Does your dog receive a meal before you leave for the day but hold off on eating it until you come home? That indicates he is a little (or a lot) anxious about being left alone at home.
Unexpectedly many dogs refuse to eat meals while their owners aren’t home, but they scramble to finish their meals as soon as their loved ones get home. The most frequent cause of your dog’s lack of appetite while you are away is worry, and a worried dog is a cause for concern.
“But my dog doesn’t seem stressed,” you might object. If your dog only exhibits stressful behavior when left alone and her stress level is low enough that she isn’t acting out in other ways, it’s possible that you aren’t present when she exhibits her primary stress behavior, which is refusing to eat when you aren’t around.
Dog training experts frequently advise clients to leave their dogs with a slow-feeding dog toy, such as a stuffed Kong, to keep them occupied and relieve stress while their owners are away. You can’t use this useful enrichment tool if your dog won’t eat while you’re gone. And when your dog is too anxious to eat meals, it is never a good thing!
Check to see whether he/she will eat if there is another person around first. You’ll be able to discern from this if she is experiencing low-level separation stress (she must be with you) or isolation stress (he/she is fine around any person as long as she is not alone). If he/she exhibits any additional signs of anxiety, such as pacing, panting, or vocalizing, put up a cell phone, laptop camera, or security camera to record footage of her while you’re away.
His/Her anxiety is probably not too severe if there are no other indicators of stress, and you might be able to relieve his/her with an over-the-counter supplement like L-theanine (consult with your veterinarian first!).
If he/she is more distressed, you are dealing with a problem that is more serious than mild stress or anorexia. If that’s the case, I advise you to seek the help of an experienced force-free professional. These individuals would have the initials “CSAT” (for certified separation anxiety trainer, certified by separation anxiety specialist Malena DeMartini) or “SAPro” (for a “Separation Anxiety Pro” trainer, certified by Julie Naismith) and be qualified to work with separation anxiety.
Keep in mind that if your dog is stressed, help is necessary.
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