Separation anxiety is a very common behavioural condition where a dog experiences abnormal levels of distress when a person or animal to whom they are highly attached to is absent.
As well as being unpleasant for the dog in question, separation anxiety is understandably often upsetting for their owners too.
These owners may be forced to change their lifestyle to accommodate their pet's special behavioural needs, and often feel quite stressed when forced to leave their pet for necessary reasons.
Dogs with separation anxiety will demonstrate varying symptoms of distress when left alone.
These behaviours can include destructive actions like scratching or chewing on doors, walls, or crates.
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Excessive vocalising such as barking, whining, or howling, and the physical signs of anxiety such as excessive drooling, shaking, house-soiling, pacing, and attempts to escape.
Unfortunately, these kinds of behaviours can result in the destruction of property and self-induced injuries to the pet.
If left to 'see what happens' these behaviours tend to escalate rather than improve over time. If you suspect separation anxiety in your pet, the best course of action is to book a behavioural consultation with a vet.
A thorough clinical exam (which may also include blood and urine tests) and a detailed discussion of your pet's symptoms are important for ruling out other potential causes of similar behaviours - for instance, old dog 'senility', chronic pain or urinary tract diseases.
If separation anxiety is diagnosed, your veterinarian will develop a treatment plan tailored to your pet's needs for you to implement.
Depending on the severity of their symptoms, this plan may include behavioural modification techniques such as avoiding triggers in the short-term, setting up a program of environmental enrichment, and modifying your pet's response to your departures through positive re-training techniques.
Additionally, there are short and/or long-term anti-anxiety medications available to alleviate your pet's distress, which would be prescribed at the discretion of your veterinarian.
Although separation anxiety can be a tough time for both the animal and the owners, the good news is that with the correct treatment, and dedicated work from the parents, most cases of separation anxiety can be substantially improved!
If you believe your pet is suffering from separation anxiety, contact us at Parkes Vet today and our team will help you take the next steps toward helping your pet.
Parkes Vet is located at 203 Clarinda Street and is open Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9:30am to 4pm.
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