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Crying/sometimes Howling When I Leave


Guest Winnie2014

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Guest Winnie2014

Hi everyone, I just adopted my Winnie a little over 2 weeks ago. She's 3 1/2. I had her kenneled up until last Wednesday when I left for work and she did great. Even last week she was distracted by her Kong when I left (I established kennel up and she'd go, I'd leave the door open and she would be fine).

 

We had a full day together on Friday - vet visit, Petsmart, visit to my parents' house when the apartment was being cleaned. Also fine when I left that night for dinner. Saturday? I kenneled her, left her with her kong and the door open, and she ran out and watched me leave and proceeded to whine. Since then, she has whined for 5-10 minutes after I leave. I've been trying to stay out of the house even on the weekends on 4 hour stints until she gets more used to my schedule.

 

I've been making no big deal of leaving, putting her Kong on the floor...ignoring her 5-10 minutes before I leave, moving my keys around, putting my work bag on and off...etc. I left her today and I filmed her. After she whined in the morning, she roached and seemed okay. I came home and took her out to pee and hung out with her for 15 minutes or so before leaving. Put the Kong down, put on my purse, walked around the kitchen...and she just kept going from baby gate to baby gate to see me. Ignored her again until she went and lied in her bed (around 5 minutes), she followed me around and I continued to ignore her. Left my apartment and I could hear her whining, but I had to go back to work.

 

I checked the tape tonight and not only did she whine, but she howled after I left in the afternoon. Only for about 5 minutes or so...but she obviously is not used to being alone. She seemed more restless in the afternoon. Cried a little bit more in the middle around 2pm, but settled down with her Kong not long after.

 

Is she just getting used to being alone? She doesn't seem to be showing signs of seperation anxiety, but I'm a new dog mommy, and her behavior makes me SO nervous. Should I take her on a short 15 minute walk at lunch to tire her out? I live in a 2nd story apartment, so it's tough to find her a place to run other than our leashed walks. I'm thinking of hiring a dog walker Tues/Thurs to take her out to pee so I don't have to go home every day.

 

Winnie really is a sweetheart. We're still working on not pulling on the leash (obedience training coming), and eating all of our food. Kongs are stuffed with a boiled chicken thigh and frozen. Poop has gotten more firm over the past two weeks. I feel like a complete nervous wreck about not messing her up/not annoying my neighbors. The "honeymoon" period is over, obviously. I love her already, but my stomach is just in knots about this. I don't want to leave her for my entire workday (9 hours), but me coming home is obviously stressful for her right now as she doesn't like to see me leave.

 

Thanks for your help ahead of time, and hopefully reassuring this new Greyhound mommy. :)

 

Edit: and I leave a beach sound machine on for her when I'm gone...should I try the radio or the tv instead?

Edited by Winnie2014
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when I leave, my DW OR DS put Conrad out of a potty break and I slip out. As soon as I transfer from my manual indoor chair to my powered wheelie chair he is ready to go. Once he is sure nobody is gonna let him out of his crate he settles down. BUT as soon as my key hits the door, up comes the whining, he either shoots straight to his bed OR prances around my chair so I will take him outside. We stay out for several hours in the morning and afternoon.

 

Ain't Southern California grand... :neener

 

We do live in a house and are on a hill with no neighbors to bother :hehe:gh_run2

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Guest Winnie2014

I would LOVE to live in SoCal. Too bad my job pretty much limits me to the Gulf Coast. Haha. My next step when my lease is up is to get a house with a yard. I love my apartment, but I think Winnie deserves her zoomies in addition to walks. :)

 

It's been so freaking COLD in Houston when we go out for our walks at 6am...back by 6:30/35 and I leave by 6:45am to go to work. Sun goes down at around 5:30, and we we walk from around 5pm-5:30/5:45pm.

 

-----------------------

 

Schedule:

5am - Wakeup and let out of crate, pee

5:15am -Food

6:00am -Walk

6:45am - Leave for work

11:30-11:45am - Home for pee break, brushing, general time together

12:15pm - back to work

4:45pm - Home

5:00-5:30/5:45pm - Walk

6:30pm - Food

7-9pm - Free time (Hopefully soon to be some obedience training)

9:15pm - pee

9:30-10pm - Kennel up and bedtime

 

Here's my Winnie:

Fitting into cat beds

wFt5RHv.jpg?1

 

Roaching

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She's still working out when it's okay to play with stuffies (still not playing when I'm not here). I'm looking forward to the obedience training to hopefully drive my nervousness down.

