[ZEE]

I have a year old yellow/brown labrador and he has recently been seperated from his 3 elder buddies at home. We had to move out and now its just him with me and 2 other people. he lived in a big house with a big backyard and there were about 8 ppl. and 4 other males Now its just him and 3 other people. also since he is the only dog in the house he has become very alert and barks at strangers whereas we had to make him bark previously. he was a total outdoorsy back there no matter what the weather was he loved staying outdoor, now he is just glued to me since we have come, it has only been 2 weeks yet but it looks sort of permanent. he doesnt let me get out of his sight, follows me everywhere, even to the bathroom. does not go out the house with anyone, not even familiar people, only wants to go with me. he looks happy too but he looks sad aswell. i have taken him back to where he used to live too a few times for a few hours so he can meet his mates but there he clings to me too and if i leave him and come back he'l be sitting waiting for me, i get confused there not sure whether he was missing them or me. since he is a very loving and friendly full of life dog he has good relationships with people individually, my aunt who used to take him and the 3 other dogs for a walk comes to visit and other people living there too but he shows excitement for a bit and then he just mops around. i dont know what to do. should i make him visit that place more often or should i not take him there for a while so he doesnt get confused. since he is a very intellegent and sensitive baby. need help if anyone understands. im worried i feel bad when i see him i try to cheer him up get him toys and it does help but i just feel he isnt the same. but its not like he lived there for years, hes just a year and he came when he was 6 weeks old.
it has become very difficult for me to leave the house, he wants to come along everytime and i dont feel safe leaving him with the new maids since he isnt comfortable with them and just stays in my room when im not home. im worried he might plan to jet off once these days if im not home, but he's quite the spoilt brat to be that independant. i take him with me often but cant everywhere!! im an insane dog-lover to the core and i feel for him like hes my own kid! i get sad when i see his puppy eyes! actually more than him i think im worried for him!

[elle]

Originally Posted by ZEE

I have a year old yellow/brown labrador and he has recently been seperated from his 3 elder buddies at home. We had to move out and now its just him with me and 2 other people. he lived in a big house with a big backyard and there were about 8 ppl. and 4 other males Now its just him and 3 other people. also since he is the only dog in the house he has become very alert and barks at strangers whereas we had to make him bark previously. he was a total outdoorsy back there no matter what the weather was he loved staying outdoor, now he is just glued to me since we have come, it has only been 2 weeks yet but it looks sort of permanent. he doesnt let me get out of his sight, follows me everywhere, even to the bathroom. does not go out the house with anyone, not even familiar people, only wants to go with me. he looks happy too but he looks sad aswell. i have taken him back to where he used to live too a few times for a few hours so he can meet his mates but there he clings to me too and if i leave him and come back he'l be sitting waiting for me, i get confused there not sure whether he was missing them or me. since he is a very loving and friendly full of life dog he has good relationships with people individually, my aunt who used to take him and the 3 other dogs for a walk comes to visit and other people living there too but he shows excitement for a bit and then he just mops around. i dont know what to do. should i make him visit that place more often or should i not take him there for a while so he doesnt get confused. since he is a very intellegent and sensitive baby. need help if anyone understands. im worried i feel bad when i see him i try to cheer him up get him toys and it does help but i just feel he isnt the same. but its not like he lived there for years, hes just a year and he came when he was 6 weeks old.
it has become very difficult for me to leave the house, he wants to come along everytime and i dont feel safe leaving him with the new maids since he isnt comfortable with them and just stays in my room when im not home. im worried he might plan to jet off once these days if im not home, but he's quite the spoilt brat to be that independant. i take him with me often but cant everywhere!! im an insane dog-lover to the core and i feel for him like hes my own kid! i get sad when i see his puppy eyes! actually more than him i think im worried for him!

