My Mini Schnauzer scratches everything. Is he anxious or sad?

Question

My 8 yr old male Mini Schnauzer is scratching the laminated floors, doors, carpeting. I have a 7 yr old female mini so I try to give him a lot of attention as he seems to need it. I try to ignore it as I don't want him to get attention for doing negative things. He will stop if I tell him to, looks at me and then just continues. His tail is down and he seems so sad. Today I had to put him in his crate as he was really doing it a lot. I've closed doors to rooms, baby gated the stairs. Pet's info: Dog | Miniature Schnauzer | Male | neutered | 8 years and 7 months old | 18 lbs

Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA · Accepted Answer

Poor Remy! It sounds like he's quite unhappy for some reason. Behavior like this can be caused by anxiety, stress, boredom, or can even be a compulsive behavior in some cases. It's important to figure out the underlying problem causing him to do this in order to treat it effectively. I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist for an in-person evaluation of Remy - he/she can help you understand why this is happening and give you a step-by-step plan to address the behavior. Medication may also be helpful if the problem is stress or anxiety-related. In the meantime, I would suggest providing him with plenty of things to do so that he isn't so tempted to scratch things. Bully sticks, cow or pig ears, rawhide chews, or puzzle toys such as a Kong toy stuffed with peanut butter can often be helpful to help keep him busy and encourage him to settle. You can also try a DAP pheromone collar along with a natural calming supplement like Zylkene or Composure to see if this helps.

My Mini Schnauzer scratches everything. Is he anxious or sad?

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