Separation Anxiety?

Behavioral Issues
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  • N

    Aries is getting very attached to us, which is great.

    The person who had her in foster told us that she would pee on the bed, on the couch, and on dog beds. We haven't run into much of this (knock on wood).

    What we have noticed so far is that the only time Aries pees on the bed is if we leave and take Katie with us.

    If we leave all 3 dogs, or only take Petey, she is fine. But if we leave her and Petey and take Katie, she pees on the bed.

    We haven't taken Petey and Katie and left her alone with no other dogs yet.

    We figure we will just crate her if she is left without Katie in the future, but I am still curious.

    Is this a type of separation anxiety? Has anyone ever seen a pattern like this before?

    -Nicole

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  • lvossL

    It is possible.

    What is her relationship with Katie like? Does the length of the trip matter?

    Since the behavior is fairly localized, you could probably set up a camera to catch it on tape.

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  • tanzaT

    She is an older girl… so "marking" could be part of her make up... you might want to talk to her breeder, Linda Elhers and ask about that. It is not that abnormal for a bitch to mark their territory... and I would suggest if you can close off that room, that might resolve the problem

    And you have to keep in mind that some bitches will just mark.. it is not spite peeing (as I don't believe in that at all), but just marking territory... so if you limit the area that is being marked, you might get the desired results

    Pat Fragassi

    Tanza Basenjis

    www.tanzabasenjis.net

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  • agilebasenjiA

    Hmmmm, Jet the try-ing (who is kin to Aries) does this nonsense. If it's been a while since he's been out (say like 2 hours) and I go outside to the freezer and come right back in (it's in a detached garage), he'll mark. He will also mark sometimes based on things only known to him. I ususally just manage the behavior.

    Yet another reason I call him "the try-ing". Try-ing, not just a color.

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  • N

    Regarding their relationship, Aries and Katie get along pretty well as long as there is nothing to resource guard around. But, they also both have resource guarding tendencies, and will guard food, toys, bones, and me from each other, from Petey and from the cats. No guarding directed toward humans from either of them (knock on wood).
    So they only get supervised play with toys, and they are fed in separate rooms, and anyone who snarks while being petted loses the petting, but they get treats AND petting when they are calm close together while being petted.

    When I am giving out treats, they sit together fine, and when there is nothing to guard, they will sleep together on the couch or bed, and cry if I take one and not the other.

    Linda said that if Aries was not the first one out in the AM, she would pee inside. We haven't run into this yet. As a matter of fact, Aries won't go out without at least one of the other dogs with her, but we always take them all out first thing in the AM

    My Petey marks the curtains (including shower curtain) or hanging blankets on the edge of the bed anytime a stranger comes to the door, so we are used to it. We just manage, and it doesn't really bother us too much.

    Like I said, we will probably just crate her when we leave with Katie in the future. Aries likes the crates, and often chooses to nap in them, so crating won't be a problem. We just didn't bother since they haven't been destructive.

    I was just interested in how specific the peeing was. Only when we leave with Katie.

    Thanks for all the replies.

    -Nicole

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  • lvossL

    Has Aries had an eye exam in the last year or so?

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  • N

    It's too funny that you mention that!
    I am going with Karla to a CERF clinic in a few weeks, where Willow and Kita will have their pre-breeding CERF exams, and just yesterday I mentioned to my husband that I thought Maybe Aries should go to an ophthalmologist, and I wondered if I could take her to the CERF clinic. I hadn't looked into it yet, because I just thought of it yesterday.
    What made you ask?

    -Nicole

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  • lvossL

    That she doesn't want to go outside unless another dog goes out with her.

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  • N

    I'm not sure what made me think she needed to see an ophthalmologist. It was just a gut feeling that struck me yesterday as I was looking at her.

    I'm going to have to look into it more.

    • Nicole
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  • QuercusQ

    IMO, this sounds like marking. Since you and the other dogs are gone she might think 'oooh, I really like this bed, and now is the time to mark it as mine' I would venture to guess that it is an adjustment thing, and she will stop when she feels comfortable of her place in the pack, and that she gets to keep all the stuff she likes.

    Think of it as her way of saying "I belong here" :)

    Andrea Walters

    Quercus Basenjis

    NW Ohio

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  • NemoN

    @nkjvcjs:

    I'm not sure what made me think she needed to see an ophthalmologist. It was just a gut feeling that struck me yesterday as I was looking at her.

