Confinement and Separation Anxiety

All over the internet you will find people saying that your dog only has separation anxiety symptoms because you didn’t crate train enough. This IS a myth. First, I promise that you did not CAUSE your dog’s separation anxiety. Second, choosing whether or not to confine your dog for separation training completely depends on both your individual dog and your unique context. Let’s dig into that!

Consideration #1 Safety

If you are working with a Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer (CSAT) on alone time, then the first thing you will plan to do is never leave your dog alone longer than they can handle. So, some of the common safety issues like damage to doors and windows or chewing on dangerous items won’t generally be a problem because your dog will not get to that level of stress while training. So they really may be safe and fine Free In the House.

HOWEVER, if your dog chews on inappropriate things even when you are home then that is a different issue that does need to be managed. That may look like management via putting things away or in containers. But that may also look like a type of confinement away from areas or items that could be potentially dangerous.

In multi-dog households, sometimes all dogs can remain together and sometimes it is safer if the dogs are separated during absences. Watch their behavior carefully and have a game plan to separate if needed.

Consideration #2 Age

For younger dogs who may be teething or are not potty trained yet, you will want some form of confinement but that can look different for different dogs. That could be a play-pen area that they are already comfortable in or a baby gate to keep them in a room that is safe and easy to clean if they have an accident. This area should have a variety of toys and legal chews, water, a comfy spot that is also easy to clean if needed, and sometimes a spot to go to the bathroom like a tray of substrate, potty pad, or grass patch. Make sure to super charge this area as a fun place where you sometimes play with them, pet them, or give them all of their favorite items in. If needed, work with a trainer to make sure that your pup loves the space as much as possible,

For older dogs, you may choose to gate off areas like stairs to make sure that they do not try to go in areas that may be difficult to navigate.

Consideration #3 Confinement Learning History

This can be positive or negative learning history. If your dog is already averse to a type of confinement, then when you work on separation training in confinement you are actually mixing two difficult things into the same training plan - muddying whether any stress signs are related to the separation or the confinement itself. That makes it really difficult to make progress on either one. If your dog LOVES the crate or confinement, then it sometimes still makes sense to keep the crate feeling awesome and work on alone-time feeling good by itself before incorporating the crate into it.

None of this is to say that you CAN’T use confinement in either case - in the case of a negative learning history with confinement you will just need to dedicate time and energy into making the confinement space extra nice and loved before you start to use it in separation training.

Consideration #4 Types of Confinement

I have already alluded to several versions of confinement and there are many ways to confine. My preference when possible, is to start separation training Free In the House partially so that you do not have to do more training before you start training. It can also help avoid trying to train with too many criteria at the same time (be comfy alone AND be comfy in the crate are two separate asks for your dog). However, as I’ve been writing about, that isn’t always an option.

The main types of confinement I have worked with are

• Baby gates

• Playpens

• Gates

• Crates

• Shut doors

You always want to make sure your dog has access to their essentials - water, legal/safe toys and/or chews, enough space to easily turn around, stand up straight, and side flop, and appropriate temperature.

When possible, think about confinement as a tool to keep your dog OUT of spaces rather than IN a space. So is it an option for them to have access to both the kitchen and the living room but be shut out of other areas like the bathroom and computer room?

During separation training, the most ideal plan is to come back to the space where your dog is for the breaks, so they feel like they are in the hang out space rather than being kept out of it.

Every Situation Is Unique

Remember that while one type of confinement or separation plan may work for one dog, it may really not work for another. Your dog, your living situation, and you are unique, so there will not be a cookie-cutter solution.

If you need help coming up with a plan, feel welcome to reach out.

We can talk about confinement training in a Virtual Live Session or get into the nitty gritty details of a full separation protocol in an Initial Assessment.