(153) Separation Anxiety

I’m without my precious today. I miss him. In fact although I’m traveling with my sister who also always travels with her dog JesseJames (he’s also not with us). It seems foreign to be without our dogs. Just lke traveling with children, I’m usually on “dog mode”. When I travel, I think about stopping for exercise and for watering the dogs. Beeks travels quite well and so when he’s not here with me, I find myself thinking about these little things even more. How long until I need to stop for them or how quiet it is in the back seat. We’ve been noticing all of the dogs around and without wanting to, compare them to Beeks and JesseJames. This channels us into talking about our own dogs’ greatness, and individual personalities.

I’ve called home to talk to Brad and he shared with me that Beeks has hunkered down in the laundry room and hasn’t really come out. Is he pouting without me? I know he’s attached to me but he usually is fine with Max around. Now with Brad home and me away they have reversed their roles. Max is happily by Brad’s side, following his every move, and Beeker is staying in the backroom, sleeping if not pouting.
I think my being away from Beeker may be a good thing for him. I want him to be attached to me but I also want him to be a pet that is sufficient where ever he finds himself. I don’t want him to become despondent when he is separated from me. Some dogs get very anxious when they are separated from their owners, and become despondent, or worse destructive in their environment. Separation anxiety is based upon the full attachment and belief from the dog (or human) that they need to be with their counterpart in order to protect or be protected by them. I want Beeker to know that he will be taken care of where ever he is, with whomever he is with. This is a confidence factor. Max does fairly well with this although he does pine for Brad by laying by the back door for most of the day when he isn’t home. Max does feel confident enough to come to me if he needs something like going outside or to let me know it is dinner time.
I’ve heard stories about dogs that have chewed through doors trying to get out of the room or house they are in, because they are separated from their owners. I wouldn’t think that would endear them to anyone. I feel sorry for both the animal and the owner. Some dog breeds are probably more prone to this behavior than others (small lap dogs for instance) and all dogs can become overly anxious if they learn to be overly dependent. Socialization can be a big step in creating a more confident pet. If dogs (and children for that matter) are able to play with other dogs (or children) and learn that they can move away from their owners and come back safely they are more likely to be less anxious when separated. If the owner makes a great commotion over the return or leaving of the pet when it experiments with exploration independently, the pet/dog will get the message that it is more important to stay with the owner (for safety) and will be less likely to experiment with exploration in the future.

Dog play groups are a valuable lesson in independence as well. Having more than one member of the dog’s family in charge of caring for the dog allows the dog to learn that multiple people will be there for them and this will also communicate to the dog that others will be there for the dog when needed.

So for as much as I miss Beeker and love his attention when I am with him, I want a confident dog that is happily socialized to Brad, friends, neighbors and new acquaintances alike. The best way to have this work for all of us is to expose him to as many different people and experiences as possible. He’s on his way to being a great traveling companion and I hope he will continue to learn confidence where ever he finds himself. Now if only I can feel better about being away from my precious as well (just kidding Brad!).