Upsetting Letter

[Guest bethac]

Have you tried leaving the TV on? I know music was mentioned, but you might try the TV instead (people talking, etc).

 

Poor guy, it's such a big change for him. Hoping today is better ...

 

Don't give up, he will adjust, he just needs a little more time.

[SPDoggie]

Just want to ask if you have done official "alone training"

He needs to get used (and bored) by your coming-and-going.

Since he seems so stressed you may have to start with picking up your keys, and putting them back down... over-and-over.

Then pick up keys open and close door... over-and-over

Then pick up keys, open door, walk outside, close door....

 

eventually you will get in the car and drive around the block... over-and-over

then leave for 15 min, then 30 .... and on-and-on.

 

We were fortunate that both our dogs went through this process over a long-weekend. Kingsley, we learned within a month, did NOT want to be in a crate, while Ruby still gets put in her crate when we leave.

 

Hopefully with some serious alone training he will get used to your being away.

 

Sorry for the stress.

[Guest Amber]

Would it be possible to get someone (friend, relative, dog sitter) to stay with him just for the odd days when you have to be out all day (at first). Then when you are at home, you can gradually work on the alone training.

 

If he's getting upset being left for long hours just now, leaving him (although I know you have to) will give him a negative association about being left, rather than the positive one that you are aiming to build up to.

 

He is so new and unsettled still, once he is more settled and secure and gets into a routine and knows what's what, that'll help anyway. But given his current anxiety just at the moment, if possible, I would try not to leave him all alone for long periods.

 

I agree about speaking with your neighbour too - hard to tell from the note, but sort of sounded like they were concerned for the dog and didn't like hearing the distress he was in.

[greyhoundlov]

I do think the crate might be part of it. Every time we try to get him to go in the crate, he walks directly to his bed on the other side of the room. I have to lead him in by his collar, but then he just lays down within a minute or two.

 

Even when he's not crated, he still panics when we leave... Pacing and whining. Not sure what he would get into if I gave him free reign of the house. We have all wood/laminate floors and he's pretty well housebroken so I'm not too worried about accidents... I'm just worried of what he'll get into if we leave him for a longer period of time.

 

Maybe you can put an article of clothing you have worn in the crate - maybe make him feel secure. Make sure it's nothing you would mind getting chewed up or peed on!

[sarabz]

Is it possible to try a baby instead? sometimes that can help with the confinement issues in a new situation.

 

Deb, you made me laugh. Your accidental omission of the word "gate" makes this statement so funny!

 

 

Are you sure the omission was accidental?

 

 

We found with our Bella that she didn't really like being confined to the crate all day, so we babygated the bedroom. That wasn't as fun, either, (more because she'd find things like books to shred) so now she has the run of the apartment and we only babygate if we know someone's coming to do some work on the apartment.

 

She will voluntarily go into her crate - I've often found her sleeping in there when I come home from work - and we use it at night otherwise she bounces on & off the bed.

 

We were quite lucky in that we had no separation anxiety issues with Bella so I unfortunately don't have a whole lot of advice, just hugs. In fact, I think Bella's happier being an only dog and commanding all of our attention

Edited October 5, 2011 by sarabz

[GeorgeofNE]

Hang in there!!

 

It WILL get better!

 

No one has actually mentioned by name the booklet that describes in detail "alone training." It's called "I'll be Home Soon" by Patricia McConnell. I think it should be mandatory pre-adoption reading for all new greyhound owners!

 

Very helpful!

[Guest amazing_gracie]

I totally understand your situation. We went through the same thing, except our neighbor told my hubby in person. Trust me, it will get better. A long walk in the morning helps a lot. Kongs, maybe a frozen one so he has something to work on later in the day too. Bully sticks also take a while to work on.

