Puppy Separation Anxiety

[steph]

I HAVE A 5 MONTH OLD BLACK LAB PUPPY. HE HAS REALLY BAD SEPARATION ANXIETY. HE CAN'T BE LEFT ALONE FOR LONGER THAN A MINUTE. I HAVE TRIED KONGS, BONES THAT DON'T SPLINTER AND EVEN LEAVING TOYS IN HIS CREATE. FOR A WHILE HE HAD FREE ROAM OF MY ROOM BUT HE THEN GOT A BIT DESTRUCTIVE SO I CREATE TRAINED HIM. HE SLEEPS IN IT EVERY NIGHT WITHOUT A PROBLEM AS HE SLEEPS IN THE SAME ROOM AS ME AS HE WAS DRIVING THE REST OF MY FAMILY MAD WITH HIS BARKING. IF ANYONE HAS ANY ADVICE ON HOW I COULD GET HIM OVER HIS SEPARATION ANXIETY I WOULD BE SO GRATEFUL. HE IS A REALLY GOOD PUPPY AND DOESNT CHEW MUCH AND IS WELL BEHAVED ITS JUST THIS ONE THING THAT I'M STRUGGLING WITH. PLEASE HELP.

[Tanya]

when you crate and leave him, are here others in the house? what happens when he barks (what do people do?)

[steph]

sometimes but most of the time there isnt anyone else in the house. If my dad in he usually takes him out and takes him out of his crate. i tell them to ignore him but they dont. they usually shout at him. i leave the radio on as that sometimes calms him down but most of the time doesnt.

[Tanya]

generally it is recommended to completely ignore a dog that is barking in their crate (same for crying). ANY attentio (even yelling) encourages the barking. and to always wait until they are calm and quiet before opening the door (even if you plan to go in and let them out, make sure they are quiet and calm before you do).

how much time is he spending in teh crate? how much (and what type) of exercise is he getting? how much time training?

[steph]

i do say to them to ignore him and wait till he stops. sometimes he wont. we try and not keep him in his crate for too long usually someone will come in after 1 and a half to 2 hours to see him sometimes a wee bit longer but thats very rare. he gets let off the lead and runs about crazy chasing the birds and plays with other dogs. sometimes if its nice he will go swimming. i train him every day for 1 to 2 hours with breaks inbetween which is usually playing with toys. he knows bed, spin, lie, sit, paw, roll, wait, off, no and leave. i love traing him and i can feel our bond getting stronger with the more training we do.

[Dio's mama]

Have you tried putting a towel/blanket over the crate? That really worked for Dio when he was in a crate. Also, ignoring when crying/barking helps huge! As soon as he was quiet, I'd say "nice quiet" and let him out. It's how he learned that the word "quiet" meant silence.

[steph]

hey i have tried putting a blanket over his create as thats what friends suggested. He really does not cope well being in a different room from everyone else. if you have to leave him for more than a minute he starts and he doesnt even need to be in his create.