My puppy cries and chews when left alone. Is it separation anxiety?

Question

I've had my puppy for about a month now, he was living at a farm before with his pet family. He is a very well behaved dog and learns fast. The only issue we are having is leaving him alone at home. When alone he cries and howls non stop. Isn't interested in treats or bones and chews up what he can around him. We left a camera on when we had to leave for 4 hours and he cried the whole time. We have tried leaving just for a few minutes at a time but he isn't getting used to it. Please help. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Male | unneutered | 8 months and 17 days old | 36 lbs

Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA · Accepted Answer

Poor Diesel! This sounds like fairly severe separation anxiety, especially if he's too distressed to eat food or treats while you're gone. I would strongly recommend talking with your veterinarian about the problem, as most dogs with this degree of anxiety will need prescription medication (at least for a while) in order to make any headway. If your veterinarian isn't comfortable dealing with behavior cases, you can ask for referral to a veterinary behaviorist who can discuss a training plan to work on this issue as well as medication options to help your puppy. In the meantime, you can try a DAP pheromone diffuser as well as a natural calming supplement like Zylkene or Composure to help a bit with his anxiety. It's not likely that these measures will be enough to resolve the problem on their own, but they may help to make him a little more comfortable until you are able to see your vet for a more comprehensive plan.

My puppy cries and chews when left alone. Is it separation anxiety?

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