Hi,
I have two dogs Mum (Tally) aged 6 and her Son (Marley) aged 4.
I had a neighbour who said the dog howls a lot, and I thought it was strange because he hardly ever barks so I recorded him while I took his Mum out for a walk.
I can’t walk them both together because as everyone know Staffies are very strong.
Anyway to my amazement when I returned back I played the recording and there I heard the most heartfelt howling and whimpering, I was only gone for seven minutes, how can I prevent this?
He almost never barks or makes any noise when I’m there.
Kind regards,
Sy John Ewing, by email
It's quite a natural reaction. Marley is missing his mother and his owner because they are leaving to have fun away from him.
ReplyDeletePerhaps walk Marley first. This allows him to get some stimulation and exercise, which a good walk can provide. However, you may want to experiment with who gets to go for a walk first.
Rather than Marley howling and making that very particular Staffie noise, try and think of an alternative behaviour. How about a yummy Kong that he gets as you leave with Tally? You can fill a Kong with anything from his breakfast to yogurt or strips of bacon. Find something he loves. You want him associating you and Tally leaving with something fantastic. This addresses his emotional state and the eating and chewing gives him an alternative behaviour to howling. It's hard to chew and howl!
Providing you have a safe garden, another good way of keeping him busy, whilst you are out with Tally, is to scatter his dry food all over garden. This can be his breakfast. He will spend a good while hunting for the pieces and snuffling around. Even when he has found the last piece he will still be scenting for more! Ensure he can’t get out of the garden though so it maybe worth watching him for the first time you try this.
If the above fails call a qualified dog expert. You can find a good trainer via the APDT UK website.
Good Luck!
Sounds like it could be separation anxiety (SA), ideally you need to work through an individualised SA protocol drawn up by a qualified, registered behaviourist - try looking on the APBC website for your nearest member.
ReplyDeleteIt's quite a natural reaction. Marley is probably missing his mother and his owner because they are leaving to have fun away from him.
ReplyDeletePerhaps walk Marley first. This allows him to get some stimulation and exercise, which a good walk can provide. However, you may want to experiment with who gets to go for a walk first.
Rather than Marley howling and making that very particular Staffie noise, try and think of an alternative behaviour. How about a yummy Kong that he gets as you leave with Tally? You can fill a Kong with anything from his breakfast to yogurt or strips of bacon. Find something he loves. You want him associating you and Tally leaving with something fantastic. This addresses his emotional state and the eating and chewing gives him an alternative behaviour to howling. It's hard to chew and howl!
Providing you have a safe garden, another good way of keeping him busy, whilst you are out with Tally, is to scatter his dry food all over garden. This can be his breakfast. He will spend a good while hunting for the pieces and snuffling around. Even when he has found the last piece he will still be scenting for more! Ensure he can’t get out of the garden though so it maybe worth watching him for the first time you try this.
If the above fails call a qualified dog expert. You can find a good trainer via the APDT UK website.
Good Luck!