Barking At Random Times When Alone. Sa?

[Guest jaxshumans]

Hi everyone!

 

This forum has been so helpful all the other times I've asked questions that I thought I would come to you all again! (By the way, Jax is completely over his statueing outside now -- took him basically 24 hours after I posted about it to completely get over it! Go figure)

 

So here is the current issue: We started alone training with Jax immediately after we got him (it's been about 5 weeks now) and he's never shown any signs of SA. We transitioned him to being out of the crate when he's home alone and have had no problems.

 

The other day we were coming home after being out for about 3 hours (in the evening, after his dinner and walk) and we could hear him HOWLING from all the way down the hall. We live in an apartment complex, so you can see how this may become a problem for our neighbors. We ignored him when we came in and have also been more regimented about ignoring him when we are getting ready to leave too.

 

I got a baby monitor app to track him when we went out again the next day for a couple hours in the morning, and he was perfectly fine. No noise, just slept on his bed literally the entire time. Left him alone again this morning for about an hour, and he was fine. Then this afternoon we was alone for 2 hours, and the BF heard him howling again as he was coming home. He had also chewed the corner of a pillow, which is the first destructive thing he's ever done.

 

This has only happened twice so far, but we want to make sure to nip this in the bud before we start getting complaints from the neighbors! My hunch is that maybe he's bored, but he's also starting to show some SA symptoms now too. I've tried leaving him a frozen Kong before, but he gets bored of it after a little while and I usually find it with most of the filling still in it. He LOVES rawhides, but I'm afraid to leave him unsupervised with one because of the choking hazards.

 

Any thoughts about what might be going on and how to deal with it?? It's hard to do the normal alone training with him because he's normally fine, and this howling seems to be so random.

 

Thanks in advance!

[greysmom]

My first thought is to make sure he gets more exercise before you leave in the afternoons. In the mornings, he's still napping from the night, but he's getting more active and probably more bored in the afternoons. Also make sure you have him on a strict potty schedule so that you know when he will need to go o-u-t and can plan outings according for a little while.

 

Don't leave him with rawhides. And Kongs don't work for every dog. You might try a DAP diffuser/collar for when you leave. Work specifically on alone training in the afternoons for a week or so.

[GeorgeofNE]

I'm with Greysmom.

 

More exercise. And I personally think it's a little bit unreasonable to expect a dog to be alone all day while you work and then alone again at night when you go out. I mean there is nothing WRONG with that--but from your dog's point of view, you and your boyfriend are all he has. We ask a LOT of single dogs--behaving alone in the house all day. To come home, feed him and walk him, and then leave him again? For all he knew you were going to be gone for another 8 hours.

 

Maybe take it a little slower??? Get him rock solid for your workday routine before you throw a night out in???

 

My opinion only--and I seriously am NOT being critical. Just thinking about my own experiences and that dogs are very social creatures.

[Guest jaxshumans]

I'm with Greysmom.

 

More exercise. And I personally think it's a little bit unreasonable to expect a dog to be alone all day while you work and then alone again at night when you go out. I mean there is nothing WRONG with that--but from your dog's point of view, you and your boyfriend are all he has. We ask a LOT of single dogs--behaving alone in the house all day. To come home, feed him and walk him, and then leave him again? For all he knew you were going to be gone for another 8 hours.

 

Maybe take it a little slower??? Get him rock solid for your workday routine before you throw a night out in???

 

My opinion only--and I seriously am NOT being critical. Just thinking about my own experiences and that dogs are very social creatures.

 

I think more exercise may be the key. We actually work from home, so with the exception of going into campus for a few hours some days, he is mostly with us. I'm actually worried that that may be the problem -- that he's bonded more with us now compared to when we first got him and we should sort of go back to square one with the alone training. We'll give it a shot! Thanks!

[TXRedbo]

 

I think more exercise may be the key. We actually work from home, so with the exception of going into campus for a few hours some days, he is mostly with us. I'm actually worried that that may be the problem -- that he's bonded more with us now compared to when we first got him and we should sort of go back to square one with the alone training. We'll give it a shot! Thanks!

 

You may have hit the nail on the head. My husband works at home, so Redbo has developed what seems like SA. No matter how much we tire him out before leaving, he will spend the entire time crying intermittently, panting, and staring intently at the door. However, we know the issue is linked to my husband being at home all dang day because Redbo has learned to be perfectly fine when I leave for work every morning. As soon as I get my keys, he'll come up for neck pets and then go lay down in his crate (he hangs out there with the door open even when my husband is at home). Whenever my husband does leave the house, leaving Redbo with me, the pup will whine for about 5 seconds and then go to sleep.

 

But when we both leave, it's a whole other story. Howling loud enough to wake the dead. We live in an apartment too, so I feel your pain.

[SPDoggie]

I wonder does he just howl as he hears you coming home? So he's not making intermittent noise all day, but just in excitement of your arrival? I know our Ruby "talks" as she hears our car come in the drive.

[Guest jaxshumans]

Update: we worked on the alone training, leaving him with a Kong every time we left, etc and (knock on wood) he seems to be absolutely fine with us leaving now! I purchased one of those baby monitor apps that lets me watch him via video while we're gone...basically he just sleeps the entire time. Exercise + alone training did the trick. Thanks for everyone's help!!