My Dog Is Going 2 make me go mad!!

[PerfectLittleAngel]

When ever i leave the house i lock up my dog in my room. (i have to other wise he will destore the house!!) And he Goes MAD!!! HE barks and barks and crys and runs around. Is he scared? And once he came to the point were he chewed some of my door off!!!
I always come back to the house i never leave him there and i dont know what to do!! He has been doing this since 2 years ago!!

HELP!!!

[Cincy'sMom]

Sounds like your dog has seperation anxiety. Start by ignoring your dog about 10 minutes before you leave and about 10 min after you get home. Don't make a big deal out of your coming or going. When you get home he will probabally try to get your attention. Ignore him. It will be hard, I promise! When he calms down, then greet him calmly.
Second, do you give him lots of tos to play with? Maybe a Kong with PB in it to keep him occupied?
When you are home with him, wear him out!! take him for long walks, play with him, get him pooped!!!
One other thing to try, maybe some background noise, like TV or Radio?

Welcome to Pet talk and good luck!!!

[Dixieland Dancer]

It definitely sounds like seperation anxiety. There are many really good previous posts on this subject. Do a search on seperation anxiety and follow the advice offered there. It is a problem that can be corrected but it takes time and patience.

[Goochina & Goochissimo]

My Odie was the SAME WAY. For over a year, we struggled trying to find a way to keep him from being so upset when we are away at work. He is 4 years old, and had been bounced from home to home because of this -- no one would keep him. :( We tried everything, but he was just SOOO destructive. Outside, he would dig out of the yard and escape. It was terrible, and we were at our wit's end. He was spending his days chained to a tree in the backyard while we were away, and was still barking his head off until our neighbors were about to KILL us.

We tried all kinds of suggestions for containing him in the yard, got him lots of exercise, went through morning goodbye rituals, avoided goodbye rituals, visited him at lunch, called and left messages on the machine for him, left tvs/radios on for him, bought all kinds of pillows and chewey toys and treats, ... anything anyone could suggest, we tried it and it DID NOT work for him.

One day we found a little dalmatian pup who was going to be euthenized if a home couldn't be found for him because he was deaf. And so, of course, our little Scout (aka Scooter) came home with us.

From that moment on, Odie has been a little angel. He helps keep Scout in line, and he NEVER gets separation anxiety. He no longer digs, barks, chews, etc. All of his problems were instantly corrected just by having a friend. :D Thank goodness!!!!

Anyway, I don't know what is practical for you, but that is my story and I thought I'd share.

[Vicki]

Star our german shepard started behaving this way too. Her previous owners spoiled her very much and was left outside when they left, we couldn't put her outside so we would leave her indoors and she was fine as long as she wasn't confined to a room. She got lock inside a bathroom once by accident and totally destroyed it and managed to tear up the carpet in the hall way. Now we leave her in her dog bed and she's completely fine. If your dog is small enough you may want to try crating, if you haven't already. Maybe that will work.