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Welcome to GT!! She is SO cute! (says the girl with an obvious bias towards black girlhounds...)

 

Granted, I have not had to deal with any separation anxiety issues in either of my girls, in my experience, things will quiet down a bit as she becomes more accustomed to your schedule. It sounds like Winnie isn't demonstrating destructive behaviors or having nervous accidents, so she probably just needs some time. Luna, my first girl, definitely made some noise in the beginning. It was understandable, she was getting used to her new environment and to me and my schedule. Over time, she built her trust in the fact that I always came home for her. Routine is very important, but it sounds like you are doing a great job there. Nova, my second hound, never made a peep. This is mainly due to the fact that she has always had a buddy here, and when they are together, there is no need to feel lonely. You can certainly try to leave on the TV or radio and see if that helps. You could also try to use a DAP diffuser to help keep Winnie calm while you are away.

 

 

Edited to add: It never hurts to go and chat with your neighbors either. I have found that bringing your girl along with you and explaining to your neighbors that you recently adopted a retired racer and letting them meet your charming girl can go a long way towards winning their sympathy if she makes a little bit of noise in the beginning.

Edited by schultzlc

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Guest Winnie2014

You know, living in an apartment complex in town you don't see your neighbors a lot. However, there are 2 labs next door so I don't see too much of an issue with him and the neighbor to the other side of me I ran into on our way out the door one day. I did say I just adopted Winnie so bear with us if Winnie is a bit loud, so hopefully that mitigated that possible issue. I think both Winnie and I need time to adjust. I need to work on calming down and so does she. I don't want to kennel her at night and during the day, so we've got to work on the day activities first. Kenneling at night usually leaves with the both of us waking up every 2 hours or so, so that's the next thing to tackle...bed next to mine instead of the kennel.

 

Really, thanks for the help. You've made me feel better about leaving her alone. :) Weekends are still a bit rough because I don't want to spend ALL my time with her and then her get used to it. While I enjoyed my work schedule before (every other Friday off, 9 hour days), I kind of wish I worked a normal schedule for her at least at the beginning. Winnie is good for me, even though right now I'm a ball of nerves.

 

I'm going to leave the TV on instead of the sound machine tomorrow...(seriously, how hard is it to find a decent AM/FM radio nowadays???) and film her again. Soon enough I'm just going to stop because watching the film back just makes me even more of a nervous wreck. Haha.

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Guest normaandburrell

She is so beautiful. I have not had a big problem with separation anxiety with my dogs, but I wonder if she senses your anxiety. It's easy to say, and hard to do, but try to relax and not worry. I also think the obedience class would really help. It did with our dog Iceman, to get him more stimulation and make him less anxious. I also think introducing her to the neighbors is a good idea. A young man in our neighborhood liked to have sometimes noisy parties. He would come around and let us know ahead of time, and he was so sweet about it, it made the noise entirely okay.

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Guest Winnie2014

I'm sure she senses my anxiety. I think the obedience training (there is a trainer that my adoption group recommends that comes to your house) will do good for both her and me. I'm ready for it to stop being so freaking cold in the morning too. Brrrrr.

 

She's a leash puller and she definitely won the battle yesterday afternoon (but not the war). Other dogs on the trails, people walking...sometimes she gets overly excited and wants to try zoomies on the leash. She essentially yanks herself with the martingale collar while I try to settle her down. Today I'm going to see if she'll go poop as well as pee at lunch and just spend a little bit more time outside with her.

 

She hasn't worked out toys or how to play with me with her toys either. She followed me around before I left this morning and panted so I know she is stressed before I leave. I usually wait until she isn't looking at me when I leave, but that doesn't always work. Her Kong is left 5 minutes before I leave and she just leaves it alone.

 

Food is another thing...I tried feeding her 1 1/2 of food in the morning and she eats 3/4 of it, but at night I give her 2 cups and she eats the majority of it. I hope she's getting her calories from that and the two chicken thighs in the Kong. She's 58 pounds, and the vet said she was at an okay weight, but I also don't want her to lose weight at all.

