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How To Help A Dog With Separation Anxiety

February 1, 2021 by Mary Telesz

dog lying on ground because no one learned how to help a dogs with separation anxietyDogs can be difficult pets to take care of, especially for first-time owners. They must be routinely walked, fed, and groomed. Dogs should also be regularly taken to the vet to make sure they do not have any major health concerns. Many dogs also simply enjoy spending quality time with their owners and become so attached to them that they begin to feel distressed as soon as their owner leaves the home. This phenomenon is known as separation anxiety. Here is a close look, including how to help a dog with separation anxiety.

What Does Separation Anxiety Look Like In Dogs?

Not all dogs express concern over being left alone in the exact same way. However, here are some common symptoms of separation anxiety, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals® (ASPCA):

  • Barking and howling loudly and incessantly
  • Urinating and defecating on multiple surfaces and furniture
  • Chewing, digging, and destroying doors, windows, or household objects
  • Escaping from an area to which they are confined when left alone; this can potentially lead to self-injury
  • Pacing in a fixed pattern

What Causes Separation Anxiety In Dogs?

dog looking out window waiting for owner to learn How To Help A dogs with separation anxietyThere are several reasons dogs suffer from separation anxiety. Here are some of the most frequently apparent causes of separation anxiety in dogs:

  • Change of guardian or family: When a dog is taken in by a new guardian or abandoned, this can cause severe distress, especially at first.
  • Change in residence: Dogs often need time to become accustomed to a new home, even if their owner remains the same.
  • Change in schedule: A sudden change in a guardian’s work schedule can also trigger separation anxiety in a dog, especially if the former is forced to spend less time at home.
  • Change in household membership: The death or departure of a household member can also lead to separation anxiety.

Other Behavior Problems To Rule Out

Aside from the previously listed symptoms of separation anxiety (and medical conditions such as incontinence), there are other behavior issues you should rule out before deducing that your dog has separation anxiety.

Incomplete House Training:

If your dog still frequently urinates throughout your home, this is likely a sign that he/she has not been fully house-trained.

Submissive postures:

Dogs that urinate when they become excited or get reprimanded sometimes adopt submissive postures when interacting with people. Such positions include holding their tail low and rolling over to expose their belly.

How To Help A Dog With Separation Anxiety

There are several ways of helping a dog that develops separation anxiety. However, here are three particularly useful tips to remember.

Stay Calm When You Leave And Come Home

One of the most effective ways of handling your dog’s separation anxiety is to remain as calm as possible whenever you leave or return to your home. No matter how anxious your dog becomes, ignore it for a few minutes and then gently pet it. Much like with a human child, a dog may become more agitated if they sense you are distressed as well.

Give Them A Special Treat

dog that chew thing up because owner doesnt know how to help dogs with separation anxietyMany dogs respond positively to treats, so this can be a highly effective strategy for calming your pet down. This treat can be anything, such as a KONG® stuffed with cheese, canned food, or even a toy. You can try giving your dog different treats until you identify one he likes. As soon as you are back home, take away your dog’s access to this treat so that he becomes used to having it only when left alone.

Make Sure They Have Plenty Of Exercise

Exercise is known to improve both physical and mental health, and the same concept applies to dogs. If you routinely allow your dog space and time to walk or run around (e.g., in your backyard) or practice out-of-sight stay exercises, your pet may feel less restless when it is left alone.

Work With Paw Pals For Dog Sitting Services And Info On How To Help A Dog With Separation Anxiety

Speak to the professionals at Paw Pals for more information about high-quality dog sitting services. We are dedicated to offering personalized, full-service dog walking and pet sitting services to people throughout Fairfax County, Virginia.

Regardless of how long you plan to be away from home, Paw Pals can take proper care of your dog. Our sitters are highly trained, licensed, and fully certified (for both first aid and pet CPR) professionals who can give your dog all of the exercise and interaction they desire. We provide regular vacation visits (non-overnight), in-home overnight dog sitting, and bed and biscuit service. Our services include walks, playtime, brushing, and providing treats (as well as medications, if required). We charge $80 per night for overnight sitting for the first dog, and then $10 per night for each additional dog. Additional services include dog supply pick-up and dog transportation/taxi service.