Make sure your attitude when you leave is positive or neutral. They can sense how we feel, and if you feel bad or guilty about leaving him, or even nervous, he'll pick up on it and react with anxiety. When you get home, don't give him attention for about 10 minutes. Leaving and returning should be no big deal. If you're not upset or excited, he will learn he has no reason to be, either. Soon he will learn that this is the normal routine and he will be fine. Try leaving him alone, uncrated, for just a few hours to see how he handles it. Close bathroom and bedroom doors if you don't want him in there. We left our girl in the living room only at first. Now she has the run of the place when we're gone and she does great.

Try talking to your neighbor just to let him know what's going on and that your boy is going to need some time to adjust to his new home and routine.

Best wishes! Deep breaths, you and your boy will be fine.

[jamngrey]

Just want to ask if you have done official "alone training"

He needs to get used (and bored) by your coming-and-going.

Since he seems so stressed you may have to start with picking up your keys, and putting them back down... over-and-over.

Then pick up keys open and close door... over-and-over

Then pick up keys, open door, walk outside, close door....

 

eventually you will get in the car and drive around the block... over-and-over

then leave for 15 min, then 30 .... and on-and-on.

 

We were fortunate that both our dogs went through this process over a long-weekend. Kingsley, we learned within a month, did NOT want to be in a crate, while Ruby still gets put in her crate when we leave.

 

Hopefully with some serious alone training he will get used to your being away.

 

Sorry for the stress.

DITTO THIS away training is sooooo important for most greys

[Feisty49]

Great advice given here, and all or some will work, but all will take time. It must be very stressful for you as well as Rhythm. Hope your neighbors understand. If one can hear, others can also. Maybe you can invite a couple of neighbors over for a Meet & Greet so they can get to know her and see how charming and wonderful she is and that she's worth the time to train. I've found that people who do not know Greys are always impressed when they finally meet one.

 

BTW, try using the words, "Kennel Up" when you want her to go into her crate. That's what's used at many tracks. My Annie Bella didn't like going in the crate either in the beginning, but did respond to a firm "Kennel Up" with me standing by the open door. She was, thankfully, so good just hanging around the house that I used the crate only to keep her trained in case it was needed. Within two weeks, though, I had taken it down because it was never ever used. Thankfully, she is fine with being alone for a few hours. I've never left her for more than 4 hours, though, and all she does is sleep, toss stuffies around and steal socks. I deliberately leave old socks with holes around so she can find and collect.

 

Good luck.

[Guest KatJon]

Thanks so much everyone for the advice! DBF gets home from his trip tonight, and then we have plenty of time to work on some serious alone training over the next few weeks.

 

Another Update:

Rhythm did alright yesterday not being crated. He did howl and cry all day, but there weren't any accidents and the only damage he did was messing up the blinds on one of the windows trying to see out. It's the window facing our other neighbor, who is doing construction on his house, so I think Rhythm heard the people working outside and wanted to see them. Today I left the blinds open enough for him to see out, and also put a piece of tape over the window just in case he thinks he can escape that way. He was very needy all last night and this morning but I tried my hardest not to give him much attention. I was in the bathroom with the door shut for less than 5 minutes and he cried and barked the entire time. This morning, I tried to distract him with his food bowl and a kong when I left, but he still tried to follow me out and I could hear him crying from inside as I was getting into my car. *sigh* I'm just trying to get him through these couple days, and then we can get started on legitimate "alone training"

[Maddiesmom]

First of all, Welcome to GT and the word of Greyhounds.

 

Take a deep breath, I was in your position 6 years ago with Maddie. I was a first time adopter with a grey who you could tell had bonded fast with me. I read all the books before I got her. Got the crate etc. Picked her up and slept on the couch in the living room the first night with her in her crate. She did fine. Left the house and did along training during the weekend and heard her crying. We had a sever case of Seperation Anxiety. She hated the crate. She put the brakes on when I tried to get her in there, even with food and she is VERY food motivated. However, the group told me to keep her in the crate and figured that they were the experts. I left thte TV and music on for her . 2 months and 3 crates (both plastic and wire) later and me in tears and her blood on the carpet from prying the bars of the wire crate, I took a leap of faith, closed all the doors that I did not want her in, used baby gates and put her muzzle on (til I could trust her not to chew on anything) and with a RX from our vet for clomicalm (this was a last resort). I closed the door and went to work, came home and there were no accidents, no damage and a happy dog wagging her tail waiting for me at the door. This still continues 6 years later.