 

Thanks for helping a worried new grey mommy. I somehow need to tone down my anxiety, but how I have no freaking idea. It's all a work in progress.

 

EDIT: She seems to be more stressed when I leave in the afternoon (howling 3-5 times), should I try to leave her alone in the apartment with 2 Kongs for 9 hours? The baby gates prevent her from getting into too much trouble in the kitchen (the trash, etc.). 8 hours I think she could do...but 9 hours is a long time without being able to go outside to pee/poop.

Edited by Winnie2014
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Guest Winnie2014

Work in progress but success from leaving the TV on today. Refrigerated Kongs worked better than frozen ones too. :)

 

This helps my anxiety immensely. We also went poopy at lunch, which I think helped as well. :nod

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In terms of pulling on a leash, trying out a harness might help until she learns better manners. One of my girls is spooky and always tried to slip her collar when something startled her or made her nervous. A harness gave me a lot of peace of mind knowing that she is more secure. When I had a foster, and now with my second hound, I found it was easier to put the other dog in a harness as well (less leash tangling). Last January, I had the pleasure of fostering a giant 2 year old boy that was like a bull in a china shop. He was excited about EVERYTHING. While I enjoyed watching his silly antics, he was a bit hard to walk, and a harness made a huge difference with him.

 

Both of my girls wear this harness by Wiggles Wags and Whiskers/ 2 Hounds Designs. It fits a greyhound body well, and is lined in velvet so that doesn't chafe around the legs. It might be worth a shot!

www.2houndsdesign.com/1-Freedom-No-Pull-Harness-Medium-and-Large-Breeds.html

Edited by schultzlc

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Guest Winnie2014

Oooooh that looks awesome! Yeah I'll definitely consider that for our walks after we meet with the trainer tomorrow. We get a little too excited on our martingale collar where she will run ahead and accidentally strangle herself.

 

Really only in the afternoons when there are more people/dogs out though - as she walks somewhat calmly in the morning (6am!!!). If she gets really, really excited, we lunge at people/dogs. Small dogs are still a thing of wonder that she wants to really wants to run after.

 

Either way, I'm a pretty happy mommy today. I think we need to stick to our schedule - though I'm not quite sure what to do on the weekends/upcoming holidays. I obviously can't be home all the time because I think it will be harder for her to adapt again as she's so new to my home.

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Guest Winnie2014

Another update: Our meeting with the trainer went well. We've got a lot to work on! He suggested a gentle leader for her pulling when we're on walks, so we're going to try that in addition to his plan for our walks.

 

She did, however, start to woo-woo when I was about to leave and definitely started barking after I shut the door. So minor Separation Anxiety not quite fixed as of yet. She's so far so good when I come home - pretty quiet and although she follows me around - waits until I ask her to come for her cuddles after 5-10 minutes. Might have just been the excitement of new people and dogs today that caused her to not want me to leave - but I had to! We're going to stick to our strict schedule even on the weekends/holidays for the time being until she learns that I am always going to come back. Time for me to do some exploring in Houston!

 

Honestly, I'm finally starting to feel calm about all of this. We're nowhere near where we need to be in terms of training, but we will be. I've got another name of a dog walker, so that's good (since the other one hasn't called me back...grrr). I wonder if someone else coming in at lunch is going to upset her schedule...hopefully not but I can't go home every day!

 

EDIT: I'm thinking more and more of leaving her alone for longer periods, including the weekends to build up me being away from home from 6:45am-4pm. I think she really needs a strict schedule now, and I feel like me coming in during the day is messing her up too much! (Hence the barking, etc.) Would she be okay as a single dog in an apartment for that long? I feel like it's a long time, but I know she doesn't pee from 9pm-5:15am. Am I overthinking things too much? So much confusion about it all. :/

Edited by Winnie2014
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Guest Winnie2014

Well, I certainly don't want to reinforce the behavior by going back into the apartment after I leave. While I don't think I'm bothering my neighbors too much (she's much quieter in the morning and not a whole lot of people around at lunch), it's still something we're going to have to work through. I think I'm going to try leaving her for longer hours (go home around 1pm vs 11:45am) and see how she does being alone for longer than 4-5 hours. She's free to roam, so it's not like she spends all that time in her crate.