Call Paw Pals today at (703) 345-1695 or contact us online to learn more about our dog sitting services.

Filed Under: Pet Anxiety

Contact Paw Pals for More Information

Paw Pals specializes in professional dog walking, dog sitting, and pet sitting services. One of our reliable, adult staff members will keep your pet safe, while providing your pet the love and care they need when you are away. Contact us to learn more!

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Paw Pals Pet Sitting, LLC
14001-C Saint Germain Drive #213
Centreville, VA 20121
(703) 345-1695

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Monday
9am - 5pm
Tuesday
9am - 5pm
Wednesday
9am - 5pm
Thursday
9am - 5pm
Friday
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Saturday
Closed
Sunday
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Areas Served

Centreville – 20120, 20121
Chantilly – 20151
Clifton – 20124
Fairfax – 22030, 22033
Fairfax Station – 22039
Manassas – 20109, 20110, 20111
Reston – 20191, 20190

Google Rating
4.9
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
4.9
Taylor Smith
Taylor Smith
21:22 03 Oct 21
I never worry when Mary and team take care of my dog!
Michæl Silva
Michæl Silva
21:38 01 Jul 22
Mary at Paw Pals Pet Sitting is the greatest! She has helped me train my pooch Chico how play nice with other dogs and for that I am extremely grateful! A+A+A+A+A+A
Kwi Kim
Kwi Kim
22:37 17 Jun 22
I hired Paw Pals based on my sister’s referral. Meet & greet was very thorough and detailed. I was surprised that my finicky cat came to check the sitter out. Subsequently, a sitter watched my cat over several separate visits, and it was clear through the visit reports that my cat loved the sitter. All the visits were completed having followed my directions & with professionalism.I would highly recommend Paw Pals to anyone who’s looking for a dependable, personable, & professional sitter.
Joseph Walter
Joseph Walter
19:55 13 Jun 22
Paw Pals provided a large number of photos of our pets along with a personalized message on how our pets were doing with every single visit. I would highly recommend using Paw Pals, we'll be continuing to use them whenever we go on vacation.
Ashley Manning
Ashley Manning
09:50 11 Jun 22
Highly recommend as pet sitters!Initially, a sitter from the company will visit the house to meet the pets and learn where everything is. Tatiana took careful notes and we got her some spare keys.While we are away, Paw Pals sends sitters to come and look after our boys. They feed them, scoop litter, bring in mail and packages, and they will even manage trash, recycling, blinds and lights so that everything is comfortable for our kitties. Each time they check in, we receive an email message with updates and pictures, which is so comforting when we are on the road.Also, if you don’t let Paw Pals know when you are home, they assume something has happened and will continue to care for your babies. If something were to happen, I know they would be okay.Five stars for Paw Pals!
Brian Wood
Brian Wood
04:08 22 May 22
We have used Paw Pals for a number of years now and would highly recommend to anyone looking for help with their pets. Great communication from owner Mary and flexibility to make adjustments in schedule as life changes over time. Have had a consistent set of walkers who have gotten to know our pup and the various walking routes around our neighborhood quite well.
Lesley Bush
Lesley Bush
13:58 18 Mar 22
We can't rave enough about Paw Pals. They took care of our 18 year old Cat and 20 year old Chinchilla while we were away and when our flight got cancelled, they were so accommodating and available last minute for an extra day. We worked with Jen to coordinate visits from Miko and Danny. I loved the pictures and updates on how our Lil geriatric guys were doing. Thanks a million, Paw Pals!! Our special pets were so well cared for.
Sebastian Barnes
Sebastian Barnes
01:06 17 Jan 22
I have used Paw Pals for several trips over the last few months, and they have been phenomenal every time! Mary is extremely kind and responsive, and she makes sure that my cat and dog have the care that they need every time I am out of town. All of the pet sitters that I've had have been incredibly sweet to my pets, and they treat them like their own! Will gladly continue using Paw Pals every time I need a sitter.
Julie Shildt
