How To Help a Dog With Separation Anxiety

It’s a heartbreaking scene; after a short time away from your house, you return to a dog that’s drooling, trembling, and wide-eyed with fear. There’s a mess by the door, and the TV remote and couch cushions are chewed to bits.

It’s clear that you’re dealing with more than just typical canine mischief. This could be a case of a dog with separation anxiety, which can cause extreme stress not only for your pup, but for you.

Here’s how to help your dog with separation anxiety to ensure their safety and well-being.

What Is Dog Separation Anxiety?

Separation anxiety is a stress response that a dog exhibits when they are away from the person (or people) that they are bonded to.

Tina Flores, KPA-CTP, CSAT, certified separation anxiety trainer (CSAT), says a dog experiencing separation anxiety is similar to a human having a panic attack.

“A human, for example, with a fear of heights who is placed on top of a tall building might exhibit sweaty palms, dry mouth, and a fast heart rate,” she says. “In the same way, every time a dog that has separation anxiety is left alone, their body is flooded with the same stress hormones.”

The dog’s reactions can range from mild distress, like pacing and whining, to extreme anxiety, resulting in dogs that injure themselves when attempting to escape confinement and find “their” people.

How To Help a Dog With Separation Anxiety

The goal in treating separation anxiety in dogs is twofold: to help your dog feel less reliant on you, and to encourage your dog’s ability to relax when you are away from home.

Helping a dog get past separation anxiety takes time and patience—unfortunately, there’s no such thing as a quick fix for stress-based behaviors.

Because treating separation anxiety is a complex process, pet parents should look for a trainer or behaviorist with a background in addressing the behavior, such as a certified separation anxiety trainer (CSAT) or a veterinary behaviorist that can dispense anxiety medication if the case calls for it.

Always look for a trainer or behaviorist who practices positive reinforcement training techniques.

Behavior Modification

The best way to help a dog with separation anxiety is to permanently change their perception of what being alone means, one second at a time. A dog trainer or a veterinary behaviorist will be your best resource in creating a behavior modification program that suits your dog’s needs.

“The way we help the dogs understand and gain that confidence to remain calm until their human returns is through a systematic desensitization,” Flores says. “In the beginning, we are often working with very small increments [of time] because we want to be sure that we are building a strong foundation of the dog being comfortable.”

During dog separation anxiety training, you leave the room for a moment and return before your dog has a chance to become anxious. As with all behavior modification training, the dog must remain sub-threshold during the process, meaning they haven’t begun to exhibit stress behaviors in response to you leaving.

This process must happen at your dog’s pace. As they remain calm, slowly extend the length of time you’re gone. If they panic, reduce the time.

Flores also stresses the importance of desensitizing predeparture cues that are involved in the leaving routine, such as picking up your keys, putting on shoes, grabbing your bag, and opening the door.

“Dogs pick up on all of these cues, so we want to build them into the training sessions in a way that shows the dog that it means the person is leaving, but also returning before they start to panic,” Flores says. 

Don’t Leave Your Dog Alone for Long

One of the primary challenges in dealing with separation anxiety is that once the training process begins, your dog should never be left alone.

Flores notes that even if you can’t be home with your dog, you must enlist a neighbor, friend, family member, dog walker, or daycare to help during the training process.

“Managing absences is extremely important to protect the progress we are making during training,” she says. “If for example, we get the dog to a point where they are comfortable for 30 mins, but the next day they’re left alone for two hours, we’ve potentially undone all the work we’ve put in. They’re no longer able to trust that their guardian will return before they start to panic.”

Exercise Your Dog

Most dogs can benefit from increased exercise, particularly dogs suffering from a milder form of separation anxiety called separation intolerance. Working out your dog’s brain and body prior to leaving them alone might help them settle during your absence. 

Dogs dealing with mild separation intolerance can benefit from playing challenging games that stimulate their minds prior to being left alone. Finding treats that are hidden in a puzzle toy or playing a scenting game like "find the toy" can help your dog get ready to settle once you leave for the day.

Easy trick training also helps to mentally stimulate dogs. Working on something like "spin" or "high five" is more than just cute and fun; the stimulation will leave your dog ready for a rest.

Give Your Dog Interactive Toys

Dogs with mild separation intolerance can also learn to enjoy the ritual of getting a treat-stuffed goody when their person leaves the house for the day. However, Flores cautions against leaving interactive food toys with dogs that are suffering from full-blown separation anxiety.

“Sometimes, because the food toy has been given so often before departure, the food becomes a cue that something bad is about to happen,” she explains. “Once the food has been consumed, the dog will realize their person is still gone and panic.” 

Use Pet Prescription Medication

Arielle Schoenlein, DVM, veterinarian at Quakertown Veterinary Clinic in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, says that medication can be used to help dogs with separation anxiety in cases where:

• A dog is injuring themselves due to their anxiety

• A dog is harming other animals in the house

• A dog is damaging household items when left alone

• A dog’s quality of life or potential to remain in the home is compromised

“Medication is used as an adjunctive to training in all cases by decreasing their overall anxiety, enabling training to be more successful,” Dr. Schoenlein says.

Typically, there are two treatment options for anti-anxiety medications for dogs:

1. Anxiolytic drugs (anxiety-reducing drugs), such as fluoxetine, are typically used long-term. This type of medication takes four to eight weeks to take effect and requires you to take your dog for blood work yearly.

2. Event-specific medications, such as trazodone, can be used when a known trigger is going to occur. These medications are used in conjunction with training to minimize anxiety and enable positive experiences when you leave the house.

“Many dogs that we work with are on some type of anti-anxiety medication, and in my experience, they do often help to lower the threshold and help learning occur within the separation anxiety protocol,” Flores says.

Talk to your veterinarian about whether your dog is a good fit for medication.

Can Separation Anxiety in Dogs Be Cured?

Separation anxiety isn’t something that can be cured— there’s no quick fix or one-size-fits-all medication—but it can be successfully managed with patience and training.

Effective treatment of separation anxiety can feel overwhelming. It’s a slow process made more difficult by the fact that sometimes progress comes at a literal pace of one second at a time. But working with a positive trainer or veterinary behaviorist early can help lessen frustration for you and your dog as you work toward a better quality of life.

“Guiding your dog through a separation anxiety protocol might not be easy, but having not only gone through this process with many clients but also with my own beloved dog, I can honestly say there is hope and recovery is possible!” Flores says.