Separation Anxiety - Whose is Worse???
We all know Jeremy has gone off for a couple of weeks for his job, leaving Brett at home with Lucy, Charlie, Hines and Pearl, and I KNOW a basket of nervousness. B, how you hanging in there? Are you a crazy person? How is Jeremy dealing with missing your babies?
We all have to leave our pets at times. Adrienne, Daisy and Skeeter when they came here last week. Me when I go to PA to visit the family. And it's HARD. As Adrienne said, when you sleep in a bed ALONE without your babies (for those of us who do), it feels as though your arm or leg is cut off--something is MISSING. There's no better reunion that a reunion with your dogs and cats.
Some dogs have BAD separation anxiety, where they go ballistic tearing up everything the second they are left alone. That's a unique problem, and one that can be helped with medication, if your vet recommends it.
I've noticed my dogs act no different in greeting when I'm gone 1 hour or 1 week. Do they have a sense of time at all?
But we've also heard the stories of loyal and faithful dogs when their person dies. How they never really get over it. My Mom always tells the story of her family's first little dogs, Patsy, a Boston terrier mix. There were three kids in her family, but the Patsy was especially close to her brother, Lee. As he grew up and started driving, Patsy would go everywhere with him. When he graduated from high school, he went into the Army, and Patsy was devastated. Mom said she wouldn't eat and moped around. A few weeks after he left, they found her dead. She said the vet told them little Patsy died of a broken heart.
There was also a story I heard on TV that took place back in the early 1900s. A policeman in Boston, I believe, had a little dog, and when the man died, that dog, then cared for by someone else, walked to his grave every day and laid there. I also heard that same story from a preacher at a church I used to go to. His brother's dog, Trixie did the same thing every day until she, too died. Another story: A dog that walked his master to the train station every day, then went back at the time he returned to walk home with him, kept up the routine for years after the man died.
Doesn't that show of love and loyalty just make you want to cry? Why some people can't see how important it is to make your pet a partner and that they love they give is one of the greatest loves of all. I'm sure you have heard of other such stories. If so, please share!
I know I have worse separation anxiety than my dogs. When I'm gone, I deal with it by calling The Boss and asking him, "How are the babies?" and he says, "THEY ARE FINE, aren't you going to ask about me????"
Well, he knows where I am (most of the time, ha!), but they don't. How do you deal with separation? How do your pets?
posted by Sandy at 11/15/2007 09:24:00 AM
Pet People
16 Comments:
I forgot to tell you about the picture! On the left is Scooter with his buddy, Freeway, at his first home in Nashville. As you know, my friend Laura adopted him as a partner for Freeway, but when she was gone at work all day, Scooter was, well....Scooter! He chewed up everything and she came home to a total mess, every day! That's how he ended up here. It was supposed to be temporary until he got older and I trained him better, as I wasn't working at the time, but that was years ago!
They were looking out the window as Laura and I left to get some "refreshments" for my weekend visit.
Well, thank Goodness, Jeremy will be home tommorrow night--it was only a week of insurance school. Lucy has perked up a little bit, but not much. Hines spent the first couple of days looking for his Daddy, but he's gotten past it. Charlie is just Charlie--and he loves me best anyway-HAHA.
I had another blockage scare last night, but I passed it. I was beginning to panic and was praying my little heart out when I felt the plug pop in my gut. There is NO WAY I could have handled Jeremy being gone, four babies, and being in the hospital. H*ll, I'm still paying for the last time! I kow its just all the junk we took while we were sick and then tryingt o eat again. My insides just aren't there anymore and I'll have to be more careful in the future.
ON A BETTER NOTE--I got the book last night in the mail, the "My Recycled Pets" book that Sandy talked of on the blog. All I did was read the intro and the first chapter and I was tearing up. If you can get a copy of this book--DO!! I can already tell that it's going to inspire me.
SO that's the report. If I can make three more trips from Clarksville to Nashville and back, I can lick anything. God is my co-pilot--and I think I scared him last night on the drive home-haha
Glad you're better B!
I laughed out loud about the scaring the co-pilot... I can just picture God hanging on to the strap with his eyes bugging out...
Our kids don't have any separation anxiety. None. And Aimee, dog princess, was the one who let eveytone know when we came home and stirred up Charlie and Max intoa barking frenzy. Now, with no Aimee to let them know we are home, it's silent. They are happy we are home, but there's no excited barking or yelping or howling... it's another thing that reminds us of how much we dearly miss our Aimee and how important she was to all of us, fur children included.
