Hello from Scotland! Could use your advice!

[LunarBerry]

Originally Posted by Alexa_And_Oscar

LunarBerry - My Mum calls herself Grandma and my Partner calls himself Daddy too. It's amazing the love you feel for them I usually let Oscar lie on my jumpers and hoodies. But if I do decide to try the crate then, I will leave him a few things that smell of me, and see if that helps. An interactive Toy, do you have anything in mind? He has hundreds of Toys. I'm afraid whenever I go out, I end up bringing him back a new Toy.

Your boy is about the same age as my girl as she's 8 month as well. lol I sometimes put my plush bed robe over my bed and she'll lay on it while I brush her with a human baby brush and comb. She loves it as it's really soft and the handles is nubby, hard, & rubbery that she'll gnaw on sometimes while I brushing her (never actually let her have it when i don't brush her of course :3). Her hair is so soft and kept short that the brush works pretty good on her. She sometimes will look at my bed then at me a few times to let me know she wants up and to be "groomed"
When I first brought her home I had gotten a new toy to bring for the breeders to rub really good on the momma yorkie to get her scent and they gave me a sock that was kept with her and her litter mates. I believe that helped eased her, but even I gotta say she adjusted beautifully (adjusted better than I did even, lol)
So yea when he is kennel trained, having something with your scent (can also have other family member's scent, too) may help calm him until he can do without it. There's also pheromone, lavender scented sprays that are for dogs with anxiety to help them calm down when alone or traveling. In my case, my yorkie girl also has two older furbabies (jack russells) that can keep her company and we keep the TV on to make the house seem less empty (she sometimes seem to fall asleep better with it on) we usually put it on a fairly mellow channel like the food network or animal planet. Though here in the States there's some channels specifically for dogs to watch (they say it's even at a frequency that make them see the screen better).
As for interactive toys, there's some that makes it a bit of a puzzle to get to treats, this is good for mental stimulation. There's also some that kind of move on it's own some, similar to some cat toys like a ball that'll roll around on it's own (just make sure it's not too small and that it's durable enough for your pup, I had bought 4 somewhat pricy toys in the past two months that got torn up between my yorkie and my younger jack and had to be thrown away, much to my & my yorkie baby's dismay ;_; ). There's also other snack based toys by kong, alot of their toys you can fill with some tasty paste they make or treats and it makes them work to get it.

[Alexa_And_Oscar]

Thank you everyone for your advice. I'm going to buy a Flexilead and try that out. I've already made a complaint to the Housing Association about her, but they don't seem to know what to do, all they said was: If it keeps happening, their going to have to set up a meeting with her and I, and see how that goes (Which I'm sure it won't go very well)

[Alexa_And_Oscar]

I didn't see your post there LunarBerry!

Oscar doesn't mind being groomed but I don't think it's his favorite thing. I wish my groomer had been like that. But he claimed that he hadn't meant for the Puppies to happen and didn't seem in the slightest bothered. He just wanted rid of them. So I got nothing from him. Unfortunately we don't have the Dog Channel over here. If we do, I'm presuming I have to ask for it and pay more for it. I've got a few tricky Toys for him. But he never seems interested in them when I'm away. He just barks and stays in the same spot. Doesn't even have food or water, until I return I'll try out a few things and see if anything changes. I pray that it does. Because my Mum can't always Babysit him, and everyone else thinks I'm crazy that I don't have a social life anymore because of my Dog (My Friends don't understand it all. They just think he's a Dog and nothing more)

[smelcerk]

I have loved reading this thread. You have gotten some really amazing suggestions for the separation anxiety. I hope one of them works for you. As for the leash, I will never ever allow my new puppy outside without a leash. I experienced the horrible pain of my Zoey running out into the road and killed hit by a car. I personally do not trust the training. You never know what gets into their little heads and that one time they decide to ignore you could be the one time that kills them. Not worth the pain and I for one won't be making that mistake again.

[SirTeddykins]

Hiya from Leicestershire


If you read back through some of my previous posts, I have a had a long road with separation anxiety with my Teddy.


Firstly, no matter WHO tells you it's a good idea to let your dog off the leash and as you have experienced yourself, it is NOT a good idea. It is NOT cruel. What is CRUEL is pretending that cars do not smash dogs and other dogs do not kill dogs because what we WANT to be reality is not the case. That is cruel. I had a trainer who told me to let my dog off and it worked, for a time, but his terrier instinct kicked in and he ran towards traffic (ignoring recall commands which he had previously listened to) because he saw another dog and followed it even when it was out of sight. Had it not been for a very strong set of legs (not mine), my dog would have been dead and how could I blame traffic? I would have no one to blame but myself. Therefore, my dog is never let off leash just like my cat is never let out of the house. I committed to their safety and someone else's opinion does not even factor into my decisions re: these points!


As far as separation anxiety, I empathize with you so completely. It was at 8 months where I had to call someone in for some 'professional advice' re: Teddy and his behavior. The guy was a total moron so did not help me at all. Therefore, I will not be sharing any of his 'advice' here. HOWEVER, my situation is different because I do not have the pressure of neighbors (my house is detached). If I had, I wouldn't have had a dog in the first place.


Therefore, like gemy has suggested, I would recommend you find a trainer as you may be doing something to reinforce anxiety and not even be aware!!! I found that I was doing a few things (like allowing the dog to follow me throughout the house, for example) which reinforces his belief that he needs to know where I am at all times. However, when I command him to STAY so I can leave a room and come back (and then reward him for STAYING upon my return), I am showing him that just because I'm gone - doesn't mean I've disappeared forever! Small things like this CAN HELP.


Teddy, however, still barks and is very anxious. I have consulted vet opinion etc and if you want more details pm me or I can refer you to a couple of threads I've started re: these.


I think your first port of call is to establish if your dog actually suffers from anxiety or if there are some training issues and then go from there. Then, you can argue with the HA that you are being very pro-active in trying to rectify the problem and can show evidence that you are at least working on it, you know?


Good luck xxxxxxxxxx