My Anxious Best Friend

Ever wanted a cheap haircut? Well get yourself a nice separation anxiety yorkie and watch it either fall out . . . or get ripped out . . . Seriously.

So I relatively recently moved from a house to an apartment, from the suburbs to the city and from a multiple dog house to just a single dog house. With all the recent changes my dog has become a handful and a half! If I ever thought I was having any slight notions of baby fever . . . POOF! They’ve vanished! I feel like a single mom except I’ve gotten it a bit easier. I can feed my child in bowls on the floor and when I leave, he can stay home alone!

Well let’s hop into this craziness. My dog turned 5 on September 15, 2015. He’s a virgo. He’s usually pretty neat. Never likes to be dirty. Used to never pee/poop inside the house. Loves to explore. Ever since I moved in I have literally had a hot mess to clean EVERY DAY I'm not home all day and night. For a while there I didn’t want to leave or thought about giving him away. Love my dog but what a hot mess! Not only would he pee and poop, he would bark for the entire length of time I was gone! I literally was getting super stressed out. Another reason I don’t have kids, I can always give him away . . . kids are forever. No refunds.

How does one comfort a dog suffering from separation anxiety? Well I've encountered several different sources and for the most part I will give you the consensus from them all. That way if you are currently going through this terribleness you can try some of these techniques to alleviate your dog’s emotions . . . AND GET SOME PEACE IN YOUR LIFE!

·         Give your dog plenty of exercise. Especially in the morning before you even give them water or food. Water and food come after the walk!

·         Active dogs may need more exercise so increase speed of walk or length of time you are walking. Sometimes I like to take my dog rollerblading.

·         Don’t say goodbye to your pet or have any longing looks at them before you leave. That way they know you leaving is something completely normal. Also don't come in go straight to them and get them all super worked up. That's another way we tell them us leaving is completely normal and not anything to fret about.

·         Try to break up the habit of picking up the keys and going immediately to the door. That way they don’t associate the picking up of the keys or etc. with you leaving them.

·         You might have to retrain them. Start by leaving for a few minutes then increase the length of time until your pet gets use to you leaving.

·         Not everyone agrees with crate training but I have a white leather couch soooooo . . . the crate which I try to make comfy for him, is my dogs lair. Dogs don’t usually use the bathroom where they sleep because that is their sanctuary so you might want to try it out. Save you the peace of mind of not only your furniture but the other valuable objects in your house.

·         I have recently purchased a thunder shirt which hugs your dog tightly making them feel less anxious. I have had great success with this though it’s important to not only put it on them when you leave so they don’t associate it with their anxiety. If you do then the shirt will signify you leaving the mere sight of it may make them anxious.

·         I have also discovered natural calming supplements which do work though I am not fond of drugging your pets. Your vet may also have not only supplements but medications.

Hopefully you will find these tips useful! If you know any others, please comment and let us know! Also if you could like/share/follow that would be AWESOME!!!