Separation anxiety in 12 week old sos

[Webbie2160]

Separation anxiety in a 12 week old imported Dutch shepherd puppy, I've tried all the tricks that I know but nothing has worked, it's been three weeks of constant screaming and I'm talking about screaming for hours straight, hates the crate and ex pen. Here's a list of things I've tried:
Got him on a schedule
Putting a blanket over the crate
Feeding him in the crate and ex pen
Lots of interactive toys and chews
Classical music
Anti bark box
Pheromone toy/smell
A calming chew
Putting a shirt and blanket that smells like me in the crate and ex pen
Extra blankets and no blankets
Frozen carrots for teething/boredom
Playing with him/exercise
Changing crates styles

The only thing I haven't tried is putting a ticking clock in his bed with him and having him next to my bed.
So any tips or tricks would be great as sleep deprivation takes over

[Steve Gossmeyer]

My puppies always are crated next to my bed... this way of they have to go out in the middle of the night I don't sleep through it and wake up to piss... but it also helps with keeping them quiet... I cover them with a blanket at night and if they cry I tap the top of the crate with a shoe or something and don't say anything... that works with some dogs and not others.. welcome to crate training a drivey working dutch shepherd... this is very common and what you deal with with a working dutchie... the dog simply isn't content being on his own yet... with patience he will learn and enjoy it... try training him to get in and out of the crate with food and make a game of it.. at first let him out right away then expand that time from 10 seconds to over night... if the dog believes he is going to be let out he will eventually settle down and realize you are coming back... btw this isn't separation amxiety... its pack drive dogs don't sleep alone in a crate in the wild they sleep with their pack.. instincts dictate this behavior not human mental disorders

[Dutchringgirl]

Ditto what Steve said. All of mine sleep in my room. I had Sadie in a crate next to my bed and pretty much did what Steve said to do. I had some sleep deprived nights but it ends.

[oddbird]

How long have you had your pup for? Crate training, just like any other training, takes time depending on the dog so it could just be that not enough time/consistency has passed. I’ve crate trained 4 dogs so far (not many, but I don’t do this for a living lol so these have all been pets) and I’ve only had 1 take to it straight away. Eventually they all got to the point where they would go in their crates for naps. The key was figuring out each one as an individual.

[Webbie2160]

Thanks so much for all your replies! This is my first working pup I got my last dutchie when she was 10 months old so I got to skip the joys of crate training, he has been with us for just over 3 weeks now and I don't expect him to be fully crate trained I was just concerned because he screams for hours and hours without stopping (you'd think he needed to breathe every once in a while but no lol). We are going to try putting him next to my bed tonight and see how that goes, he has no issue being in a crate when we are traveling in the car. I tried putting him in the ex-pen with my female GSD but he was not having that either.

[Steve Gossmeyer]

Dogs need to learn independence..... if hes with you all day then you crate him hes going to freak out.... he needs crated more than just at night and train. .think about it what happens to wild dogs when they get separated from the pack? They die they cant survive on their own... this is an instinct that still exist in domestic dogs... if you dont teach him independence from you and spend every waking moment together then the dog will never settle down... keep trying or try what I suggested above

[Dutchringgirl]

Steve is right. My sadie was a rescue and never had propper mom learning time, and bonded right to my other DS, she was way too bonded and cant even go outside alone. She is very high drive. My thalie is very secure and independent. Crate even if you are home, crate when you are cleaning so they learn to be away from you even if you are home.

[Susannah]

My pup is never crated. Solely because its law In here, u cannot crate them. So she is free In the house when alone. Works fine, room To roam. Puppyproof house is, and i monitor him via cam.

U talked lot about things u have done, but, have u done any training? I am taking about puppy is free, u go toilet, shut the door, wait until he is calm, Come back. Ignore it everytime, no petting etc, just go behind Doors, Come back.

This is educating, puppy knows u Come back.

Important is, never Come back when whining or scratching door etc.

I really dont under stand crating at all. Fine, In the car, but home also? Its like huntdog on a leash at the same spot day after day. And with high drive dogs.

If illness demands crating, then is okay here too short time. Otherwise u get animal law people on ur door.

My puppy is 8 weeks old, when i turn Off the Light and go bedroom To sleep, he follow, and sleeps next To my bed. Today she woke me up at 9 morning, so we went outside for pee and poo. I May Be Lucky, but he has Steel nerves.

[ladyjubilee]

I find it very odd that there would be a law against crating. What was the rationale for a law against crates?

I usually crate my dogs (though oddly not Bramble) because I want rescue workers can get to the dogs in event of fire or other problem. I worry the dogs would and not come to a worker in fire gear.

[Dutchringgirl]

My pup is never crated. Solely because its law In here, u cannot crate them.

Where are you that there is a law? There is nothing wrong with crating when done properly and for the right reasons. Dogs love a "cave". It is their place and they like it. Mine go in their crates when they want and will nap there. I put them in when I go out for safety as well. My crates are plenty big for them to move around of they want. Its also very safe in the car too.

[Susannah]

Finland. Yes, forbidden it is here.

[Susannah]

Finnish law states than an animal can be in a crate only for “transportation, illness or other temporary and acceptable reason”. And if you want to keep your dog in an enclosed space while you’re at work, you have to follow strict and roomy guidelines – for example, a Labrador would need an enclosure approximately 37 square foot (in the US, the ASPCA asks a crate be large enough “so that your dog can lie down comfortably, stand up without having to crouch and easily turn around in a circle”).