 

The above is a shorten version of everything I did but hits the main points. Don't be afraid to get advise from your vet or put him on medication for the short time while he is adapting. It does get better, I promise and each day you will see your dog's personality come through. I did with Maddie. She is now a therapy dog, kids read to her at the library, she is one of our best M&G dogs and has never met a stranger, she leans on everybody. I put my self in Maddie's position in which she was at a kennel with all her buddies was moved several states to a new kennel where she did not know the dogs and then to a home where she was the only dog. It must have been scary. Like of like when I left college and moved to a new city and knew no one. But i adapted and she did too. I couldn't ask for a better dog, she is my best buddy and I love her to pieces.

 

Maddie still has some SA, if I am out in the garage and she can hear me, she cries and barks. But she knows Mommy is coming back in soon.

 

I have used a thundershirt for her when we are in hotels and it seems to work.

 

Hope this helps

 

Amy and Maddie

Edited October 6, 2011 by Maddiesmom

[Guest KatJon]

The "I'll be home soon" book sounds like it will hopefully be a good help! I just ordered it on my kindle.

[AEB]

We had the same issues with Kevin at first and now he is fine. i NEVER thought he would be. First, get the booklet "I'll be home soon" and do away training as others have suggested. Have the talk with the neighbor.

 

Determine if it is SA. It could be frustration intolerance or he could just be settling-in. Is he destroying anything when left alone? Is he soiling the house? If he's just whining it's probably not SA and there's a good chance you can improve it more easily.

 

I found Kevin was ok in his crate but would mess the crate sometimes. Once he got more settled and we had no accidents or destruction with us in the house (just a few of these in the beginning) for a while we did short trips out and left him free. He was perfect. Now he sometimes doesn't care if we leave. But if we are outside on the property he wants to be with us and will howl occasionally. You hear it echo over the fields. It is LOUD!

 

Make the crate (if he needs to stay in it) the place he gets all his high value treats and maybe his meals too. Give him a stuffed kong when you leave so he knows the routine (kong=you leaving) and looks forward to the kong. Also, do training with him to build his confidence.

 

You have only had him a very short time. He will likely settle-in.

 

Edited to add that the DAP diffuser seemed to help a little. And exercise. And, that Kevin does not like closed doors so we use gates. Good luck!

Edited October 6, 2011 by AEB

[GeorgeofNE]

The "I'll be home soon" book sounds like it will hopefully be a good help! I just ordered it on my kindle.

 

Awesome!

 

One word of caution re: feeding him when you're leaving (if that's what you meant by distract him with his food bowl): many dogs need to uhm, move their bowels within an hour of eating. Some even sooner. I NEVER feed my dog right before I'm going out. I feed him BEFORE his morning long walk which gives him a bit of time to digest before we set out, and the movement (the walking) gets things going.

 

I suppose (and hope!) that his morning poop is actually the remains of his evening meal, and so on...

 

But if I fed him, and then went to work, I imagine I'd come home to a pile of poop in my house.

 

What are you putting in the Kong? Lots of GT folks tell you to freeze it--but I found that when the contents are frozen, all the dog needs to do is drop it on the floor a couple of times to break out the insides. I keep mine in the fridge--makes the peanut butter not so messy, but not brittle so it doesn't solidify and just fall out in chunks.

 

I use about two tablespoons of peanut butter. I smear it around the inner surface of the Kong. You don't have to fill the whole thing up! You're just trying to distract the dog while you depart and for a couple of minutes afterward.

 

The Kong is NEVER used except when I leave so that it seems more special to him.

 

Another thing you might try is "hide and seek." A behaviorist suggested this for George. Take a small handful of kibbles, and hide them in places like just under a chair, in a corner, etc. Show him that they're around--and he may spend some time hunting for them! That one didn't work on George, but I did like the idea!

