Because of some issues Quinn had as a puppy has always either had a little bit of SA or had the potential. She's recently started displaying some pretty bad (at least to me) SA though.
When Quinn was a puppy I did start with crating her - the crate was always a positive experience (never used as a punishment) and she was comfortable enough to go into it by herself and nap and was fine in it (even with the crate door closed) as long as I was around. When I would leave the house however she would scream and cry for hours and often pee in her crate (even if we took her out before we left and I was only gone 20 mins). We did a lot of short, positive sessions but largely due to the fact that I live with other people who are not as tolerant/patient/consistent, I gave up and she got free roam at 5 months old with absolutely zero issues.
We are still in the same household and Quinn does not demonstrate any anxiety when I leave. My dad (who she loves) is almost always home, but even when she's home alone she lies quietly on the stairs and watches us leave. She seems very relaxed when I come home and usually comes from the living room or the stairs, which is where she likes to sleep. She is the same when left in the our SUV - she is often left in there, often for decently long periods, and is very comfortable and relaxed.
We have however had a couple of incidents lately.
The first when my boyfriend and I left for a work dinner and left her alone at his house. She had pretty much free range (we did close off bedroom and the bathroom, but she pretty much had the entire main floor) and we were gone for approximately 4 hours. When we came home she was incredibly excited and anxious (whining and crying), panting, and had a big drink shortly after we came home. There were scratch marks on the outside door. She has always been more anxious when left at his house (more excited when we come home, some drool by the window) but no where near how she was that night.
The second incident happened at the new house we are moving into. She has been left on her own there once before with no issues so I didn't think much of leaving her there again. The first time we had closed doors as to restrict her to the hallway around the house (where you first walk in) and the kitchen. This time, the hallway was very cold so we gave her access to the kitchen and the large, open living room. We were only gone for 2-3 hours. When we came back she acted quite calm (not like when Josh and I came home) but upon further inspection she had knocked some stuff off the table (where there is a window that looks into the hallway/outside door), there were scratches on the door (this is a door that's very close to the outside one) and she absolutely DESTROYED the door knob. It was an indoor one so not very strong, but she still dented it all up and actually punctured it in one spot. I think a contributing problem that day was the fact that she was restricted from the outside door.
She is still fine at home.
I feel so over my head on this one. This has always been the dog that I can leave home or in the car with no worries, even for an extended period of time. I don't even know where to begin!
When Quinn was a puppy I did start with crating her - the crate was always a positive experience (never used as a punishment) and she was comfortable enough to go into it by herself and nap and was fine in it (even with the crate door closed) as long as I was around. When I would leave the house however she would scream and cry for hours and often pee in her crate (even if we took her out before we left and I was only gone 20 mins). We did a lot of short, positive sessions but largely due to the fact that I live with other people who are not as tolerant/patient/consistent, I gave up and she got free roam at 5 months old with absolutely zero issues.
We are still in the same household and Quinn does not demonstrate any anxiety when I leave. My dad (who she loves) is almost always home, but even when she's home alone she lies quietly on the stairs and watches us leave. She seems very relaxed when I come home and usually comes from the living room or the stairs, which is where she likes to sleep. She is the same when left in the our SUV - she is often left in there, often for decently long periods, and is very comfortable and relaxed.
We have however had a couple of incidents lately.
The first when my boyfriend and I left for a work dinner and left her alone at his house. She had pretty much free range (we did close off bedroom and the bathroom, but she pretty much had the entire main floor) and we were gone for approximately 4 hours. When we came home she was incredibly excited and anxious (whining and crying), panting, and had a big drink shortly after we came home. There were scratch marks on the outside door. She has always been more anxious when left at his house (more excited when we come home, some drool by the window) but no where near how she was that night.
The second incident happened at the new house we are moving into. She has been left on her own there once before with no issues so I didn't think much of leaving her there again. The first time we had closed doors as to restrict her to the hallway around the house (where you first walk in) and the kitchen. This time, the hallway was very cold so we gave her access to the kitchen and the large, open living room. We were only gone for 2-3 hours. When we came back she acted quite calm (not like when Josh and I came home) but upon further inspection she had knocked some stuff off the table (where there is a window that looks into the hallway/outside door), there were scratches on the door (this is a door that's very close to the outside one) and she absolutely DESTROYED the door knob. It was an indoor one so not very strong, but she still dented it all up and actually punctured it in one spot. I think a contributing problem that day was the fact that she was restricted from the outside door.
She is still fine at home.
I feel so over my head on this one. This has always been the dog that I can leave home or in the car with no worries, even for an extended period of time. I don't even know where to begin!
