by April-Lynn Logan

Created on: May 26, 2009   Last Updated: May 27, 2009

It has been a hard day in the office. I come home needing a steaming cup of coffee and to put my feet up for a little bit before taking my two sibes out for their walk. I open the door to the house and I am greeted by my companions. They have to go outside. I walk to the back door to let them out and peer into the kitchen. To my horror, I find a large pile of garbage. Upon closer examination, I find it was not garbage before I left it is the contents of my pantry. I find mushroom soup that had been in the can is now mixed with my flour. I let the dogs out and sigh. Those child locks might work for me but they are no match for my husky! I get over my rage before letting the dogs back in. I can get a shovel and put everything into the compost.

I let the dogs into the house and begin to clean up. This seems like my nightly ritual. I slip and fall. Now covered in flour and ceaser salad dressing, I go to get changed. I enter my bed room, what is that smell. Feta cheese salad dressing, and it is on my bed. This was it I need to do something about this. I came to terms with it. My male has separation anxiety.

I spent days researching the topic on the web and well nothing seemed to work. There was no hope for this dog. I tried leaving a different times, changing my routine, everything that the experts said. I even went and hired a dog walker. I had no idea what to do besides putting him in a kennel, that was going to be expensive.

At all wits end I had no choice but to crate train. It is hard enough to crate train a pup but I have a two year old dog. We build a large room in the basement. I put all their toys inside the room along with a blanket for each of them and mats. The dogs were upset, before this they had never entered the basement.

The first couple of days were awful. I could con my male down the stairs but the female had to be carried. Every time they went to the basement I would provide their favorite treat, the dentabone. Now they say that these things should last for hours! With my dogs, fifteen minutes tops. The first couple of weeks the dogs were mad at me, they escaped every three days. Every time they escaped something else would be destroyed and my husband and I would spend a couple of hours re-enforcing. After a couple of weeks, we finally go the room dog proofed. Then things started to change.

I had to do some laundry, which meant I had to go to the basement. I went down stairs and my male followed me. He ran directly into his room. I turned and went into the laundry room. When I emerged he was standing in the door way. He started howling at me. He was mad because I was not putting him into the room. I laughed.

So he was upset at first but now things are better, he genuinely enjoys his space. Now when I get home I can enjoy my dogs, I am not upset at the at all but just happy to see them. This lesson took me a long time to learn. I went through a half dozen remotes, five cell phones, fifteen cordless phones and one lamp, I think that he got shocked. So now he is happy and so I am. Lesson learnt!

He gets rewarded when he gets put into the room and rewarded when he gets out. Me, I get to come home to a clean house!

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