miss2 Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 Hi everyone. Looking for opinions on what my little man is doing. I think I already know but just want to know others thoughts. Our little Jack Russell comes everywhere with my hubby and I, we are a family of 3 and he is included in everything possible. On the weekends he comes with us to the tip, we go to the river, the beach etc. we also travel back to our home town ( 8 hour drive) at least once monthly and he comes as well – he loves the car and is the first one to jump in ANY car if he sees a door open. Now every morning we have a routine. Just before I go to work spud and I go feed the chooks and the other animals – he waits at our gate religiously for this time as he runs crazy through the hay sheds and paddocks looking for rabbits. Afterwards we go back to the back yard, he gets his food for the day and his treat ( food, a toy, rawhide, what ever I have on me really). The problem comes that AS SOON as he sees me get in the car he goes mad. Runs up and down the fence line barking his crazy little head off desperately trying to get out. We have a very long driveway and from what I can tell, he barks until my car is on the main road and out of his vision. My theory on it is he is trying to remind me that I have forgotten him…. I know that sounds silly but its really what it looks like to me. Does anyone have any ideas on what his motives are and what I can do to stop this behaviour? Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 I think the simplest explanation is usuallythe best, sounds to me like he is just upset that you're leaving, a bit of seperation anxiety perhaps, or maybe he has barked at you before and you've come to him so he thinks by doing this you might not leave after all? Do you know if he barks/whines when you're at work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeebie Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 Seperation anxiety I have same problem with new dog, fine if older dog is staying with her but if not all hell breaks loose. so now pup is put inside in a nice quite fashion with bowl of her food, some special chewy treat and I just walk out without any fuss like as if I am just going down stairs, I have already gotten car ready with other dog, my belongings etc and, by time I am in and gone she has no idea. I have driven down road and walked back to listen and there is total quite and no problem also asked neighbours and they say no problem :) I also started taking older dog out for a walk on his own and letting iss pup stay alone in yard only go around front out of sight and she starts so I give her the "quite" command and when she settles I return then reward, this only took a week to have her use to me going out front to dig garden or walk etc and now she just settles and waits. So maybe you could start by mixing up the morning routine and leaving spud behind and getting him use to you not being there 100% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miss2 Posted February 6, 2013 Author Share Posted February 6, 2013 I think the simplest explanation is usuallythe best, sounds to me like he is just upset that you're leaving, a bit of seperation anxiety perhaps, or maybe he has barked at you before and you've come to him so he thinks by doing this you might not leave after all? Do you know if he barks/whines when you're at work? thank you aussie3. when he first started this i would hesitate in the car and wave to him.... sounds silly i know lol. now i try not to even look back, just get in the car and go go go ( have been ignoring him for around 6 months now) we are rural so have not heard anything from neighbours. we have a few people drive in and out to get to different paddocks on our place and they have to drive past our yard, they always say if they are in the paddock and he can see them that ' he is a very good guard dog untill they say his name' i guess this means he barks at them ? when i Get home of an afternoon I get none of this behaviour though, he will see the car and come out side sit on the grass ( from the patio) and watch me, has a stretch , bit of a roll and then just watches me until I get to the gate, then he will run over to greet me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starkehre Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 This little dog spends so much outing time with his family that he protests when things are different. In other words your family has likely inadvertently trained him to be needy of constant comoany and attention. Some quality time alone will fix this, but training situations should be set up deliberately and built up slowly over a period of time, taking care to do this sensibly and safely. This little Spud has possibly not been taught to be comfortable and confident in his own company, which is the first lesson I teach all new puppies that are welcomed into our home. As long as his only objection at this stage is barking, then it should not be too hard to rectify, but if he is being destructive (surrounding or self) or other manic behaviours, this will become a real difficult issue to resolve. Best get onto it early before it escalates as this is a real possibility. Best of luck with it. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 This little dog spends so much outing time with his family that he protests when things are different. In other words your family has likely inadvertently trained him to be needy of constant comoany and attention. Some quality time alone will fix this, but training situations should be set up deliberately and built up slowly over a period of time, taking care to do this sensibly and safely. This little Spud has possibly not been taught to be comfortable and confident in his own company, which is the first lesson I teach all new puppies that are welcomed into our home. As long as his only objection at this stage is barking, then it should not be too hard to rectify, but if he is being destructive (surrounding or self) or other manic behaviours, this will become a real difficult issue to resolve. Best get onto it early before it escalates as this is a real possibility. Best of luck with it. :) yes.. if Spud was not taught to enjoy time alone, away from you when a baby ..then of course he will object to you leaving :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miss2 Posted February 6, 2013 Author Share Posted February 6, 2013 oh poo... so by including him is sooo much we have accidently done this to him i will start to chnage our morning routine, maybe go out to feed everyone without him and stuff like that. i will also try the sneaky tactic. his favourite part of the day is when he gets to go outside the yard and play so it will be hard ( but necissary ) on my behalf to leave him in the yard because i know how much he loves this. problem is the little poop doesnt have any FAVOURITE treats, he likes all his food treats but will happily ignore them if it means he gets to go out side the yard. and i only have one exit from him. its weird though, when we are home in the afternoons he doesnt want to be with us.... he just LOVES being outside. i practiccaly have to drag him inside to go to bed at night. we are working on his re call problems as if he is outside he would much prefer to stay there rather then come inside when we call him. he is certianly not a ' have a snooze on the couch while we watch tv' kind of dog. i was planning on doing some agility classes with him - we have done puppy and adult classes and he just loves them so much that i though he might like agility as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle Mum Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 Don"t feel bad.....you haven't done it to him. Some dogs are just more predisposed to sep anxiety. Lots of dogs owners on here have dealt with it. I know I have.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 Don"t feel bad.....you haven't done it to him. Some dogs are just more predisposed to sep anxiety. Lots of dogs owners on here have dealt with it. I know I have.... This. You are good caring owners who have just included him, nothing wrong with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starkehre Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 (edited) Yep, this is exactly what has happened. Don't feel bad. This is probably the most common mistake that dog owners make. Dogs are very much a creatures of habit, so of course he loves his family outings. In other words if Spud spent every single day of his life outside in the yard, he would possibly be uncomfortable going out in the car with the family. That said there will always be innate predispositions in some dogs to be more needy than others. Unfortunately we often don't know this until it is too late. There is nothing wrong with allowing Spud to do the stuff he enjoys. We all love to allow our dogs to enjoy life. It only becomes an issue when there are things that he so obviously really doesn't like and these things he should be fine with. It is not weird that he is relaxed in the yard when you guys are at home. His association with all things great is going out when the family goes out. He is quite happy being in the yard when you are at home, because you have unwittingly taught him to be. Sometimes we have to think OUTSIDE the box when doing things with our dogs, as everything we are doing is training them to be comfortable with something or uncomfortable with something depending on how rewarding, safe and comfortable the experience is. It is never too late to change things, just don't be in a hurry as all these new experiences are setting him up also. These must be good times he is separated, not screaming, panic moments. Plan ahead and good luck and ensure your training is always setting him and you guys up for a "win". Agility is a wonderful idea. Just balance his time with members of the family and being alone more evenly. Edited February 6, 2013 by dyzney Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle Mum Posted February 6, 2013 Share Posted February 6, 2013 I have a "velcro" poodle sitting beside me.... :laugh: We start some "proper poodle work/training" on Saturday :laugh: ....in the hope of doing some agility. He is 18mths old, all he has previously had to do was stand in the show ring and look pretty!! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 (edited) If he settles once you have left, this is not Separation Anxiety, more like a learnt expectation not being fulfilled. SA is over diagnosed these days. You want your dog to learn something, be consistent. You don't want your dog to pick up on and precipitate your behaviours - randomise. Edited February 7, 2013 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Have you tried giving him something to distract him while you leave? My guys get kongs, and although it takes them all of 5 seconds to eat it, they look forward to me leaving because it means they get their kongs, and they are occupied while I leave. By the time their yummies are finished, I'm gone and they've forgotten all about me and just go about playing and sleeping (true, I've watched them on the webcam, they look at the door for about 3 miliseconds before diving for a toy :laugh: ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Gifts Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 I wont pretend there is scientific evidence to support what I'm going to tell you but here goes. We have a foster failure - shar pei. She had some trauma in a trial placement which is why she is staying with us - seems she had already picked us as her forever home. We love her to pieces of course so it wasn't even something we had to discuss. Anyway she carries on like a chook whenever something is happening that she is unsure of - even when I would take out my rescue shirt she would get a worried look on her face and start crying thinking I was taking her to a meet and greet. We happened to have the opportunity to meet with an animal communicator and she told us that Tempeh needs us to tell her what we are doing and how it might relate to her - sort of like you would a flat mate. So we do. It's like "Tempeh, I'm having a shower now because I have to go to the Dr. I will be gone for at least 2 hours and then I will be home. You will stay here with the other dogs and I look forward to seeing you when I get home." (One of the other dogs has no clue what I am trying to tell her while the other one simply doesn't care!) I felt like a crazy person when I started doing it but it seems to calm her down. You might also feel a little silly telling your boy you are going to work, will be gone 9 hours, hope he has a nice day and you will enjoy seeing him again when you get home but hey it's free! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miss2 Posted February 7, 2013 Author Share Posted February 7, 2013 thank you everyone. some great advice here, i appreciate it. little gifts, we talk to spud with everything. my hubby commented the other day that i cant seem to speak to him unless im doing it in full sentences LOL Dyzney with the back yard thing, i mean i find it weird - if not a little offensive haha that he would rather be outside by him self then inside with us lol. also, our yard is one acre so he is not limited for space. Mini max thats where the whole give him a treat thing before i go started. it used to really upset me when i would drive away for the day and he would sit at the gate and watch me so i started to give him his daily treat as i was leaving in the hope that it would distract him. i think it worked maybe twice and ever since then he doesnt really care about treats or toys. ( during this time - any other time he loves his surprises) he is always very chilled and relaxed when i get home. thanks again for your replies :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 ..he has to eat, right? Well, you make yummy dinner for him ..BUT he only gets it when you leave . Simple. He has hours in which to eat it ... If he won't eat ... he gets NO treats ,or anything else, until next morning when you go to work. No , he won't die. Yes, it may take him a couple of days .. No new habits won't suddenly appear Yes, he can be taught/shown different things :) Treats etc ..no 'surprises' they should be EARNED ... That way HE decides just how much loving and treating he gets each day!! ..It's all up to how he behaves :) :) have a read here LINK Not sure about the conversations either .. IMO sometimes this can just become 'white noise' and then when we DO want the pup to pay attention ..they just hear "blah blah blah "..... I tend to only talk to my dogs when they are needed, or when I ask them to do something , or am praising them ..so my addressing them is something to be listened to .(hopefully) ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 thank you everyone. some great advice here, i appreciate it. little gifts, we talk to spud with everything. my hubby commented the other day that i cant seem to speak to him unless im doing it in full sentences LOL Dyzney with the back yard thing, i mean i find it weird - if not a little offensive haha that he would rather be outside by him self then inside with us lol. also, our yard is one acre so he is not limited for space. Mini max thats where the whole give him a treat thing before i go started. it used to really upset me when i would drive away for the day and he would sit at the gate and watch me so i started to give him his daily treat as i was leaving in the hope that it would distract him. i think it worked maybe twice and ever since then he doesnt really care about treats or toys. ( during this time - any other time he loves his surprises) he is always very chilled and relaxed when i get home. thanks again for your replies :) Maybe it needs to be a higher-value treat? A treat he only gets when you go out, a supersuper special one that he loves. Does he have a food that he loves above anything else in the world? My guys would sell their souls for peanut butter, so their kongs get filled with random stuff, and smeared with peanut butter on the outside so they have to chase it around the room licking it off. Or even a favourite super-stinky bone that he only gets when you leave. Even if he doesn't eat it while you go, it's there for when you are out so he has it as a special "happy thing" while you're gone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Super stinky bone :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Super stinky bone :laugh: lol the only time my guys get their super-stinkies is when I go out coz I can't stand the smell of them when I'm home :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle Mum Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Awesome advice here........but with some animals with separation anxiety it would not matter how wonderful or smelly the food is their level of anxiety is so high they are unable to eat UNLESS the owner is home, some don't even drink either. You could leave them their daily food or kongs when you leave but they will not eat them until you return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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