# Help with crying/whining dog while at work



## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

So I'm starting a new job in the next couple weeks where I'm going to have to work nights (3PM - 11PM. Yesterday I went in to my new job around 5 for some training (before I actually start full time) and when I got back after my training, I had a some complaints from the people in the upstairs apartment that Lucy was crying, whining, and barking the entire time while I was gone. I left her in her kennel which she usually doesn't have any problem with with plenty of her favorite toys.

I haven't been working lately so ive been able to spend A LOT of time with Lucy (11 months old) lately so I'm guessing it was just some separation anxiety while I was gone. It couldn't have been a bored dog because of lack of exercise because she got plenty yesterday before I left. She got about an hour and a half at the dog park of running around with other dogs and right before I left i brought her to another park for about an hour of fetch so she definitely had plenty of excercise before I left. 

What I'm worried about before I start this job full time is if she's always going to be like this because if she is it's going to be an issue with the people upstairs. She was crying the entire time i was gone (so i was told) and that has to get annoying after a while for anyone. Does anyone have any experiece with this?


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## WiscTiger (Sep 25, 2002)

Leave a Radio or TV on. Get the DAP plug in to put near her crate or try one of the calming complexes.

Oh and make sure she has plenty of excercise during the day and before you go to work.

Val


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## Rhena (Jan 30, 2009)

I am by NO means an expert (my four month old is my first GSD), but we've been having a similar problem with her crying, whining, and even barking while she's in her crate and especially when I'm gone. I work from home so I'm with her A LOT. From what I've read, GSDs are exceptionally social dogs and have a hard time being alone. Our Juno is slowly getting better at being on her own (at her worst she pooped in her crate when she was alone for less than half an hour -- thankfully it only happened once but we're pretty sure it was the anxiety of being left alone that caused it). 

Here are some of the things that we've read about here and in other dogcentric resources that we've done to address the problem:

-Put her in her crate even when we're home.
-Praise her for going in her crate of her own accord.
-Short trips out of the house (five, ten minutes) with her in her crate and gradually increasing the amount of time.
- Not making a big deal of our departure or arrival. When I get back home, I often leave her in her crate for a while as I settle in, just so she doesn't get overly excited each time I return. 
- Throw a really nice treat into her crate that she has to work to get at to distract her while we're gone (like a bone or Kong packed with peanut butter and other treats). Every now and again she's too stressed to even work on that but as she's able to enjoy them, they make her look forward to us being gone!
- Lots of rides in the car. As I run errands, I have her in the backseat. This way, when I run into the store or bank or wherever, she's in the back alone for brief periods. She's starting to learn that I'll always come back. (Plus, I can sometimes pull her out of the car for a little socialization in the parking lot or wherever.)
- She'd love to follow me from room to room, but now sometimes when I'm just leaving a room to get some water or use the bathroom, I close her in there by herself. Similar to the car, she's learning that I'll always come back and that sometimes it's just not worth it for her to follow me around. 


Last night we were able to leave her for over three hours at a time of day when we're usually both with her. She didn't cry or bark when we left and she was just calmly sitting there when we got back. We have no idea what she did while we were gone since we live in a house, but she seemed to be fine! It's been a lot of work, but it's paying off. 

Good luck with it! Your dog is a cutie!


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

I was thinking I'd try xanax like that lady did with her chimpanzee, but the DAP plug sounds like it's worth a try too. Any suggestions on good brands.. don't know too much about them.

As for the exercise, will do, but she did get plenty of that before I left and she was still crying. She got about 2.5 hours of it in a 4 hour period, but i'll make sure to do what I can before leaving. 

Do you think she will eventually get better and not cry after time? This dog loves her routines and me leaving like i did for such a long time was definitely out of her normal routine.


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## Brightelf (Sep 5, 2001)

Yes! Apartment dweller here. Here's my advice:

Take ALL of her toys OUT of her crate! She can, and will, chew on and break something and choke/swallow. Plus-- you want her to SLEEP.









I would myself personally say: do NOT leave the radio or TV on. Less stimulation the better, and she may just want to sleep without advertizements suddenly getting louder, etc.

