How to know if your dog has separation anxiety

For some dog owners, their pet’s separation anxiety is unmistakable. For others, it’s a bit of a guessing game until they can get confirmation from an expert.

Separation anxiety is a phobia which means that while you're absent, your dog experiences a panic attack.

To get a sense of what that might look like, try to visualize how you might behave if you were regularly stuck in a room with a load of venomous snakes. You might retreat into a corner and try to hide. You might yell and lash out. And if you’re REALLY scared of snakes, you might even pee in your pants!

A dog suffering from separation anxiety may show one or more behavioral clues, ranging from the obvious to the very subtle. So they might scratch at the door, pant, drool, pace, destroy things, whine, bark, run around frantically, chew things. They may injure themselves trying to get out, or even self-harm.

They may pee on the floor or defecate, even if they’re otherwise perfectly house trained. They can even get into such a state that they vomit.

What makes it harder for dog owners to conclusively diagnose separation anxiety is that you don’t really know how your dog behaves when you’re not there… because you’re not there to see it!

If your dog greets you calmly when you come home, it doesn't necessarily mean they felt safe when you were out. And conversely, if your dog greets you frantically, it doesn't necessarily mean they were panicking while you were gone.

To find out how your dog fares in your absence, you could set up a video camera in your home next time you’re going out, and watch the recording to observe your dog’s behavior.

But even with a video recording, the cause of any distressed behavior isn’t always clear-cut. For example, as a holistic canine health and behavior consultant, I know that a lot of behavior issues in dogs arise from physical pain. When we resolve the problem that’s causing the dog pain, the problematic behavior ends.

For an easier way to find out if your dog has separation anxiety issues (or issues of another kind), have a free chat with me! You can tell me what behaviors you’ve noticed, and I’ll help you identify the most likely cause so that you can start taking steps to help your dog.

Book a free call with me here.

Next time, I'll talk about how to respond to your neighbors or landlord complaining about your dog’s separation anxiety behaviors.

In the meantime, I wish you all the best for you and your dog,

Victoria