A New Book by Chad Culp
Chad Culp’s new book, Separation Anxiety: Leaving Dogs Home Alone, helps dogs who suffer from separation anxiety by cluing their people into the problem and by suggesting ways to solve it. Below is an excerpt from its introduction. The book is available at Chad’s website, thrivingcanine.com.
Dogs left alone and unsupervised can wreak havoc on homes and gardens. I’ve seen couches and carpets destroyed, door frames chewed to pieces, sheetrock eaten through, sprinkler systems ripped from the ground, car interiors torn to shreds…you name it. And this is just the damage to property. What about the noise these uneasy dogs can make? Screams of pain and anguish coming from your home the likes of which the world has never known. Animal welfare groups come pounding on the door, “Excuse me, but we’ve received some complaints about animal abuse at this address. Do you mind if we have a look around?” How embarrassing!
Seriously though, people do get embarrassed and neighbors can file complaints, but worse than all of the destruction and strange looks from the family living next door is the strong likelihood that dogs may actually injure themselves. The desperate attempts dogs make to escape often result in grief, guilt and, yes, even vet bills.
“What in the world is going on with these dogs?” It could be Separation Anxiety.
Separation Anxiety: noun, sep·a·ra·tion anx·i·e·ty
A form of anxiety experienced by a young child and caused by separation from a significant nurturant figure (and typically a parent) or from familiar surroundings. –Merriam-Webster
As a Certified Professional Dog Trainer and Behavior Consultant, I would add to the definition above and say that it is not limited to humans. Dogs can also suffer from separation anxiety and more frequently than you might think.
At any given time, I can take a look at my upcoming appointments to find that nearly 25% of the humans requesting my training services have, or at least think they have, a dog with separation anxiety. That’s one out of four dogs on my schedule! Holy smokes! Can it really be that much of an epidemic?
Perhaps, but keep in mind that not all noisy or destructive behavior exhibited by dogs is due to separation anxiety. In reality, only about half the people I see who think they have a case of separation anxiety on their hands actually do, but that is still more than one in ten clients, and definitely enough to warrant some attention.
This book is designed to help you figure out if your dog actually does have separation anxiety and, if so, what you can do to get your dog to feel better about being home alone.
Chad Culp is a certified dog trainer, behavior consultant, and owner of Thriving Canine: Dog Training Services. He travels the Bay Area doing behavior consultations and conducts obedience and non-competitive agility classes in Gilroy and Morgan Hill. To contact him, email chad@thrivingcanine.com.
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