Separation Anxiety Training For Dogs
Regain your freedom and help your dog to feel confident & calm when home alone!
Do you feel stressed, anxious & trapped - perhaps even a slave to your dog’s separation anxiety?
- Maybe you’ve had complaints from neighbours about howling & barking?
- Or coming home to poops or puddles on the floor?
- Coming home to a stressed & anxious dog?
- Maybe you’re even getting stressed just thinking about having to pop out & leave your dog?
- Separation anxiety is stressful for our dogs – and stressful for their humans, but there IS a solution!
About Separation Anxiety:
Canine separation anxiety is more than your dog just being peeved that you’ve left him/her. It is a fear of being alone – a phobia. Dogs suffering from this display signs of panic when they’re left alone for longer than they can handle.
In some cases dogs will be fine as long as someone is with them – in other cases dogs must be with a specific person or persons.
Common signs of separation anxiety include:
- Excessive barking, howling or whining.
- Chewing or destroying furniture, floors, walls, doors etc
- Soiling (even when the dog is otherwise perfectly house-trained)
- Displaying anxiety well before you actually leave
- Escape attempts – sometimes to the point they cause self-harm
It isn’t the case that a dog needs to display all of these behaviours to be diagnosed with separation anxiety – it could be just one or two, and sometimes dogs don’t display any of these more common behaviours, but instead show other signs of fear & anxiety such as:
- Excessive licking or lip-licking
- Salivating
- Freezing
- Panting
- Whining
- Hiding
- Withdrawing
- Tail tucked, cowering
- Trembling or shaking
- Pacing
- Ears pinned back
The main challenge with identifying separation anxiety is that bored or frustrated dogs can often display similar behaviours (in particular barking, chewing & destroying), so we look at “home-alone” behaviours to assess each case, as it’s vital we consider possible other triggers for such behaviours. Often lots of things that dogs do when they’re on their own can be caused by other triggers, not just by separation anxiety, so we will consider other possible causes to identify whether we are dealing with separation anxiety, or whether we approach our training from a different perspective! Whatever the cause – help is at hand, so take the first step & book your free initial call today!
Separation Anxiety - How does the training work?
Separation Anxiety training is done 100% remotely via Zoom, as it’s all about getting your dog to feel calm & comfortable when you leave, so this way I can observe your dog’s body language and responses without my actual presence interfering with that. It also means I can work with you wherever you are in the world!
Separation Anxiety - How long does it take?
There is no way of knowing at the outset how long it will take to reach your desired goal. Each individual dog is different, and has different levels of anxiety and so response rates to training will vary from dog to dog.
Treating separation anxiety in dogs is not quick – but it can be done!
I can help, I’m rooting for you, and I believe you can do this!
We focus on taking things day by day, and celebrating each small win! If you keep looking towards your end goal you can end up feeling overwhelmed which can prevent you from progressing.
Separation Anxiety - What do I need to do?
You & your dog can start your journey from stressed to calm right now, by clicking below to book your free initial call! The steps in the process are detailed below.
This Separation Anxiety training does require a minimum of 4 weeks’ commitment, as this allows us to gain a deeper understanding of your dog & their behaviour, and enables me to guide you through the training & how it works.
The process also requires a commitment from you to your dog that you won’t leave them alone. They don’t have to be with you 100% of the time, BUT they can’t be left in a situation where they won’t be able to cope with isolation, while you are working to build up time alone. If you do leave your dog in a situation they can’t cope with you will undoubtedly undo all the valuable work you’ve put in.
At the end of the 4 week period, you can opt to continue with me for a further 4 weeks at a discounted rate – or you may find that you have acquired sufficient knowledge & understanding to continue on your own. I am always available to do ad-hoc reassessments if this is the case though!
Separation Anxiety - How do I get started?
- Book your free 20 minute intro call, so we can get to know each other, to ask any questions, and to decide if you wish to proceed & work with me.
- Initial Zoom assessment to establish where your dog is currently in terms of his/her coping ability. This also sets our baseline to begin our training.
- Your first training plan will be made available to you via the app, or via WhatsApp, so you can get started!
- Weekly catch-up sessions via Zoom to keep your training on track & iron out any areas of concern or struggle.
- Unlimited WhatsApp help and video analysis.
- A new training plan each week.