It concerns me because the Professor is in the house before anyone knows... what if it were a prowler? Aimee could hear everything and let us know when someone was outside. I am seriously considering again about getting another dog who will be the watch dog I need. He or she needs to be small or medium and cat-friendly. Otherwise, I don't care what kind of dog it is... well... I still have problems with pit-type dogs.
I'll have to share my fear more intensely with the professor... he just doesn't like change and another dog would be change...
Well Alice, you know where to go to find your next watch doggie. Inge Irby of Second Chance and Happy Tails has lots of little dogs on her Web site and the Humane Society has many too. Many of them are already house trained and ready to go!
Brett, I know you will be so relieved when Jeremy gets back and you all get back into your normal routine. Let us know how Hines and the others react to his return!
And hopefully we can meet for dinner one night on my break!
Brett, you'll also have to tell us more about that booi!
booi? You meant the book-right?
How ironic, I was going to jot a line or two to both Pearcehart and B to see how y’all were doing and here you both are! I am getting ready to decorate my animal tree and was thinking of your wreath Alice and also of the Nestor and friends you gave me B... I was taking a bit of a break to sit and thought I would check in here and now I see you both are doing well.. Yippee.... Alice, get you a watch doggie! There are so many good ones looking for a loving home and I bet you and the Professor could use one more baby in your life! I wish I could have a dozen but the timing is just not good for us with our current life. Maybe one day though....
B, hang in there and Jeremy will be home before you know it. I am glad you straighten up that misprint from Sandy. That one had me going a bit…
As far as the topic, I am the one with Separation Anxiety! I usually cry as we close the front door in fear I may never see my babies again for one reason or another like say the house burn down with me not home! Arggg… I am better now that we have such great pet sitters to come check on them. They don’t seem to miss us too much while we are away but we don’t like to do it often. I enjoy my sleep with no cats in the bed but fall back into my routine of furry ones walking all over me when I am home again. Where ever we go, we usually have others animals keeping us company so it makes being away a bit better…. Okay, times up, back to my Animal Tree…
I didn't miss my pets at all this vacation, because I had your 3 monster dogs on top of me the entire time, especially Scooter the bossy boy. I need lots of affection and your dogs certainly provided it!
My dog Murphy was originally my father-in-laws and when he died on the floor, the dog stayed by his side and it was hard to pick him up when they had to take the body away. For a little Bichon, he had such a stiff little body, trying to hold his ground! He is a very VOCAL dog, and whines with glee every morning the minute my feet hit the carpet, he makes the strangest (and loudest) sounds when you prepare his food, and also when he greets you at the door. Never heard a more vocal dog in my entire life.
He would probably be ok in a kennel on vacation, but my dog Bennie would be terrorized. He's a mamma's boy and would shake and tremble in a kennel. He's the greatest lap dog and came from Inge's, my little Tennessee doggie.
Daisy, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We love the magnet and the pop corn, bless your heart! I'm going to call you over the weekend to thank you again. You are just the most thoughtful person!
Cute dogs and beautiful abelia outside of the window. You know plants are my first love.
What pop corn?
Got the magnet in the mail today. Thanks! I'll put it on my car and maybe we'll have even more pet people! Then you all can come here for a pet people party!!LOL!
I'm glad I came for a visit when I did! I was laid off today with 8 weeks of severence pay. The company is slowly down sizing and may even have to close. I was one of 4 today. At least the dogs were happy to see me home early.
I think it's a sign Adrienne that you are to move to Clarksville. Now just tell the Foreman to start looking here. Lord knows we have the growth! We talked about the low wages, but its offest by a low cost of loving when it comes to housing,etc.
I know you must be upset about the layoffs, but for now you can spend more time with the dogs!
Adrienne, Sorry to hear about your job! Sniff... I am with Sandy, y'all relocate to Clarksville....
HA HA! I would move, but the Foreman loves his job. I was told today that the only place we would be moving to would be Florida right now so he can take care of his mother. I could say I never get my way, but he did let me come visit ya'll. I'll just have to visit when I can.
I'm not all that upset about the job. I get to stay home with the babies, play house wife and get paid for it for a while. Jobs are pretty plentiful around here, so i'm not worried about it right now. Come Feb. I may be, we'll see what happens.
Adrienne, just kick back and enjoy it while you can girl. I bet your babies are loving having you home!
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