And couple articles about crating, involves good tricks also, if u wanna try something New.

https://amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyl ... -pet-abuse

https://www.petforums.co.uk/threads/cra ... nd.417358/

And the last, my fafourite for u all To read. How are dogs living In Finland, cause many Will be wondering how, when no crates, etc.

https://www.thisdogslife.co/from-no-cra ... nland/amp/

[Dutchringgirl]

Finland. Yes, forbidden it is here.

wow, do you know why? I agree though that the containment areas should allow them to move around.

[Susannah]

This article is the same everyone say In here Finland. So May Be that these studies are behind this law.

https://www.peta.org/about-peta/why-peta/crating-dogs/


So the 37 sguare foot is like More than 2meters heigh and To wight space.

I watched the law and it states that the height of the Cage must Be at least ur dogs widgh from nose To tail tip x2. So very high, same goes To width.

Well, dunno. The training here is also very, very strictly stated and lots of animal activists also, if u crate ur dog neighbours May call Police and there goes the dog, u get To Be forbidden To Take animals and fines u get also.

There are people Who do it still and its fine for very short time.

Law states that if the Cage is as pictured, and u keep dog there for exbl workday, the dog must get out from the Cage once In 2 hours. Soso.. Impossible, really.

But i have no intention for Cage, yes, there are pee, carpets are Off, wires are taken Off when puppy is alone, there are nothing he can eat and die, at least easily. And housebreaking here means u train the puppy. U teach what To eat, where not touch etc. U can put pepper somewhere if just want To chew it. U walk through Doors and train being alone.

And so it is, my 8 week old puppy watches as i leave, eats his treats, goes To sleep. No destruction whatsoever or whining. So this works also, there i thought, if combined both methods, would Be ideal.

Oh and there are researches: people Who crate tend To say dogs love it cause its like den. But In here there are those studies that show that ok, dog is guite far from Wolf, but even puppy wolfes abandon their den eventually. Maybe from that.

[ladyjubilee]

Very odd. Like a lot of dogs, our dogs have all used their crates as a retreat. I agree leaving a dog in the crate 9 hours is cruel. But then leaving a dog in a house for 9 hours is cruel.

I don't know though, Carolina Dogs, the actual "breed" not just local dogs , dig dens all the time. I wonder if other primitive dogs do the same. Don't feral dogs seek out some form of den?

All of our dogs use crates, and don't seem to mind at all. Bramble's crate doesn't even close (she tore the door), but ever night when my son says night night she walks back in there to go to bed and stays there till I go get her to go out in the morning. After her potty break, she'll often go back into snooze while she waits for him to get up.

[Susannah]

Well, lapland reindeer dog is very primitive breed, does not dig any dens at all.
Cattledog is also primitive, and own dingo blood, but no, dont dig dens.
Canaan dog i have seen here couple many times, very, very old breed, no, wont dig any dens.
So dunno.

he sleeps already

And yes, the bed of the dog is the own place. Or blanket, its a signal To relax and lay down. Usefull exbl toko when u need 100% calmness and focus from dog, and he needs To wait his turn.
In home, its the place To go when wanting To Be alone, and no one goes To disturb.
Our blanket is on the bacground of the pic

But for the guestion of learning To calm down, first and most easy is, when puppy is having tantrum, teething, running wildly all over place, u pick him up. If on the lap he resist, biting, whining etc, you harden ur hold, it should feel the pressure, but wont Hurt so. And when calms down, loose the pressure, at start wait 5 sec, if still calm, let him free. And repeat.

Very used method here with puppy. U guys use these?

[ladyjubilee]

I haven't had a puppy in the house for a long time because most of my dogs came from the shelter or rescues, and I like older dogs . But I don't know if I would pick up an over excited dog. My instinct would be not to reward the behaviour and redirect, then reward once the dog is calm. But I'm probably the worst at dog training on the forum.

I wonder if we are using the word "den" differently. Dingoes do den.

It's interesting how various cultures view common concepts. In Scotland people leave their dogs out in front of stores while they shop. Some are leashed, but others just sit, even without noticable command. I don't really know of anywhere in the US that would be ok. Most places have a leash laws, but even if there isn't a leash law, someone just might assume you dog was lost or cruelly abandoned.

[Susannah]

In Finland is common To leave ur dog out when u go buy groceries. There are even places for To put leash on. And some places There are dog cages with Keys so u can put ur poodle there while u shop.

[Dutchringgirl]

. My instinct would be not to reward the behaviour and redirect, then reward once the dog is calm.

Yes ^^^^^^^^^

[Susannah]

If u are saying that is bad To teach dog To calm down In a lap, whole Finland is wrong. That is the Basic first. Thin is To nicely show that nice things happen when calm. I think thats crucial To learn like that.
I really so think that dog would think, if In the Cage long times, that nice things happen when he gets out. Also definitely energy lvl high cause no room To sniff or roam solo. 8 hours is long time. But, people taught differently, its fairly interesting how different method are depending the country.

We do not use cages for them or To put them In them when situation needed, we train them so we can live without cages.


Oh, and rewarding. No, she Will not have rewards on her calm down mat no. Definit no. Calm down mat purpose is To calm down, and not To care distractions. If rewarding there, she is waiting reward there-anxious.
Its the Point of whole relax training method. Once getting free command, gets treat and training.
Also that helps at home, u dont need To treat dog when he goes there, and even with many guests he has place To stay calm.