Won't go outside without me!

spydre · Post by **spydre** » Fri Jul 31, 2009 11:43 am

Dodger has a bit of separation anxiety, and it's gotten a bit worse. When we first got Dodger, he was absolutely stuck to me. He's at least expanded that little world to include Bill, my husband. Now I'm not going to ask about how to deal with the separation issues when we are gone, we are slowly working on that, but we've backslid a bit.

The problem now is, while he had previously been okay to go outside with the kids only (and he never DEPENDABLY would do that), now, he will only go outside if I'm going, or at night, if both me and my husband go out with him. This has caused such a problem that even if I'm not home, he won't go outside with the kids (unless he's on a leash). This caused us being gone for a very short time - maybe 2 hours - to turn the house into an accident zone, because before the kids left (after his breakfast) he wouldn't go outside with them, causing him to have his post-breakfast pottying in the house. I don't want him to start avoiding the leash, because he thinks there's a chance that he's not going for a walk, but possibly just going outside. I tried to start out with the kids taking him out (not me) until he had to go so bad, he would finally go out with them, but we tried that yesterday, and he still wouldn't go out.

Any tips, hints, suggestions? Anything would be appreciated.

emmabeth · Post by **emmabeth** » Fri Jul 31, 2009 1:21 pm

I think because you dont want to go backwards on the potty training, you will have to 'humour' this little setback and go back to routinely goingoutside with him for potty breaks, and rewarding him for pottying outside (only for actually going though not for going out there wtih you).

Try to instigate this yourself so you ask him in the first instance to go out wiht you.... rather than attempting to get him out without you and then having to give in and go out with him.

This will make it more normal and routine and its more of a positive action..... than a reaction to his wobblyness regarding where everyone is.

As you get better with the seperation anxiety you should find that this problem resolves itself in time rather than needing anything really major done about it specifically.