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I am struggling with my 11-month old female lab.
Whenever we let her outside, if she doesn't take care of business, she immediately turns around and whines at the door or the window where she knows we are. The funny thing is: she has her own way of letting us know they wants to go out, too, so it's not that we are forcing her to go when she doesn't want to. It has got to the point where we will open the door for her, she will take a half step and then look for you to follow. If you are not visible in process of walking out the door, she takes a step back and sits at the open door. If she knows you are not coming with her, she won't go out.
She is potty-trained. When she was a much younger pup, we used to walk around the yard with her and reward her with positive reinforcement and treats. She gets plenty of time in the yard with our children. She plays with them and explores. But it seems as if no one is out there with her, then she has absolutely no interest in it.
Even though she is potty trained, she has on rare occasion got so worked up about being left outside by herself that she forgets to go potty and then has an accident in the house.
I know this comment may not be well received, but I am firm of the belief that she is mature enough to be let out by herself and should be able to be left outside for a "reasonable" amount of time (10 minutes) without having a coronary.
I don't know if she developed any trauma as a pup? We picked her up at 8-weeks from a loving family. She was born on a farm and spent an even split of time between inside the house, the yard, and out in a heated garage.
Is this classic separation anxiety, or does she have a fear of something? My wife insists she is a pup and I need to be more understanding, but I am getting frustrated.
Whenever we let her outside, if she doesn't take care of business, she immediately turns around and whines at the door or the window where she knows we are. The funny thing is: she has her own way of letting us know they wants to go out, too, so it's not that we are forcing her to go when she doesn't want to. It has got to the point where we will open the door for her, she will take a half step and then look for you to follow. If you are not visible in process of walking out the door, she takes a step back and sits at the open door. If she knows you are not coming with her, she won't go out.
She is potty-trained. When she was a much younger pup, we used to walk around the yard with her and reward her with positive reinforcement and treats. She gets plenty of time in the yard with our children. She plays with them and explores. But it seems as if no one is out there with her, then she has absolutely no interest in it.
Even though she is potty trained, she has on rare occasion got so worked up about being left outside by herself that she forgets to go potty and then has an accident in the house.
I know this comment may not be well received, but I am firm of the belief that she is mature enough to be let out by herself and should be able to be left outside for a "reasonable" amount of time (10 minutes) without having a coronary.
I don't know if she developed any trauma as a pup? We picked her up at 8-weeks from a loving family. She was born on a farm and spent an even split of time between inside the house, the yard, and out in a heated garage.
Is this classic separation anxiety, or does she have a fear of something? My wife insists she is a pup and I need to be more understanding, but I am getting frustrated.