 

If you're in a HOUSE (no one below you), a Buster Cube is an excellent distraction! This is a square plastic thing. You load some kibbles into a chamber, and the dog has to roll the cube around to make a kibble come out! This can be a noisy toy which is why you should not use it in an apartment building! I had to teach George how to use it (literally crawling around the floor pushing it with my nose) but he did enjoy that!

 

Here he is, working on his cube!

 

 

Finally, a more expensive diversion toy is the "Kong Time" dispenser! This is a battery powered thing (looks a bit like a flying saucer!) that spits out a small Kong at a preset interval. It holds three or four small Kongs. I used to come home and find a pile of little Kongs on George's bed! He liked that too, but I stopped using it when I realized the beep noise it makes to warn the dog a Kong is coming just kept waking him up! I think it cost about $60 or so. But I was desperate, so it was worth it!

 

And I can't stress it enough--EXERCISE! Whatever you do now in the morning--do more!

[Maddiesmom]

Susan-

 

Maddie has something like the cube that George has - it is a ball that she has to roll around in order to dispense treats or "cookies" as we say in our house. she will be rolling that thing around when I am home after I have just filled it up, it is hysterical to watch her. Going to Nantucket this weekend? My parents, brother niece and nephew are all there. I am so jealous as they said the weather is beautiful.

[GeorgeofNE]

Susan-

 

Maddie has something like the cube that George has - it is a ball that she has to roll around in order to dispense treats or "cookies" as we say in our house. she will be rolling that thing around when I am home after I have just filled it up, it is hysterical to watch her. Going to Nantucket this weekend? My parents, brother niece and nephew are all there. I am so jealous as they said the weather is beautiful.

 

My parents sold their house. The only place I have to stay is an air mattress in Mom's new (small) apartment!

 

And I work in the securities industry; Monday is not a holiday for us! So, the answer is no! But if an old lady with chin length grey hair approaches you and asks you if you know George and Chikken Arms, that's my Mom. Apparently she's been doing this to anyone she sees with a Greyhound!!!!

Edited October 7, 2011 by GeorgeofNE

[Maddiesmom]

Susan-

 

Maddie has something like the cube that George has - it is a ball that she has to roll around in order to dispense treats or "cookies" as we say in our house. she will be rolling that thing around when I am home after I have just filled it up, it is hysterical to watch her. Going to Nantucket this weekend? My parents, brother niece and nephew are all there. I am so jealous as they said the weather is beautiful.

 

My parents sold their house. The only place I have to stay is an air mattress in Mom's new (small) apartment!

 

And I work in the securities industry; Monday is not a holiday for us! So, the answer is no! But if an old lady with chin length grey hair approaches you and asks you if you know George and Chikken Arms, that's my Mom. Apparently she's been doing this to anyone she sees with a Greyhound!!!!

 

 

Maddie and I are not going as I don't have Monday off either. I just read that Nantucket's MSPCA is closing and people are ticked as they should be. However, Maddie will going home with me when I go home to CT for Christmas.

[3greytjoys]

Please don't leave a Greyhound (or any dog) unsupervised with Bully Sticks, or anything similar. They can be dangerous.

 

Socks can also be very dangerous for dogs. I knew a Greyhound that died from grabbing a small sock from a laundry bin, chewed and ingested the sock very quickly which created a fatal intestinal blockage. Socks are NOT safe toys for dogs.

 

Better options if leaving a toy with a hound:

Stuffed Kongs, and some of the cube dispenser toys. Also, hard (not flexible or soft) "Durachews" made by Nylabone, in large ("souper" size) and impregnated with flavors like bacon, liver, or chicken for hounds who enjoy chewing to relieve boredom.