    I'm going to have to look into it more.

    • Nicole

    I've taken Nemo to that same eye doc and I really liked her and I'm planning to take Zoni to her in the future. And as Karla said, this eye doc knows basenjis, so it sounds like an good time to do it if you can. Plus, I think it's a little cheaper too when you do it at the CERF clinics versus an office visit.

    Connect with the Basenji Club of America on Facebook

    http://www.facebook.com/basenji.org

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  • N

    @Quercus:

    IMO, this sounds like marking. Since you and the other dogs are gone she might think 'oooh, I really like this bed, and now is the time to mark it as mine' I would venture to guess that it is an adjustment thing, and she will stop when she feels comfortable of her place in the pack, and that she gets to keep all the stuff she likes.

    Think of it as her way of saying "I belong here" :)

    Awww. She does belong here. We love her so much.

    This makes sense. Petey is a very, very submissive dog, so waiting until Katie is gone, but he is still there to mark makes sense.

    -Nicole

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  • S

    So, could you do what I do, when I leave the house, the b's are blocked out of most of the rooms and they have their 2 beds and blankets in our computer room…where they nest until we get home.
    Just a thought.

    Sharron Hurlbut

    BRAT, basenji rescue

    Evergreen basenji club

    Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue

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  • Shaye's MomS

    Your situation sounds like mine was, when we had only Shaye. She had a serious case of separation anxiety and the minute we tried leaving, she would pee, wherever she was, along with screaming. Everyone told us to get her another b, and when we got Gemma, it was magic. So long as Gemma is with her, she is fine. Maybe Aries just feels more secure with Katie than with Petey. Is Petey less calm than Katie?

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    D
    He should adjust in time to losing his companion. However long that takes is questionable though and he will continue to be angry and feel neglected and reflect that anger with destruction just out of loneliness. It may improve with time and may not. You have to ask yourself is this fair for your dog? I would spend nearly all my time with him when I was home taking walks, etc. and if you can't do more than 2 hrs. it may be best to find a better home for him where he has a better environment. If his new home is a better place where there is a yard to run, and owners that can spend more time with him he will gradually accept the new home and owners. I know that is hard but may be the best. When your living situation improves you may think about owning another dog. Other than that, working 2 jobs leaves the dog alone too much to be fair so you need to get someone…the same person all the time... over to your apartment to spend time with him if you don't want to give him up. He can bond to that person and that will help the loneliness somewhat. If you decided to give him up, the new owners could come over frequently for walks and visits before you gave the dog to them so that the dog would consider them friends before adoption, that would help the dog transition. I would not give that dog to an inexperienced owner though. That could end in disaster. It will do the same things with the new owner although it should get over the transition quicker because it will be in a better environment. Also, was your husband the dog's leader? You now have to be a positive leader for him because it sounds like he lacks leadership.
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    I had a foster male one time who had severe separation anxiety (his previous owners were retired during his whole life so they were always with him) and even having another dog around didn't help - they rarely played together. He was in his crate while I went to work - toys galore, special treats in a kong, calming sprays, etc. - and I did the "you must calm down before being let out of the crate" routine when I came home. My other dog was in a nearby crate so they could see and talk to each other. But he continued to try and chew his way out of the crate (I can't rebend the steel bars that he bent with his teeth and he was already 11 years old!). I tried to disappear for longer and longer periods of time to try and get him acclimated to being loose in the house but if I was gone more than 20 minutes he would start clawing at the doors trying to get out, he tore down the blinds on the patio doors, he toppled lamps trying to get out of the window. I spent money on a behaviorist - who told me to do exactly what I was doing (a waste of money she was) and after several months he started biting me if I tried to put him in the crate. He was wonderful as long as I was around but the biting became too serious an issue. I cried when I took him back to the breeder (he ended up living out his days at her kennel) but I think that there are just some dogs and people combinations that simply don't work. If after several months things don't improve (and proper training has to be a component) one needs to reconsider the situation. In this case KMac I think you are doing the right thing by seeking experienced help and things do sound better. In your case some of the problems are simply puppy behavior so maybe if you have the time and money an obedience class might be in order to help give him some structure. You might also try getting a bigger crate so he has more crate room or maybe an exercise pen so he can more around a bit more and chase his toys and release some energy.
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