When we first adopted our dog Wrigley over 2 years ago she had severe separation anxiety issues.

Wrigley
For example….
She would freak out when we would leave her in a crate during the day (or any time of day for that matter). The 1st crate she broke free from was a metal crate that she somehow bent and crawled out of the bottom, but not before she managed to PULL one of our carpets INTO the crate with her. I have no clue how she did this with the rug. It was on the other side of the room when we left the house that morning. This dog is like Houdini.

Crate #1

Paper Towels
Oh yeah, she also opened the pantry doors and attacked an innocent package of paper towels. Oh the horror!!!
Then, we purchased a SECOND $100.00 crate, but this time it was made of plastic. We hoped the limited amount of holes in the new crate would lessen her ability to pry her way through it. WRONG-O! This one she managed not only to escape by chewing her way out of it, but flip it over in the process.

Crate #2
After that we had no choice, but to leave her out in the house during the day. There was no way we could afford to keep buying crates. Not to mention, she was doing everything in her power to escape and I felt she would eventually hurt herself. So, we would hid everything we though would tempt her except the couch, and then we came home to one of these scenes.

Couch Cushions
THEN, we learned not to leave the cushions on the couch during the day, because they obviously made her a bit too angry. So, each time we left the house we would not only move everything out of her reach, but put the couch cushions in the guest room too. Look where that got us….

1/2 Eaten Couch
Yup, that’s right, she began eating the couch. After that little snack we finally broke down and put Wrigley on the puppy version of Prozac. (Per the vets orders) The med is called Reconcile and it is Prozac. I think the vet said it is just a smaller dosage than what humans take. The “stuff” doesn’t work right away, of course! The vet gave us a DVD to watch explaining a behavior modification program called BOND. (It was horribly cheesy!) However, if you can get past the dairy portion of the DVD; the program they are explaining seems like a good idea. It seems to be working for the Wriggles & Coco.

Reconcile
* Side Note: Thru the life of this blog you will see me call Wrigley many nicknames. It’s an illness really. The nicknames I use, change from day to day, hour to hour, & minute to minute.
Okay, back to the story. So, we have been trying this BOND method and there are some tactics involved in it that I think more work on the owners separation anxiety from the dogs. When you enter the house you are not allowed to acknowledge the dogs for @ least 5 minutes or until they calm down and no longer want to smother you with puppy kisses. (I love those wet nosed kisses!) When you leave the house you are not allowed to say goodbye, give them hugs, or kisses. They call it “NO MORE DRAMA.”

Reconcile & BOND
Little Bit (a.k.a.- Wrigley) has laid off eating the couch, and no longer moves the front door rug. Just after our wedding we began weening Wriggs off her meds since she was doing so well. She is now completely off Reconcile and we couldn’t be happier. Those pills are like $50.00 a bottle/per month. Yikes! After a full year of no “incidents” and living with a 1/2 eaten couch; we broke down and purchased a new couch. So far, so good. I am extremely thankful for everyday I walk in that door and nothing sends me into a state of shock.