Customer Reviews

I'll be Home Soon: How to Prevent and Treat Separation Anxiety.

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My new puppy didn't have a full-blown case of SA. But she barked incessantly everytime I left her alone in the house, which needless to say drove the neighbors nuts. By following the techniques in this book, I was able to replace the habit of barking with the habit of chewing on a specific treat - a kong filled with peanut butter in her case - so that now she actually looks forward to my leaving the house. It wasn't a change that happened over night. It took about a month to train her, but it was well worth it. The advice in this book is incredible, but it does require patience, especially if your dog is already displaying behavioral problems (such as chewing on things in the house or barking).

I think this book is helpful for anyone who has guilty feelings when leaving their dog alone. Whether your dog has behavoiral problems or not, this book can give you advice on how to turn your daily departure from the house into a positive experience.

Patricia McConnell knows how little time many of us have which is why she makes this series of books only 30 or so pages long. She is direct and to the point to solve your training problem without lots of fluff and cute little dog stories. When we have a dog training issue very few of us have time to read a novel on how to solve it. I for one want to cut to the chase and start solving the problem right away. The methods used in this book are clear and easy to apply and they work. My dog has stopped destructive chewing when I'm away and is clearly much happier. Thank you Ms. McConnell (oh and Daisy my APBT thanks you too) A few reviewers gave these books a low rating because they are short. Amazon clearly indicates how many pages this book has and it's priced accordingly.

It pains me to give anything by Patricia McConnell less than 5 stars. However, after adopting my beagle mix, who turned out to have strong separation anxiety, this little volume was not immediately useful for my situation.

Key to this program is the ability to leave your dog with someone (or leave someone with your dog :) while working in the tiniest increments imaginable to desensitize (and perhaps counter-condition) your dog to your absence. Both leaving my dog with human company and counter-conditioning her (given her fear was so extreme she would not think of eating) did not work out for me. Thanks to the Web, I was able to find advice better suited to my circumstance. When I had no choice but to leave her for longer periods, I used one location. When I was actively working with her, I used a different location. I also implemented an "independence" program of rewarding any voluntary efforts on my dog's part to be somewhere other than glued to me.

Later, when with the help of medication her frantic state lessened, I did actually include most of the suggestions in this book in our program. After 6 months, we were able to wean off the meds. She still doesn't enjoy seeing me go, and she is still confined to limit her powers of destruction (I give her acceptable outlets for her "need to shred") but together we have survived one of the hardest trials in doggiedom.

I do agree that the level of detail in this book is exceptional, as is the section on deciding whether your dog has SA, or other issues. But you may still need to shop around for additional advice to fit your needs.

This is a good start if your dog has mild Separation Anxiety. This gives you the first few things that you can try and gives you a good understanding about Separation Anxiety. If you try everything in this book and it does not help your situation, try the book "The Dog That Loved Too Much" and see your vet.

I found this book really helpful. My dog has extreme separation anxiety and after he ruined our doors, windows, blinds, chairs and couch in 50 minutes when left alone for the first time, we started this battle against his separation anxiety. I did not have this book at that time (I actually never heard about separation anxiety even though I had 4 dogs before this one) and our progress was basically null! With some professional help and a lot of effort we finally could leave our dog for 30 sec alone. That is when our vet recommended medication and as soon as Clomicalm started to work we started to see improvements. Unfortunately, medication alone will not help and we started to make behavior chages which are Oh so slow... That's when we found out about this book and I tell you - this is a great start! It explains a lot, and finally in 3 weeks I can leave my dog alone for 20 minutes and come back to intact home!!! It will take us more time, but before giving up on your dog - give this book a try!

I bought this little booklet because I have had a dog in the past who had problems with separation anxiety, so I already know I don't know what to do to help such a dog. Also, the breed I am considering for my next dog has a high need for companionship, and I wanted to know how to forestall any behaviour (on my part or the dog's) that would result in separation anxiety. The author defines what separation anxiety is (and is not) and explains how it can develop. She then gives examples and exercises that will help you and your dog, inch by slow inch, learn a different behaviour and become sound of mind again. It's a short book that doesn't sugar coat the seriousness of the problem or the work and time involved in solving it, but it is also sprinkled throughout with good humor and clear evidence that the author loves dogs and wants to help them lead happy lives.

This book is perfect for those dog owners who are struggling with pets who have seperation anxiety! It has great tips and behavior modification techniques for very mild cases to severe cases. It helped me a lot with my rescue and I definitely reccomend it to anyone who has a dog and is dealing with this problem.!

As with her other "booklet" style guides, Patricia McConnell has managed to cram a vast amount of useful information into a small space. She briefly discusses the causes of separation anxiety, and how to recognize it. The information on what separation anxiety is *not* is invaluable for owners who might be having difficulty distinguishing between true separation anxiety and boredom (a by-product of the dog being understimulated mentally and physically). She then makes a number of suggestions that are straightforward and easy to follow. It is true that some dogs will need more personal assistance in the form of a behavior specialist or veterinary behaviorist, but this guide is a good place to start.
- Nicole Wilde, Author [ASIN:0981722733 Don't Leave Me! Step-by-Step Help for Your Dog's Separation Anxiety]

A very concise, practical approach to dealing with a difficult problem. It was fairly easy to incorporate the training into our hectic household. Since implementing McConnell's techniques we no longer have a stressed out dog when we leave the house. We couldn't be happier.

This book was very helpful in determining if your dog has actual separation anxiety or if the problem is more of a training issue. It's not as black and white as I would have liked, but neither are pet problems all the time.
Gives ideas and step-by-step plan of how to deal with either problem. Recommended to figure things out either way!