Julie Shildt
17:45 14 Nov 21
It has been a pleasure doing business with paw pals. We have used this company for several trips we have taken over the past 6 months. They have been wonderful caretakers for our 2 cats. Anytime there is ever a question they don't hesitate to give us a call and they leave the best notes and pictures in the emailed report of each visit. We are so glad have found such a great company.
Andrea Hall
Andrea Hall
22:45 03 Oct 20
I wasn't sure about hiring a new doggie walker service... after all they are our kiddos... my babies were in great hands and I felt relaxed having them in their care. Thank you for everything!
Katie McCune
Katie McCune
19:19 15 Jul 21
I honestly cannot recommend Mary and her whole crew enough! We started using Mary originally about 7 years ago to stop by occasionally when our Aussie Lana was younger. Over the next couple years Lana stayed with Mary and her family for a couple weekends when we went on vacation. When we moved to our new house in Manassas, Lana stayed with Sam, who lives in Manassas, overnight for moving day, and did great. Right before the pandemic, we adopted our second Aussie, Goose, and Mary recommended a fantastic trainer for him.We now have weekly walks for the dogs, and they love all of their walkers! Trevor, Paul, Hazel, Sofie, and probably a couple others have helped Goose get used to more people, and have helped my husband and me when our schedules are crazy.Paw Pals is our go-to for any help with our dogs, so I highly recommend them!
Alexandra Hill
Alexandra Hill
22:43 23 May 21
I was a nervous mommy to leave my cats with a sitter service for the first time. Paw Pals went above and beyond to care for my cats and ease a nervous mommy. I already made a reservation to use them again!
Cindy Welgoss
Cindy Welgoss
13:12 27 Nov 20
We have been using Paw Pals for several years, and through a variety of pets that we have loved. Mary and her team have always been *exceptional* in every way. They are professional, courteous, and truly love our fur family! Mary herself is an organized and stellar administrator of her pet care business, keeping detailed records of our pet’s needs, scheduled pet visits, payments, and balance due easy to keep track of as the pet owner. The pet caretaking team is reliable and trustworthy. When our dogs see any of their Paw Pal friends, they get SO excited to see them! Follow up comments are left via text to keep the pet owner informed of the visit and how the pets are faring. Paw Pals has allowed our family the peace of mind to leave our pets at home, for work, weekend getaways and longer times away when necessary, where they are the most comfortable and familiar. We are grateful to Mary and her team for giving us the ability to enjoy pet ownership without feeling tied down. The responsibility of having pets comes with the need to keep them safe and comfortable at all times, and Mary and her team affords us this when our family has to be away.
Dr Tammy Cashion
Dr Tammy Cashion
21:11 12 Mar 19
We have used Paw pals pet sitting on multiple occasions for our bunnies while we are away. Many pet sitters are not interested in small pets however; Mary and her team, are amazing and we trust her implicitly! We are very happy with the outstanding service we have received from her team including texts and photos of our pets when we are out of town. They always go the extra mile and we highly recommend them!
Kristin Conrad
Kristin Conrad
16:00 16 Nov 19
We are so grateful we found Mary and her team at Paw Pals. They are exceptionally responsive, amazingly organized and detail-oriented.We have such peace of mind when we travel knowing our home and pets are so well cared for. Paw Pals is the best pet sitting service we’ve used, and we’re so happy we found them.
Katie Russell
Katie Russell
15:01 17 May 20
Paw Pals is fantastic! I have had a great experience with Mary! Compassionate, professional, responsive, and prompt! Thank you!
Phillip Evans
Phillip Evans
14:38 11 Jul 20
When we adopted our new dog in January, Paw Pals agreed to walk her and give her some outside time so she wasn't in the crate all day. She loved her dog walker and you could see her excitement every time the walker showed up. We moved out of the area but would recommend Paw Pals to anyone needing someone to care for their pets.
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