7 Week Old Puppy Separation Anxiety

14417 Views 18 Replies 8 Participants Last post by Independent George, Jun 3, 2009

skraw

Discussion Starter · Jun 1, 2009

We just brought home a new puppy last week. She was 6 weeks old when we got her home. After a couple days at our place, she started up with SEVERE separation anxiety. We have her in the kitchen with a baby gate when we're busy. If we leave her in the kitchen and go in the other room just feet away, she starts whining and screeching hysterically. She bites everything and drools a lot while panicking also. Even if she can see us in the living room, if we're not right next to her, she panics. It is a loud and hysterical panic, like a temper tantrum. We crate her at night when we sleep and she panics for about 15-25 minutes before settling down. If we crate her while we're in the room, she'll panic for over 45 minutes before settling down a little. We always make sure she is fed and has gone to the bathroom. We have been diligent about the baby gate and crate, but it is not getting much better. What should we do?!?!?!?!?

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HORSEandHOUND

· #2 · Jun 1, 2009

in my opinion she was taken from the litter WAY WAY too young and now she's having these anxiety attacks because of it.
a few things
~dont give attention to the bad behavior, ignore it, but the second she's quite go visit and praise praise praise! if you are running over and coddling her when she's distraught you are praising the behavior. this actually teaches her that being in panic is a good thing.
~leave her always with something that smells like you. go to the gym and get an old shirt good and sweaty/stinky, and then leave it for her in her den/crate.
~ DAP or comfort zone diffusers, sprays and collars do miracles in cases like this. I had a pup i fostered that was abandoned by its mother at 5 weeks and had the exact same issues you are experiencing. DAP was a total life saver. I could spray her bed in her crate and she was calm within 30 seconds. It is not a drug by the way, its a synthetic phermone that smells like momma dog when whelping. it calms puppies much like a security blankie calms a child.
~try playing with her for 20 minutes, then rest for 5 minutes, then give a meal, then crate. she'll be tired from the full tummy and exercise that she'll take a nap and relax. (hopefully)

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skraw

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jun 1, 2009

Yeah, we ignore the bad behavior, but man is it loud! I assume she was separated WAY too early as well. Poor thing. I will look into the DAP spray.

warandchaos

· #4 · Jun 1, 2009 (Edited)

Ignoring it is the best option most of the time, but in really young puppies who are taken from their mother too early it can cause problems.
It might sound weird but place a teddy and a ticking clock in her basket, this will simulate the mother and may calm her down.

It might not work, but it sounds like its atleast worth a try.

HORSEandHOUND said:
in my opinion she was taken from the litter WAY WAY too young and now she's having these anxiety attacks because of it.
a few things
~dont give attention to the bad behavior, ignore it, but the second she's quite go visit and praise praise praise! if you are running over and coddling her when she's distraught you are praising the behavior. this actually teaches her that being in panic is a good thing.
~leave her always with something that smells like you. go to the gym and get an old shirt good and sweaty/stinky, and then leave it for her in her den/crate.
~ DAP or comfort zone diffusers, sprays and collars do miracles in cases like this. I had a pup i fostered that was abandoned by its mother at 5 weeks and had the exact same issues you are experiencing. DAP was a total life saver. I could spray her bed in her crate and she was calm within 30 seconds. It is not a drug by the way, its a synthetic phermone that smells like momma dog when whelping. it calms puppies much like a security blankie calms a child.
~try playing with her for 20 minutes, then rest for 5 minutes, then give a meal, then crate. she'll be tired from the full tummy and exercise that she'll take a nap and relax. (hopefully)

This is good advice, id use a mixture of both mine and his.

jesirose

· #5 · Jun 1, 2009

That's not SA, that's VERY normal puppy behavior.

skraw

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jun 1, 2009

jesirose said:
That's not SA, that's VERY normal puppy behavior.

Well, this is EXTREME panic, I know puppies whine, but this is CRAZY! She foams at the mouth!

warandchaos

· #7 · Jun 1, 2009

jesirose said:
That's not SA, that's VERY normal puppy behavior.

skraw said:
Well, this is EXTREME panic, I know puppies whine, but this is CRAZY! She foams at the mouth!

Its not really normal behavior, its a little extreme.
They can be expected to do whine, moan, and cry, but this is a bit extreme.

jesirose

· #8 · Jun 1, 2009

It doesn't sound extreme. 15-20 minutes, even up to 45 of crying? Does not sound like anything more than puppy behavior. Especially considering this puppy was taken away too young.

warandchaos

· #9 · Jun 1, 2009

jesirose said:
It doesn't sound extreme. 15-20 minutes, even up to 45 of crying? Does not sound like anything more than puppy behavior. Especially considering this puppy was taken away too young.

Its usually quiet crying, this seems a bit loud to be considered normal.

skraw

Discussion Starter · #10 · Jun 1, 2009

Yes, it is panicking, not crying. She throws a fit. VERY loud.

TooneyDogs

· #11 · Jun 1, 2009

Puppies come with a hardwired survival instinct to stay close to the pack....this is not separation anxiety...it's survival. Even 8' away is like you're in the next county.
As puppies grow, they learn that being alone is OK but, that takes time.