 

I realized I need to clarify my original reply. When I mentioned feeding all meals in the crate, I do not mean to leave the dog in the crate for four hours thereafter. I mean feed at the hound's regular time, and let the hound out within a few minutes after Rhythm finishes eating. Feeding all meals in crate is simply an exercise in encouraging the hound that great and happy things happen inside the crate, and those crate visits result in a much faster release (than 4 hours), which encourages safe crate acceptance and relaxation faster.

 

Rhythm is still brand new to your home, so this whining etc. is very common before beginning alone training. Great that you have this weekend to contine to work on shorter bits of alone training. Others mentioned veterinary prescribed drugs which can help as a last resort later if alone training isn't enough, but good to keep in mind that some of those drugs often take 4-6 weeks to begin working.

 

Another option: If the time comes later, one SHORT term emergency option is naturally derived Melatonin tablets. (Just one example is Nature's Made brand.) If you find yourself (and neighbors) at wits end, you could try one 3 mg. tablet first, administered one hour before your departure. Next time, if that dosage isn't enough try 6 mg. (total), one hour before departure. This should not be used long term, but it may help in a pinch before asking for veterinary prescribed meds that take longer to kick in. At least until hound adjusts to the alone schedule. Please be careful not to mix medications and do let your vet know you are planning to try Melatonin.

 

Good luck and let us know how he progresses. We understand the first weeks can be less than we'd hope, but it does get better. There is a lot of excellent advice in this thread. We've all been there.

[Charla]

I use Melatonin for Gracie around July 4th, really works well in keeping her calmer.

[AEB]

Dirty T-shirts helped Kevin. But time and training is what made the biggest difference by far.

[Guest amazing_gracie]

Keep in mind that it will take time for him to adjust. Going from a kennel with many other dogs around all the time to being alone in a new environment is scary. It will take time for him to understand you are coming back each time you leave. It took our Gracie about 6-8 weeks before we came home to find her napping in the bedroom. That's when we knew she had adjusted fully and accepted that we weren't abandoning her when we went out. Hang in there!

[Guest avadogner]

Welcome to GT! You hve already received a ton of great ideas. I think most of us have had SA dog once or twice. My boy Augie is a Level.1 Class A clinger.

 

We quickly found he went into crate flipping panic when crated when we crated him. On advice from the great folks here, we went to a series of baby gates around the house. That improved things a fair amount. I learned to stiff Kongs with kibble and cream cheese and freeze them. The slow melt takes more time to work on and a good hard walk before did wonders.

 

Augie is still my velcro boy and still thinks the bathroom is my secret escape route but the whining has improved greatly. Hang in there. It took a couple months to get Augie over it.

 

As for the neighbor, I would drop by the concerned neighbors with say some cookies or adult beverage and introduce Rhythm to the neighbor. The gift will be peace offering and hopefully show the neighbor that you are going out of your way to remedy the situation ASAP. Give him a brief rundown of how much Rhythm's life has changed and assure him you are working on corrcting the behavior. Hopefully the neighbor be a bit more patient and tolerant. He may.fall in love with Rhythm.as many people do once they hang with a grey.

-aicia

[GreytNut]

I actually asked my neighbors for help when Riley first came home and was having problems with separation anxiety and howling. I let them know when I was leaving and asked them if they would please listen and tell me whether he cried or not, and for how long. They were good observers, and I think they minded the howling a lot less when they knew I was trying to put a stop to it.

 

ETA: We worked A LOT on alone training. It took about 6 weeks, but we went from me not being able to go to the mailbox without him flipping his wig to being able to leave him for the day with minimal complaint.

Edited October 9, 2011 by GreytNut

[mychip1]

Just dropping in to say that we are thinking of you! Hope Rhythm is working through the SA. Patience is the key....and toys and Kongs and exercise and all the things that people have suggested.

[Guest KatJon]

We are working on it... Rhythm is showing signs of improvement but we still have a long way to go! It's funny, he doesn't mind when DBF leaves but when I do, he gets upset Guess he's a true mamma's boy

 

The book "I'll be home soon" has been very helpful. We're working through the plan outlined in the book right now. Just will take lots more time and effort!