[Maximo]

Carla, I am so sorry to hear that Yazmin is having trouble adjusting to you working more. I'm sure it is twice as hard right now with the winter weather keeping you from enjoying outdoor time and walks. Worrying about Yazmin is stressful for you, which is bad when you need to care of your own health.

I agree with the suggestion above to give Yazmin something safe with your scent on it. I give my boys my cotton tshirts that don't have tags or buttons or other hazards.

I also agree that crating Yazmin would probably make matters worse and she would be likely to harm herself or stress herself to the point of making herself sick.

I know the conventional training wisdom is as Jeanie quoted to ignore the pup when you leave and return. However, I think it works better for my boys to have a goodbye in which I use keywords to let them know how long I will be gone. They know the difference between "back in a minute" or "back in a little bit" or "back in awhile." We also have a good greeting when I return.

When dad was in the hospital, that was the first time Teddy has ever been alone. Max had been alone once for about an hour. I was panicked about leaving them. Granted, they have each other, but 2 dogs is not a guarantee that neither will suffer separation anxiety. I set up my computer camera to record them while I was gone and thankfully they just stayed in their beds and waited.

If you can record Yazmin to see if she is upset the entire time you are gone or if it is only when you leave and when she anticipates that you will return (dogs are really smart that way, as you know they know they have great internal clocks), that might help you find a solution. Maybe a brief visit from your boyfriend would help, so that he wouldn't have stay the whole time.

I used my Macbook camera (thank you Sarah for the suggestion!) which allows you to watch the video in fast forward mode.

You could also try an oral calming aid like Rescue Remedy. I will ask Jodi which one worked for one of her babies who has problems. She tried a few.

I will also try to think of some other suggestions to keep Yazmin safe.