While this is not necessarily the wrong way to proceed, it is incredibly important to be aware that
many dogs with separation anxiety also suffer from confinement anxiety.
Escape attempts
by dogs with separation anxiety are often extreme and can result in self - injury and household destruction, especially around exit points like windows and doors.
And, when
dogs with separation anxiety do such things as bark, chew up the doorframe, and pee on the rug, it can be easy to jump to the conclusion that they are behaving out of spite or are just being naughty — but they are not.
Similarly, I've worked
on dogs with separation anxiety, compulsive behaviors, fear biting problems, aggression problems (aggression isn't the same as fear biting), dominance problems, and so on.
Rescue remedy, a combination of five flower essences, is often used to
calm dogs with separation anxiety and to help dogs that have been rescued from shelters, puppy mills, or abusive owners.
Behavior Modification Is Important
for Dogs With Separation Anxiety First and foremost, if you're not sure your dog is suffering from separation anxiety, contact your veterinarian for a definite diagnosis.
So each time you are doing practice departures, you can use an associated cue or marker to signal this fact and then, once you have worked up practice departures to a time frame of around one to two hours (during which most
dogs with separation anxiety typically have issues), you can use the cue during actual departures to function to «bridge» from practice to actual departures.