 

I've also purchased one of the Freedom harnesses for her to try in addition to trying the Gentle Leader. I honestly don't like JUST using the gentle leader on walks as there is a lot of excitement in the afternoons where we walk and I want to be able to do it in a quieter setting to begin with. The trainer didn't really see her bolting for small dogs either. Best I think to see what happens during our next session, I think.

 

Until then, some clicker training in the morning/evening before food to work on name recognition, getting in and out of her bed, taking a bow, and down before she gets anything (food, go out for a walk, cuddles/pets). She has to earn those. I'm glad to have the structure though it is a whole lot at once. o.O

 

And you're all getting my ADD thoughts about all of this in one thread, sorry about that! I appreciate the comments and help so much. <3.

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Guest Winnie2014

Back to howling when I left this afternoon for 30 minutes this time. :/

 

What am I going to do when I have to change my schedule of when I leave/return? What happens when I want to go out on a Friday night? Does she just need time to figure out that I'm always going to return? She is perfectly fine the rest of the time, mostly sleeping.

 

This is concerning me because she is fine when I leave in the morning. We did alright with our clicker training this afternoon, but better on our walk.

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Guest Winnie2014

I may look into some doggie day care when the holidays come around in December...but that is probably when everyone boards their dogs. I'm home for over a week, and while we've got a semblance of a schedule down, we still need to work out how weekends are going to work. Probably same time walks, etc. but relaxing and leaving more about 8am vs 6:45am. I like to take her to visit my parents on Saturday afternoon before our afternoon walk and evening routine.

 

Did you find a doggie day care that was just large dogs? Winnie is still getting used to small dogs in a neutral setting that I would probably not trust her around them without her muzzle off leash. She's supposed to be small-dog friendly, but I think that's more in a home setting.

 

I know she will adapt as time goes on and my stress is going down the longer I have her (the training helps!). The neighbors and management haven't said anything about her noise level right after I leave, which is good. Management loves when she comes to say hi after our walks when I need to get a package. I promised myself no stress when I leave her tomorrow night for when I go out to New Bar Friday with my friends. :)

 

Slowly...we're getting there. Thanks for all the help!

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Guest DogNewbie

The boarding place we take Wiley has a section for small dogs/elderly dogs and a separate yard for large dogs. The owner has two greys herself so it works out great!

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Guest Winnie2014

Just a quick update: we're doing better when I leave! Putting her toys away every night makes them SOOO much more exciting in the morning when I leave. :yay I had to step back in the apartment after 10 minutes this morning to check on something and she was romping and running and playing. :hehe

 

She even did well when I left last night after dinner! I'm doing it again tonight, but I think keeping her walk/feeding/relieving schedule consistent will be key to a happy pup when I leave.

 

I'm in talks with a pet sitter for her to come in at lunch when I'm at work as a test run in December. She used to work at a Greyhound kennel at the track, so she's quite familiar with the breed. I'm hopeful that it will work out when I call her references/etc.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Guest Winnie2014

Just a quick update with a few questions as well.

 

I hired a petsitter to come in and go through Winnie and I's routine this past week during the day. While she was good for the petsitter, I haven't known how she has been with the crying/howling/woo-wooing after I leave/after they leave. We spent Friday together mostly all day, and then Saturday she seemed stressed when I left in the afternoon after being home around lunch for 2-3 hours. I recorded her because of this and we went back to crying for about 10 minutes after I left.

 

Today I thought we were okay, stopped by at home normal time, did our usual business and left after 30 minutes. She didn't get up for the kong and I recorded her again. Woo-wooing, whining on and off for 30 minutes and she didn't spend her usual time in her bed so I don't know where she was. She's been laying on the hard floor in front of the gate when I'm in the kitchen sometimes, so I wonder if that is where she was. I didn't get a recording of her this morning, though I suspect we had some whining but probably less due to our walk.

 

How can I improve her time at home alone with less stress? We were doing so well, and now back to mild Separation Anxiety. :/ Should I have the petsitter actually walk her at lunch to wear her out? I'm at a loss because we were doing so well and the petsitter seemed to be working fine too (until yesterday when she was velcro dog all day).

