Knowing that my dog Ike was a little “special” when I got him, I got used to him sort of acting human. It seems ever since he was a puppy, he could understand exactly what we in the family were saying and that he was unusually intelligent. As he got older, he would do things that “normal” dogs could not or would not do, including learning to spell certain small words. Okay, he didn’t spell them himself of course, but if one of us needed to spell something so he wouldn’t know what we were talking about, it got to the point where he would indeed know exactly what we were spelling.
I know this sounds like a tall tale…pun included, but it is quite true about our Ike. He also has separation anxiety. It’s terrible. He doesn’t do anything destructive while we are gone, but no sooner do we get into the truck or car, he starts howling like he is being murdered. It’s such a loud sad crying howl that there are times I had to really stop myself from giving him what he wants and going back in the house.
Of course, I have watched dog training shows on the television and read some books, tried some of the methods that are supposed to help with this issue, but nothing has ever worked. I leave a light on for him, the television, toys, plenty of food and water, and the kicker is, he does this when we just are gone for 15 or 20 minutes even. I’ve gotten to the point that we have just told our neighbors that we are not killing our dog, even though it sounds like it. We tell them he has separation anxiety disorder and of course, we are looked at like we are nuts, but it is what it is. He’s nearly five years old now, and I don’t see him changing his ways.