As mentioned earlier, leaving the pup with something that has your scent on it is reassuring. Leaving the pup with a tasty treat like a Kong filled with peanut butter also helps. Giving praise for when the pup is quiet builds confidence.

warandchaos

· #12 · Jun 1, 2009

TooneyDogs said:
Puppies come with a hardwired survival instinct to stay close to the pack....this is not separation anxiety...it's survival. Even 8' away is like you're in the next county.
As puppies grow, they learn that being alone is OK but, that takes time.

As mentioned earlier, leaving the pup with something that has your scent on it is reassuring. Leaving the pup with a tasty treat like a Kong filled with peanut butter also helps. Giving praise for when the pup is quiet builds confidence.

They do need to feel the presence of someon there, thats why i suggested the teddy and a clock to simulate the heart beat.

skraw

Discussion Starter · #13 · Jun 1, 2009 (Edited)

Yeah, we're leaving a shirt or something with her. Is a little peanut butter OK for a 7 week old? We've tried treats, but she is not interested in anything except panicking.

warandchaos said:
They do need to feel the presence of someon there, thats why i suggested the teddy and a clock to simulate the heart beat.

Will try a clock to. Thanks.

HORSEandHOUND

· #14 · Jun 1, 2009

there's nothing wrong with a little peanut butter even at her age. its worth giving a try and see how her stool holds up. i would stay away from the popular brands and go with something more natural with no sugar added if it were me.
yogurt is another that's GREAT but a tad messy too and doesnt last as long as the peanut butter. you can take some of the kibble and grind it or smash it with a hammer, then mix it with the yogurt to make a paste like the peanut butter. I do not recommend this method for a dog kept alone for more than 5 hours because the yogurt needs refrigeration of course, and we dont want puppy getting sick from sour yogurt.

flipgirl

· #15 · Jun 1, 2009

At 7 weeks, a puppy goes through a fear stage and really needs his mommy. If you assumed that 6 weeks was too early,then why didn't you insist that they keep the puppy with the mommy for at least another 2 weeks? I know it's a little too late...

I would just do what the other posters have suggested but you will have to be patient. When you leave her alone, throw some treats in the baby gated area or in the crate so she associates good things with them. Hide treats in various places. Feed her in the crate or in the baby gated area. The main thing is to ignore the whining and rewarding the calm behaviour. So when she calms down, give her a treat. This will take some perseverance on your part.

Cracker

· #16 · Jun 2, 2009

The DAP is a great idea..it mimics the pheromones of the lactating mother and will help comfort the pup.
This pup should not have been removed from her mother before at the very least, 8 weeks...I usually recommend ten weeks. So, it appears you have started out behind the eight ball. And yes the previous poster was correct in that she was removed from her "starting" home right in the middle of her first fear period..so the trauma and anxiety are obvious and will not go away without treatment.
Get the DAP diffuser, it lasts longer (a month) than the spray and you don't have to do anything but plug it in.
Move her crate into the bedroom with you, she should not be alone in this new, scary environment at this time..when she's 8 or nine weeks you can try moving her out of the room and see how it goes. If you can, crate her or xpen her where you guys are as much as possible. She needs to learn to be calm, and it won't happen if she cannot see or smell you right now.
Use an umbilical lead to have her with you whenever you can but don't shower her with attention unless you are having "cuddle time" or training and play time..just let her be near you. Figure something out best you can.
The tips about the clock and shirt with your smell on it etc do help as well.

Good luck and please keep updating us..poor wee thing.

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skraw

Discussion Starter · #17 · Jun 2, 2009

flipgirl said:
At 7 weeks, a puppy goes through a fear stage and really needs his mommy. If you assumed that 6 weeks was too early,then why didn't you insist that they keep the puppy with the mommy for at least another 2 weeks? I know it's a little too late...

I would just do what the other posters have suggested but you will have to be patient. When you leave her alone, throw some treats in the baby gated area or in the crate so she associates good things with them. Hide treats in various places. Feed her in the crate or in the baby gated area. The main thing is to ignore the whining and rewarding the calm behaviour. So when she calms down, give her a treat. This will take some perseverance on your part.

Well, I didn't know 6 weeks was too young to be separated from her mother when I got her... I'm not a breeder. We didn't buy it from a breeder either. It was just a family who's dog had puppies. We're doing all these things mentioned in the forum, so I guess it's just a waiting game. We cannot move the crate into our room yet, If she can see us, but can't get to us, she will go for hours. If we're diligent will this subside with age?

jesirose

· #18 · Jun 2, 2009

Consistency is key. Also, listening for the silence is the other key.

Independent George

· #19 · Jun 3, 2009

If you're going to leave a clock, please be sure the alarm is off. I heard a story in college (meaning it's probably BS, but the point is still valid) of a family that forgot to disable the alarm, and wound up scaring the poor pup half to death.

I've heard that a hot water bottle wrapped in a pillowcase also helps. I've minimal experience with puppiess (usually just wrestling with them, feeding stinky treats, and then leaving a hyperactive pup with full bowels for the owners to deal with), so please take anything I say here with a grain of salt.

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