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Ask your vet about Zylkene and Clomicalm. I'm not a big fan of drugging a dog but these meds will help a dog relax so that they can understand alone training. My Gracie was only on Clomicalm for 3-4 months. Zyklene is a natural product.

 

Freshy (Droopys Fresh), NoAh the podenco orito, Rita the podenco maneta, Howie the portuguese podengo maneto
Angels:  Lila, the podenco, Mr X aka Denali, Lulu the podenco andaluz, Hada the podenco maneta, Georgie Girl (UMR Cordella),  Charlie the iggy,  Mazy (CBR Crazy Girl), Potato, my mystery ibizan girl, Allen (M's Pretty Boy), Percy (Fast But True), Mikey (Doray's Patuti), Pudge le mutt, Tessa the iggy, Possum (Apostle), Gracie (Dusty Lady), Harold (Slatex Harold), "Cousin" Simon our step-iggy, Little Dude the iggy ,Bandit (Bb Blue Jay), Niña the galgo, Wally (Allen Hogg), Thane (Pog Mo Thoine), Oliver (JJ Special Agent), Comet, & Rosie our original mutt.

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Guest Winnie2014

I'll definitely keep that in mind if this keeps up into January.

 

I realize that she is going to make noise when I leave sometimes. I'm a lot less emotional/stressed about her now when I leave. I just want to help her learn that it is okay to be alone - I've only had her a month and a half and my schedule is pretty wonky in December with all the holidays.

 

I don't want to have to record her when I leave because I want to know that she is going to be fine.

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Guest Winnie2014

(Why can't I edit posts?)

 

Winnie tends to show stress before I leave - panting and pacing mainly, but I try only to leave once she is settled in her bed. When I set her Kong down she gets up to play with it but usually still watches me when I leave.

 

Do y'all have better luck with saying something like "Winnie, be good!" before leaving, rather than straight ignoring her for 5 minutes before I leave/when I return? Same goes for when I get home and she is settled in her bed...ignore or tell her something like, "What's up pup?" when I walk in and through the baby gate.

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Winnie2014, you only have a few minutes to edit a post. If you become a supporter (make a donation, see tab at top of this page) you can edit any time.

 

Freshy (Droopys Fresh), NoAh the podenco orito, Rita the podenco maneta, Howie the portuguese podengo maneto
Angels:  Lila, the podenco, Mr X aka Denali, Lulu the podenco andaluz, Hada the podenco maneta, Georgie Girl (UMR Cordella),  Charlie the iggy,  Mazy (CBR Crazy Girl), Potato, my mystery ibizan girl, Allen (M's Pretty Boy), Percy (Fast But True), Mikey (Doray's Patuti), Pudge le mutt, Tessa the iggy, Possum (Apostle), Gracie (Dusty Lady), Harold (Slatex Harold), "Cousin" Simon our step-iggy, Little Dude the iggy ,Bandit (Bb Blue Jay), Niña the galgo, Wally (Allen Hogg), Thane (Pog Mo Thoine), Oliver (JJ Special Agent), Comet, & Rosie our original mutt.

tiny hada siggy.png

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Guest Winnie2014

Should I start doing alone training again?

 

It's tough with being at work from 7am-4pm but I can work on it on the weekends. Thing is, I don't want to reinforce her making noise when I leave so I don't like coming right back in (10-30 minutes after I leave). Saturday I left for an hour in the afternoon with similar results - whining, pacing, panting, looking out the window (10 mins). I'm not 100% sure that was me cooking in the kitchen behind the baby gates and her not being able to see me/get to me around that time. She panted, laid down in front of the baby gates, stuck her nose through, etc.

 

Doesn't seem to matter how long I leave her (usually she's alone 4-5 hours at most alone) and does seem to settle after those 10-30 minutes - hopefully into her bed so I can see her if I record her. She seems to do better after she's been on a walk and if it's closer to our normal schedule.

 

While I'm not anxious about leaving her any more, I still want to make my leaving (or the dog sitter) a no stress event. She is still learning and settling in as well, since I've only had her since Nov 1st. I thought we were past the SA...but apparently not. Sigh.

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