Having a dog alone is often not an easy task: either on the physical or emotional side! If you also have problems leaving your dog alone for a long time while you work, follow this text and learn what you can do to alleviate the problem and, consequently, keep the animal more entertained and happy.
Dog alone – Tips to make him happier
Are you sorry to leave your dog alone? There are reasons why this feeling dominates your day when you have to leave your lone pet at home. Thoughts go to him all the time. Whether you are adopting a dog now or even if he has been part of the family for a long time.
The fact is that these situations are unpleasant for both the owner and the animal. Yes, dogs miss their owner all the time. And it takes time for them to get used to the situation of living alone for some part of the day. A quality dog training needs to be done and maybe this will make the problems lessen.
But for you to be able to take some action about it, follow our tips and put them into practice. See below.
What is a gregarious dog?
First of all, we need to understand what a gregarious dog is. Well, a gregarious dog is nothing more than a being that needs the company of another to live well. Then you must be wondering: what about street dogs? Well, stray dogs are extremely unhappy, as over time they get used to this situation and move from a sadness phase to an acceptance phase. But if it is a dog that has been raised for many years close to its owners, it may never get used to it.
And the same goes for our pets who are so well cared for indoors. As much as they have a much better quality of life than a stray dog, know that this does not take away our responsibility to keep them happy. And for this to happen even more completely, your presence is fundamental in his life. Only then will he feel safe, loved and cherished. Let’s go to the tips!
1- Don’t say long goodbyes when leaving for work
The first tip for your dog to have quieter lonely days is not to say goodbye too effusively in the morning when you leave for work. Dogs will go from a balanced level of joy to an extremely high level. And this is very harmful, because it is right at the moment when you will have to leave it.
So when you go out to work, just talk to him naturally and let him do what he’s doing. If he’s already entertained with something, even better. Because the more attention we give him, the more he will understand that that moment is fun. And in the long run, he will miss you so much right after the moment you leave. Maybe you’ll hear him cry as soon as you close the door!
So balance and little interaction at this point.
2- Don’t say long greetings when you get home from work
As well as keeping a balanced mood in the farewell, keep the same posture on arrival! While this may sound difficult (and it is!) because you’ve been waiting all day to see him, it’s important that it happen. But for what reason? Simple: the dog needs to understand that leaving and coming back is normal and nothing much will happen! For he cannot associate the extremities of loneliness with your presence: neither when you leave nor when you arrive.
After a few minutes at home, you will be able to interact with him more directly. Talk, play, feed, cuddle, etc. After all, he needs to feel that you love him. Otherwise, he will easily feel abandoned. Therefore, balance is necessary!
3- Leave toys around the house
This tip is classic but very useful: leave toys around the house. A dog alone will look for alternatives to entertain itself. And often, curiosity will help in this process. This way, if you keep a toy in each room, he will be happy to find it and will play for a while without getting bored. And when you move on to the next room, it all starts again with a new toy!
One tip is to use toys with food. That is, encouraging the dog to interact for a long time with the toy until he can extract the food inside. This is a very practical and effective way to make a lonely dog feel happy and not even notice the time passing.
4- Hide kibble in rooms to entertain a dog alone
In addition to food in toys, you can hide food in the rooms of the house. For example, a little under the bed, a little behind the curtain, near the sofa, anyway. Look for places where, when exploring, the dog finds a reward. This will make him walk and go around the house looking for these rewards and thus be able to entertain himself until his return.
With these tips, you will certainly be able to have a much less lonely dog. There is no magic recipe. Each breed is unique and will behave in a different way. Therefore, never dispense with professional help to work on your dog’s behavior in a way that provides much more quality of life, comfort and warmth. After all, all we want is for our dogs to be happy. And so we managed to have a peaceful and very productive day at work. Good luck!
