How To Confirm If Your Dog Has Separation Anxiety

Everyone gets a little bit of anxiety occasionally, even our pets, but what happens when it spirals into more than the usual?

Your pet may give you those doe eyes when you leave the house, and you already know you’re going to come home to destruction. A lot of animals use destruction in a way to let those pent-up emotions out.

How can you discern whether they’re just being rambunctious pups or if there’s something deeper going on?

There are a few indisputable signs and symptoms of separation anxiety in dogs; let’s take a look at a few of them.

Urination and Defecation

It’s no surprise when a pet has an accident, you have to clean up when you get home, but you may have a problem with your hand when it happens excessively.

Some dogs have anxiety from when they were much smaller, which follows them into “adulthood” as a bad habit. Typically you’ll see dogs soil their crate when the owner is gone.

In some rare cases, the dog will eat the feces—this is called coprophagia.

The main thing to pay attention to here is whether or not the pet does this in the owner’s presence. If they do, it’s not separation anxiety.

Dog

Excessive Barking

Some breeds bark more than others, but some dogs bark for long periods when their owners leave due to separation anxiety. Some pet owners report their dogs will bark for 30 minutes or longer after their departure (reported by neighbors).

Suppose your dog doesn’t typically bark, but they do when left alone. In that case, this is a clear indication of separation anxiety as a trigger.

Chewing and Other Destructive Behaviors

If you have a pup, especially a new puppy, you know how destructive they can be when they’re teething. This is a huge reason many choose to create their pets when they leave the house.

It’s like those movies you see when the person comes home, and their home is covered in feathers from the couch ripped up! This is a strong possibility with a dog who is suffering from separation anxiety.

When pets with separation anxiety are left alone, they’ll chew baseboards, corners, or anything else that seems to catch their eye. This behavior often causes injury to their teeth, gums, and nails.

A destructive pet is no fun, that’s for sure, and it’s a significant cause for some pets ending up in shelters.

So what can we do about separation anxiety?

A Solution

Many people think they can try CBD for pets. Still, times are changing, with an increase in folks understanding how CBD works within the endocannabinoid system.

Furthermore, more people understand that all mammals have an endocannabinoid system. This system plays an essential role in some of the body’s primary functions, such as sleep, anxiety, stress, mood, pain, and much more.

For pets with separation anxiety, it produces full-body relaxation for them so they can mellow out and not get so worked up every time you leave the house.

There are many different types of products you can use to introduce your pet to CBD. Some of the most popular items are CBD tincture oils for pets, as well as treats.

Final Thoughts for Pet Owners

There’s no doubt that our pets are as much a part of our family as any other member. This is why it’s hard to see them develop something like separation anxiety because they ultimately want to be with the whole family—it’s their comfort zone.

Using CBD to alleviate your pet’s anxiety is a significant step towards enhancing their overall quality of life and getting them back to their happy state of mind.

Who knows, it may help calm your nerves too since you’ll have a more chill pup!