This sounds very much like my dog also but we didnt move or anything, sounds like separation anixiety. Im too trying to make my dog more indepedent, i read an article about it and it says to make less of a big deal of him for the first few mins after meeting and if leaving the house or comming ignore the dog for a few mins hard to do at the start but after the first few mins you can make fuss of him. I found my dog wandered away from me out the yard, but comes back again quickly. My dog also is very clingy and i wish he was more independent also. I find my dog loves playing fetch and he gets full of life, when a ball is thrown. sorry i could not help more. But i know what you mean its horrible to see them down.

[elle]

Originally Posted by elle

This sounds very much like my dog also but we didnt move or anything, sounds like separation anixiety. Im too trying to make my dog more indepedent, i read an article about it and it says to make less of a big deal of him for the first few mins after meeting and if leaving the house or comming ignore the dog for a few mins hard to do at the start but after the first few mins you can make fuss of him. I found my dog wandered away from me out the yard, but comes back again quickly. My dog also is very clingy and i wish he was more independent also. I find my dog loves playing fetch and he gets full of life, when a ball is thrown. sorry i could not help more. But i know what you mean its horrible to see them down.

Jan fennell has a book out about amichien bonding which i have tried but i dont think i got a good result, maybe it works for some and not others.

[Todd]

Exercise cures a lot of problems. Maybe consider taking him to a local dog park every night for 30-60 minutes of running. This will burn steam and allow him to socialize with other dogs (he obviously misses this). Remember, dogs are social animals. Also, have you ever considered getting another dog? If not, I firmly believe that a trip to the dogs park (if not every night at least a few night per week) would do wonders for your situation.

[ZEE]

Walks are his favourite thing to do and i make sure he gets to do that. i take him for a walk every evening as he used to go for it early morning previously. Getting another dog is the bigget problem, there is absolutely no convincing my mother. i was thinking maybe a goat duck or a chicken? also i hand feed him these days cozhe doesnt eat on his own!

[Todd]

A labrador turning down food??? You may want to have him checked out by a vet. Maybe he's acting depressed because he has something physically wrong with him and doesn't feel well. What type of food are you currently feeding him? Does he have any other physical problems you've noticed?

[ZEE]

He is not turning don food totally, he loves to eat any and everything and he is eating all the munchies he gets, but everything with my hands. not in his eating bowl, obviously cause its new and different im guessing.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by ZEE

He is not turning don food totally, he loves to eat any and everything and he is eating all the munchies he gets, but everything with my hands. not in his eating bowl, obviously cause its new and different im guessing.

I see. That's more understandable. You want to make sure you train him to eat out of his bowl though or it's going to be harder to break this habit later in life. I'd start by hand feeding him a bit and then gradually move your hand down until you drop a few pieces of kibble in the bowel and so on. Eventually, he should have no problem with eating out of the bowl. If all else fails, just fill the bowel with food and don't hand feed him at all. Dogs will not starve themselves and will catch on pretty quickly. Good Luck!

[MisterSquiggles]

I agree about the socialization... if he's used to being with other dogs, that's become part of his identity, and he understands and feels comfortable with that hierarchy. Give him as much time with other dogs as possible, but give him lots of people attention too.

[Trab]

My Sheltie recently went through a bout of depression when my mother in laws dog died. They grew up together, and suddenly she was gone and some strange, yippy puppy was in her place. My sheltie did NOT like that one bit. She got over it in time, but still can't stand the dog that took her place. I guess that's to be expected. Sadly she's not remotely excited about going to grammy's house anymore...

[CorkyMax]

Originally Posted by bow-wow

try smacking him or stepping on his toes, give him something to cry about

You have to be in here just looking for trouble!

[Todd]

Originally Posted by bow-wow

try smacking him or stepping on his toes, give him something to cry about

That is a very disrespectful comment. Please do not post here if you're going to make these types of comments. You may have just been joking bvut if not please do not post a comment like that again. It would be highly appreciated.

[CorkyMax]

Originally Posted by cativo

bow-wow should be banned

I was curious even before I got to this 2nd post of yours!
I figured there must be some connection as it sounded like the same dog and problem!! Hope you have control of this situation and bow-wow is not 'beating on' this poor dog! He sounds like he needs more help than the poor dog! :!: