My 10 year old dog wakes at 4 AM and wants to come into our bedroom. He throws himself at the door and barks/whines. If one of us gets up he lays down for about 10 minutes and then is back at it. If one gets up and l;ays on the couch, he goes back to sleep.
Is this a form of sep anx ? Ant suggestions on how to fix it ? (yes we did make the mistake of letting him sleep with us while on vacation

Any help ?

Hi,

I came across this page yesterday and thought that you might benefit from reading it:
Dog Training - Dog Separation Anxiety

I don't think it sounds like separation anxiety exactly. Can you place a dog bed on the floor in your bedroom and allow him to sleep in there that way?

Yes I think this is a really good idea of keeping the dog bed in your bedroom.
And just check to see if everything is alright.
There was a time when my dog would suddenly go out in the staircase and keep obsessively searching for something near some old furniture kept there.
She would even get wild sometimes if we forced her to come back.

Then after a few days we came to know that an outside cat used to come there and so she was trying to shove that cat away.

So just keep a watch whether such an incident is suspected.

I keep a dog bed in my room for my dog, as other wise she decides to bark her head off if we lock her in the kitchen as she doesnt like being locked up.

And I prefer to have her in my room because it makes me feel safer.