Time to go to the store, the post office, visit a friend? Practice calm, boring, dull. Be as boring as that guy from Ferris Buehller's Day Off: "Anyone.....anyone.....anyone...."







Really. Make your leavibgs-- not just to work, but to anywhere you go, even just a quick trip shopping-- BORING. Calm, Dull, Lackluster. How? "Bye, Lucy. Be good." deadpan expression. Calm voice. No petting, cooing, cuddling, tossing treats, toys, etc etc.. just be absolutely DEAD C-A-L-M. She will pick up the nice calm sleepy boring vibe-- and settle sooner.

Got nice neighbors directly across the hall or nextdoor? Great! Ask them to give you an HONEST update of how well Lucy is progressing, since your new boring, dull, calm exit techniques have started. Why ask the closer neighbors? So you can see how good you are doing at being boring







and also see if it is true that she is crying still "the whole time."

And at 11 months, here's the kicker-- she is NOT tired enough after those two park experiences. Tire her BRAIN out-- sits and downs on the grass... stays and comes on rough gravel... more sits and downs on an elevated surface like a picnic table.. wow.. her brain, on all these surfaces and elevations at the park, the neighborhood high school, etc etc will have lots to process as she snoozes your shift away.


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Hi there. Both Rafi and Kai had major (Rafi) to moderate (Kai) separation anxiety. Unless you have dealt with this firsthand, it's hard to understand and some of the things you have to do to remedy it seem counter-intuitive. Patricia McConnell has this short booklet that explains SA, how to tell if your dog really has it and gives step by step instructions on how to counter-condition your dog to get over it. I followed this with Rafi and it worked 100%. It took about 7 weeks. It can take anywhere from 3 to 16 weeks, depending on how severe the case of SA your dog has. 

In Lucy's case I'd guess it's a minor case and probably comes from you being home with her all of the time or her not being used to being home alone at night so it should be relatively easy to fix. Things like the DAP spray (works better than the plug-in) and Rescue Remedy work for some dogs to help them relax. 

You definitely need to make the crate a happy place if it isn't already. Sometimes it's as simple as redoing crate training and there are good suggestions above on that. With dogs who have crate anxiety I also feed them in the crate and give bones and things that can only have in their crate when I am home as well as when I am gone. 

1) If they really have SA then it doesn't matter how tired they are because the anxiety will still be there. This was certainly the case for Rafi.

2) If they really have SA then it is VERY stressful for them to be separated from you so in addition to being annoying to your neighbors it is really not good for your dog either. 

3) You need to slowly acclimate them to being home alone. First you need to identify the thing that triggers them to your leaving. It might be putting on your shoes, grabbing your keys, brushing your hair, etc. but you will notice that whenever you do that thing (or sometimes a combination of things) your dog will begin to exhibit anxious behaviors. Once you figure that out you should do the thing or things and give them a really, really special treat (like a bone to chew) and then go sit down. Once you've got it so they start to associate the leaving signals with something positive you can start going out but only do it for a few minutes at a time. As someone said above, make your comings and goings very neutral. Don't be mean but don't make a big deal out of it. As long as your dog is ok you can gradually increase the length of time that you're gone. Honestly, since dog's don't have the same sense of time that we do, once you get past the half hour point your dog will probably be ok with any length of time. 

Hope this helps!


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Thanks for all the advice, I appreciate it. When I used to work my job during the day (typical 9-5), there wasnt any problems with her being in her kennel. I'd put her in the kennel when i'd leave in the morning and she'd just sleep or play with her toys. I'd come home mid day for lunch to play a little and let her out and back to work i'd go until 5. I'd put a kong stuffed with pumpkin or PB when i left and it would be cleaned out by the time I got back. I'd also never hear any complaints about her crying. She was doing that routine pretty much her whole life and was pretty much used to it.

Now with my new job, it's going to be a whole new situation with me being away and I want to make the transition as smooth as possible for both Lucy and my neighbors. I'll try the DAP spray, but hopefully that's only temporary because the stuff seems expensive. Of course I'll continue to exercise. Hopefully she adjusts.


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