GSP separation anxiety

[calinkeeks]

Hello. My partner and I have a 5 month old GSP named Calie. I am wondering when it is appropriate to leave her alone at home for an hour or two and how to go about it. I know it has to be gradual. My partner takes her to work a lot and has a play pen for her and takes her out for intermittent walks so she isn’t cooped up. Then of course runs her when he gets home. However, when he has particularly busy days where it’s not feasible to bring her, he leaves Calie with his mom. So basically she has never been truly alone except for one time for maybe 15 min. Are we setting Calie and ourselves up for a difficult future? It’s unreasonable to expect the dog to never ever be alone. What if we can’t find someone to watch her but we want to go out for a bit? I feel like Calie will suffer greatly with separation anxiety if it’s sudden so that’s not an option ....which basically means unless we find a sitter we can never leave the house together. I feel like this may be creating an unhealthy attachment but not sure my partner agrees. Of course we want her to want to be with us but there had to be a balance. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

[fishvik]

I would get her used staying in a kennel in the house right away. Leave her in another room. Start out with 5 min stints before checking on her. Extend the time. Then leave her in the kennel while you go out of the house for an hour. Come back and check on her. She'll eventually get the idea that you haven't abandoned her. Also leave her with something to keep her preoccupied while your gone like a hard toy or bone. I have a 10 mos old GWP that was very prone to separation anxiety and this approach seems to be working.

[JAY]

I believe you can train Calie to be at home alone without anxiety. My 3 ½ year old GSP does not have separation anxiety when I leave him alone in the house for 2 hours. In fact, when I put on my going-to-church clothes he automatically goes into his crate (without my saying anything) and I lock him in. When I return and open his door he stays in his crate until I say “ok”. Then he comes out gives me a sniff and then goes around inspecting the house. We have been together since he was 2 months old.

How did I manage this? I think it is because of these strategies:
• Approach the goal behaviour (being alone) in steps small enough that the GSP is not being forced into sudden change
• Have a routine or pattern of behaviour (alone versus not-alone and alone-location)
• Locate him in the house so that he can see you coming and going and learning your patterns

I write based on my experience which was:

1st week at home he would whine in his carrier at night and so I moved it next to my bed and kept my hand inside the carrier. The hand move quieted him at night. But he snored so I moved his carrier out of my bed room after 1 week.

2 to 5 months. Stayed inside carrier (without door, he chewed off its hinges) which was surrounded (~6-ft x 6- ft) by baby gates and next to kitchen. He had TONG toys with him which he loved. I would be going out and into the house constantly with him to watch. He got used to my patterns and did not fuss or fear when I went out. [ If I let him roam the house, I watched him constantly (he would chew on electrical cords).]

5 months old to now – he got too big for the carrier so I got a big metal crate. He was terrified of going inside the crate so I put his food bowl at the entrance, then inside. It was his choice to make – “eat inside the crate or don’t eat”. Gradually in a few days he got used to going into the crate. We did exercises of my closing the crate door and opening it. He got used to being locked in. I continued going outside and back in while he watched from his crate. 1 minute outside grew to 1 hour outside. Now he sleeps in his crate and I have towels around it so its dark inside just like a den. When I am inside, he can roam the house and his crate is open for him with a nice thick foam padding. Nevertheless, he prefers to stay within a few feet of me and that is what I expect of a GSP. If I have to drive away for up to 2 hours, I tell him to go into his crate and he is OK. If I have to go away for more than 2 hours, I built a 12-ftx25-ft kennel for him because I felt it unfair to make him stay inside a crate for more than 2 hours. When in the kennel he’s slightly anxious while he watches me walking away from his kennel; but settles down somewhat after. He is crazy-welcoming when I return to the kennel. I have a ½ acre fenced yard in which we play frisbee. If I leave the yard, he is anxious and then sits sadly, endlessly watching where I went. I feel badly for him sitting like that; he would be much more comfortable in his crate.

It is possible that I could now leave my GSP alone to roam the house. He does not chew on anything anymore and any anxiety is manifest in his going from door to door looking. I do not do this simply because I am extra careful.

Good luck with Calie.

[calinkeeks]

I would get her used staying in a kennel in the house right away. Leave her in another room. Start out with 5 min stints before checking on her. Extend the time. Then leave her in the kennel while you go out of the house for an hour. Come back and check on her. She'll eventually get the idea that you haven't abandoned her. Also leave her with something to keep her preoccupied while your gone like a hard toy or bone. I have a 10 mos old GWP that was very prone to separation anxiety and this approach seems to be working.

Thanks for the input. That’s what I gathered from reading on the internet but it’s useful to get tip from a person that actually has a GSP. When did you start the process? How old was your dog?

[gonehuntin']

Kenneling is one of the indispensable things you teach a dog and EVERY hunting dog should know the command. If you start them living in a kennel, it becomes their sanctuary and they love it. Let her watch TV laying in it, sleep in it at night, etc. Always give the command "KENNEL" to get her in it. Throw a treat in, command "kennel", pet her while she's in it. There will come a time traveling when a motel won't let her in and she'll have to sleep at night in her kennel in the truck. Or she'll get introduced to a skunk. Anyhow, a kennel is invaluable. One of the more important things you can do for a dog. They love them and a kennel is in no way a punishment for a dog.