The Canine Ledger

Separation Anxiety: Training, Medication, and What the Trials Show

Why a crate or a second dog rarely fixes separation anxiety, what the gradual-absence method involves, and where medication fits. No doses.

Written by thecanineledger

Dogs with separation anxiety destroy things and bark or howl when left alone, “causing distress for both the dog and the owner, and often leading to the dog being relinquished or euthanized” (Sargisson, Vet Med (Auckl) 2014). That is how a review of the research opens.

While the usual fixes are a crate, a second dog or a firmer response, the research supports none of them. What it does support is slow, patient work, sometimes with medication. This page explains why, and where the evidence is thin.

1. Is it separation anxiety?

The signs happen when the dog is alone, or about to be. The review lists “destruction of property and excessive vocalization”.

The best way to know what your dog does is to watch. The review suggests owners “place a video recording device in the room where the dog spends the most time in the owner’s absence”, both before and during treatment, so you can see whether it’s working.

Our note: Other things can look like separation anxiety, such as boredom, incomplete house training or a medical problem. Ask your vet to rule them out.

2. What makes it more likely

The research is mixed, and the review says so: “Although research is equivocal”, dogs seem more likely to develop separation problems “if they are male, sourced from shelters or found, and separated from the litter before they are 60 days old.”

It lists protective factors too: a wide range of experiences outside the home and with other people between 5 and 10 months of age, “stable household routines and absences from the dog, and the avoidance of punishment.”

None of this means a rescue dog will have separation anxiety, or that your dog’s problem is your fault.

3. What helps: gradual absences

The review’s verdict: the most successful treatment “may be behavior modification that focuses on systematic desensitization and counterconditioning”.

Systematic desensitisation means starting with absences so short the dog stays calm, then making them longer very slowly. In the review’s words, it “involves exposure to mild versions of the feared stimulus that will not elicit anxiety and subsequent gradual increases in the intensity of the feared stimulus.”

Counterconditioning pairs your leaving with something the dog likes.

Two practical points from the review:

  • Avoid long absences during training. If the dog’s behaviour gets worse, owners “should reduce the length of their absences again until the dog’s behavior improves”.
  • Keep the plan simple. Advice to owners “should be clear, simple, and contain five or fewer instructions to improve adherence.”

Our note: We have no source on day care, sitters or neighbours as ways to bridge long absences.

4. What doesn’t help

A second dog. It’s a common suggestion, but the review found that “the presence of another dog in the household does not prevent another dog from developing separation-related problems.”

A crate. Dogs left in crates “are no less likely to display separation-related problem behaviors than dogs that have free access to the home.” Worse, “dogs can injure themselves in attempts to escape from the crate.” Some authors do recommend crates for dogs already used to them, so the evidence is mixed. But a crate is not a treatment.

Punishment. Coming home to damage is upsetting. But punishment after the fact isn’t linked to what the dog did, and the review concludes: “punishment is best avoided in dealing with dogs with separation-related problems.”

5. Where medication fits

Two antidepressant medicines are approved in the United States for separation anxiety in dogs. The review describes them as “antidepressant drugs used for humans to treat the symptoms of depression and anxiety.” Both have been tested against a placebo, and both improved some separation-related behaviours.

The review places medication alongside training, not instead of it: behaviour modification “can be supplemented with medication in the initial stages.”

Side effects happen. In two trials, the review reports, 85% and 45% of dogs given the drug “exhibited lethargy or depression”, and in both more dogs on the drug lost their appetite than dogs on a placebo.

We don’t give doses or name products. Whether medication is right for your dog, and which, is a decision for your vet.

Our note: Which medicines are licensed for separation anxiety differs by country.

Our note: We couldn’t read either trial the review cites for this drug in full. The 2007 trial’s abstract doesn’t say who funded it (Simpson et al., Vet Ther 2007, abstract). A 2022 evidence review appraised the 2008 trial, by Landsberg and colleagues. It says that trial was “financially supported by” an animal health company (Echeverri and Govendir, Veterinary Evidence 2022). We haven’t confirmed this from the 2008 paper itself.

6. What to do

  • See your vet to rule out other causes and talk about whether medication would help.
  • Film your dog when you leave, so you know what’s happening.
  • Start with very short absences and build up slowly.
  • Avoid long absences while you work on it, where you can.
  • Don’t punish what you find when you get home.
  • Ask for a referral to a veterinary behaviourist if it isn’t improving. → Training That Works, and Why: What the Evidence Says About Methods

7. What we could not verify

Commonly saidWhat we found
“Get a second dog for company”Not supported. Another dog doesn’t prevent it.
“Crate the dog so it can’t do damage”Not supported as a treatment. Crated dogs were no less likely to show the problem, and some injure themselves.
“Medication alone will fix it”Not how the review frames it. Medication supplements training.
“Pheromone diffusers fix it”Not shown. The one study the review cites compared it with a drug, not a placebo, and both groups also had training.

Sources

Always confirm with your vet before acting on anything on this page.