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The doghouse

Puppy crying getting worse.

5 replies

Marne · 16/02/2013 21:46

Puppy has been with us for 5 weeks and separation anxiety seems to be getting worse instead of better, pup is crated for part of the day as we are trying to toilet train and part of the day he is in the living room (gate on door). As soon as I leave the room he cries, I try my best to ignore him but he cries and cries, quite often dh or the dd's are still in the room with him so he's not alone. He knows my voice and can recognise my cough when I wake in the morning (if I cough he starts crying out for me). I know he sees me as mum, I walk him, feed him and train him but its like having a clingy child, he won't go outside alone ( he will wee right next to me in the garden and when he's finished he sits by my feet).

He's a fab dog, well behaved great on and off the lead (well almost), I just wish he would stop crying and howling as soon as I leave the room.

We have tried rewarding him when he's quiet ( by getting dd to reward him when he's quiet when I'm out of the room) and have tried coming and going whilst ignoring him but now he is crying for even longer and wakes me up 4 times in the night.

help?

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needastrongone · 19/02/2013 22:04

Bumping for you Marne. No answers tbh, sympathy though!

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Pizdets · 20/02/2013 15:25

Hi Marne,

Not sure I can offer much advice but maybe a bit of reassurance. Pizdog seems to have turned a corner this week, but has been very much the same. He's almost 6 months now and I know how hard it can be to keep doing the 'right thing' with no result!

Keep doing what you're doing, reward him for being calm and quiet, esp if you're not there, distract him where you can (pizdog will shut up if he's got a raw chicken wing) and hopefully you'll get there!

Other things we tried which may ave helped: getting my husband to walk/feed/play with him as much as possible so he doesn't see me as the only source of good stuff. Sending him out with a dog walker so he has experience being away from us and relating to other dogs and himself rather than just me all the time.

To be honest, I think he's just growing out of it. This week he's also started to cock his leg (is is excited to do it on every tree stump and clump of grass in the park!) And I think my little boy is finally growing up! It's now a huge treat to be able to take a shower or run upstairs to get my socks without a huge performance.

Sorry I can't offer anything concrete but I hope our experience can reassure you a bit! Keep doing it right and you'll get there in the end!

Piz

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paddythepooch · 20/02/2013 18:05

Hi

not sure if this will help but I've noticed the pooch gets more fussed if he is out of his crate and I go upstairs than if I pop him in his crate and go upstairs. Weird but perhaps it's because the crate is his place for snoozing/feeling v safe/comfy.

If he is in his crate he never makes any fuss at all.

Kikopup has some trianing tips on getting pups used to being alone - might be worth a look on youtube

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digerd · 20/02/2013 20:25

My neighbour's collie pup/young dog was the same, when she left the house to do shopping. Others were in the house, but it was her he clung to/loved the most. He did grow out of it, though, eventually.

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Marne · 20/02/2013 21:43

Thank you, he has been a little bit better over the past few days, he has been crated most the time to make toilet training easier, I take him out for 2 walks a day and take him out into the garden every hour or so, dd1 is getting more involved in feeding and training and has been helping to walk him, he's still very clingy with me but howling and crying has reduced a little.

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