Originally Posted by yorkietalkjilly  Usually a dog that is nervous and anxious either has no work to do or feels no sense that its person is the leader. This can create anxiety in a dog and make them extremely bossy and nervous when you or anyone wants to go away or they are faced with situations that make them unhappy.
Do you disagree with his behavior when he acts like that? Do you follow through and allow him to learn that you control the situation - every single time? I would try to become a stronger leader with him, reading all I could about the Nothing In Life Is Free way of dealing with a dog that is taking some control. Just Google that term and read about it.
I would read Tamar Geller's The Loved Dog. It's a wonderful book about how to gently take control of your misbehaving, nervous and insecure dog and do it with a loving purpose behind the training, knowing what you are trying to achieve and why it is so necessary when dealing with a problem dog. I am reading an audio book version of it and totally loving her ways as her philosophy of dog training is how I've always trained.
Giving your dog a job to do learning to follow your direction and obey you can help the most troublesome and misbehaving, scared dog. Separation anxiety is typical of a nervous, insecure dog who is looking for a stronger leader. The more insecure a dog is, the more he needs strong leadership. It seems wrong to humans to think this way but in the hierarchal world of dogs, if done gently(usually involving warning eye contact, body attitude, low growls, showing teeth and body contact or a nip that doesn't hurt) as alpha dogs and wolves in the wild are with their pack members, it keeps the problem pack member happier and more secure in the long run when he definitely knows his place in the hierarchy and that his pack leader is going to keep them all safe. I'm not saying to gently nip your baby or anything like that but dogs use the tools they have and wolves and dogs' pack leaders rarely fight or attack their underlings - they just warn and approach, stare, growl, snap, etc., to show the problem pack member they are misbehaving and that show of leadership and strength gets through to the misbehaving pack member and he shapes up, secure that he's cared for by a strong leader. As I say, it seems antithetical to human mores of how to treat insecurity but dogs get it and are happiest when they have a loving and strong leader that doesn't allow them to act out.
Anyway, see if you can't find that book and read up online on the NILIF method of dealing with your dog and then as the book directs, get working on your dog's problems gently and lovingly through a position of strength in his eyes. It will calm him right down over time unless he is ill or has physical problems. But you have to be consistent and not let him have an inch of misbehavior as you are dealing with his problems - but Ms. Geller will cover how to do that kindly and humanely, making a fun game of it all.
This method of dealing with behavior problems has worked for me for years and years and has helped a lot of serious anxiety issues. And most of all, the dogs love it. |