month old puppy severe separation anxiety

[IvyW]

Hello,

My 5 month old 20lb mini goldendoodle is really struggling with crate training and separation anxiety in general. I have him on a reliable routine full of 3 visits to parks each day. I feed Bones & Co raw food and supplements (b12, BGJP, kelp, zinc) on top of that. I use lemon balm (up to 10 drops), Rescue Remedy for dogs (4 drops), and Hawaii Pharm's Nerve Relax (.15-.5 mL) supplements which at the current doses seem to *gently* help.

I am working with a force-free trainer and have been attempting to crate train him since he was 9 weeks old. At night, he does reasonably well, letting out only a few barks before settling in for the whole night. During the day though, when I am moving in and out of the room and house more, he is consistently anxious and very vocal if I ever leave the room his crate or play pen is in. The trainer's advice is to consistently reassure him with treats after he barks so as to calm him down and avoid emotional esclation. I have had a few instances where he is relaxed enough to be comfortable leaving the room but they are very seldom. This has become very stressful as i have a roommate and need to be out of the house for school often.

Apart from crate training, Leo is very happy dog and well behaved and responds to commands with zeal most of the time.

I am wondering about recommended supplements or medical interventions that may help with separation anxiety, or training methods I might try. Thank you in advance!

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Hey Ivy!

Thanks for making your first post!

I'm sorry to hear that Leo is struggling.

Is puppy daycare a possibility for you?

The Wolf probiotic from Adored Beast would be great to start:

Pre & Probiotics

Pre & probiotics are an essential part of a healthy supplement regimen. Probiotics encourage the growth of friendly bacteria in the gut, helping to crowd out harmful, disease causing bacteria. And prebiotics feed probiotics, allowing them to thrive! To keep your animal healthy, you want to help...

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HA! has a bunch of resources on separation anxiety approached by addressing building and balancing vitality (not just food and supplements).

A great place to start though is with the 101 course which gives you an overview of the approach.

Last week's webinar, and the pdf resource, with the wonderful Sarah Hodgson is also very relevant here because sleep may be a big factor here.

How much socializing did he get for his first few months?

 

[IvyW]

Hi Dr. Jeff,

Thanks for the recommendations.

Leo has had a good amount of socializing his first few months. We went out in public here and there, to stores etc. We live on a loud street, and he met dogs a few times when he was really young and increasingly more in the last three weeks because we go to parks every day.

Not sure if puppy daycare is an option for us, but I will think about it.

He gets a lot of sleep every night but not much this week in the day because he's been so anxious.

Thanks for the help,
Ivy

 

[Dr. Jeff]

YW Ivy!

Btw-using a snuffle mat twice/d would be helpful if you don’t already do this.

Also, a Kong with frozen banana or canned organic pumpkin might be good for him to eat when you crate him.

 

[GinnyW]

What sticks out to me is the recco to "reward" his barking - he WILL perceive it to be a reward. Ask him for quiet, telling him he WILL get a treat, but don't give it just then. After a period of being quiet when you ask, let him out, tell him what a good boy he was, and give one or two small treats. You want to contact his brain, not create a knee-jerk reaction. ALWAYS make it clear what, exactly, he has done to earn his treat. They're plenty smart enough to make that association.