Golden Retriever Dog Forums banner

Help-my 18 week old Lab is not doing well when I'm out

2K views 11 replies 7 participants last post by  Jmcarp83 
#1 ·
Hi everyone. As you may know I have 2 new dogs...my 2 year old Stevie (golden retriever) and my 18 week old Taffy (lab retriever). They are both wonderful dogs. Stevie does not have to be in a kennel but the little lab has to be (too young!). She goes in her kennel without any problem every night (has since her second day home). She stays out during the day with Stevie and myself. I've had to go out a couple times lately and unfortunately they can't come with me. I block them both in my bedroom - Stevie has the run of the room and Taffy in her kennel. I do put a gate up so Stevie cannot leave the room. I'm only gone for an hour or two at the most. I leave her with a toy and with the T.V. on and Stevie is there for company. Unfortunately I know she is barking up a storm when I'm not there and it goes on the whole time I'm gone. The last time was a couple days ago. I learned about her continuous barking as one of my neighbors told me he heard her barking non-stop and was worried that something might be wrong with me so he rang the doorbell a few times. I thanked him for being thoughtful. He said the barking didn't bother him, just had him worried. I feel bad for her and for my neighbors having to hear any. Any suggestions on what I can do to help her cope when I'm out???? Thanks in advance.
 
#2 ·
'Practice' leaving for short periods, during the day, give her a lightly stuffed Kong to work on while you stay close by to start with, then start leaving the room for 5 minutes, (I often tell my dogs when I leave 'I'll be back.' when I am leaving.) then gradually increase the time you are gone, from the room. Leave Stevie in the room with her as if you are going out. Once she does well for about half an hour, start over again and leave the house, vary the length of time you are gone and build up to increasing durations. As you increase the time you are 'gone' stuff the Kong a little firmer, so it lasts a little longer. When you are going to be out for a while, give her a half frozen Kong, to lick at and chew on.

Puppies/dogs instinctively, being social animals, do not like being alone, but we can help them learn that being alone is okay and that we will be back, by giving them something rewarding to do while we are out. If they are being crated or confined to an ex-pen then we also need to ensure they see the crate/pen as a good place to be (for short periods - to build the positive association) while we are at home as well as when we are gone. We can toss treats in the crate, feed them in there, even put them in there with a new toy or chew bone.

It is a process of learning for them, can take some repetition and time but the investment is worth it long run.
 
#3 ·
This may not be part of the problem but simply sharing some info... When you leave the TV on be sure choose a channel that will not be showing animals.
I had a client that left on animal planet and it drove her dogs crazy. Another client left on talk radio and the argueing caused great stress on their dogs.
So just in case :) pick a channel with soft music.

You might also try leaving the older dog in another part of the house, might be frustration for not being able to get out and play?
 
#4 ·
This may not be part of the problem but simply sharing some info... When you leave the TV on be sure choose a channel that will not be showing animals.
I had a client that left on animal planet and it drove her dogs crazy. Another client left on talk radio and the argueing caused great stress on their dogs.
So just in case <img src="http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/images/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Smile" class="inlineimg" /> pick a channel with soft music.

You might also try leaving the older dog in another part of the house, might be frustration for not being able to get out and play?
I have heard this as well. I leave my dogs with HGTV because there isn’t too many animals making noises!
 
#5 ·
Thank you all for your suggestions. I'm going to try the stuffed kong idea and turn on HGTV for Taffy. After reading your posts, I've decided One Life to Live might be too dramatic for her liking.
This is new territory for me. I've always been working when we got new dogs, so being kenneled, when necessary, was easy for my previous dogs to adjust too. I took early retirement so I was happy that my pup didn't have to be kenneled except at night. It looks like that's backfired some.
I'm going to start training 101 today combining all of your great suggestions. Thanks!
 
#6 ·
I would do shorter outings to get her used to it. % minutes, 10 minutes, etc and work your way up. Start to feed her in the kennel. I wonder if having her pal in the room but unreachable is part of the frustration? Could Stevie go into another room? Might be worth a try to see whether that helps.
 
#7 ·
Sweet Girl ..I think Stevie being out on his own is a definite issue. I'm starting some training 101 today using a stuffed kong and leaving HGTV on. Fortunately she'll only have to be crated till we know the house won't be eaten up when we're out.
Thank you for your response; I appreciate it very much.
 
#10 ·
Totally agree with you. Taffy is safer in her crate right now - despite her frustration. I hope you figure it all out. I can tell you, I had a crate hater. It did not get better overnight, so hang in there. But it DID get better!



My previous post should have said 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. Sorry about that. I did that with Shala. I'd walk out on to the street and time it. I worked up to walking to the Starbucks on the corner. I also had a puppy cam, so I could watch and listen to her, and I saw that having something safe to chew was very helpful to her. It was like she was using it to ease her upset. A large or extra large size Nylabone can be good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sophieanne
#12 ·
My lab had/has MAJOR separation anxiety. She barks if you walk outside without her. I honestly don’t know sometime soon how she’s not hoarse. Thankfully it’s a single family home in the country otherwise I think we’d be booted out of the neighborhood. She’s now the only dog, so it’s definitely heightened and...while it has gotten better with age...she still has her moments where I wonder why she’s barking after I’ve done a mental checklist. So I understand your plight.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top