Hello - Sorry in advance for the long post, I just want to get all the pertinent details in :-) We just got back from 5 days traveling over Thanksgiving, at which time we boarded our 1-year old German Shepherd. My husband and I had to go to a different boarding facility than onces we've taken him to before, because the other two we've used in the past were booked; however, we met the owner and inspected the facility before we dropped off Gus to make sure it looked ok, and we were happy with the very clean kennels and the very nice owner. Gus had an indoor/outdoor kennel, and there were also other play areas where similarly-matched dogs would have supervised playtime every day. The place was very clean, we got a full tour, and the owner had a very nice personality and told us she didn't like to push the dogs to like her; she let them take their time and approach her when they were ready. When we dropped Gus off, we brought some of his favorite toys and treats with him, and we didn't coo or carry on when we left, because we know that can just make the dog anxious.

Gus has been boarded before, and he was also in doggie daycare from 3 months old to about 6 months old. The last time we boarded him was about 7 months ago for 3 days. EVERY kennel we've had him in said he did great, was a wonderful dog, had a great time playing with other dogs, etc. He is a bit fearful of strangers (which could have been because of a bad daycare experience, but we have no way of knowing, all we know is that we have to work with him to make him aloof, not fearful). My husband and I are committed to working on getting Gus past his fearfulness so that it does not progress into fear biting. However, in other kennels, he would be shy at first, but it only took about a day for him to get used to the kennel owners/handlers, and then he would be fine with them (especially after he saw they were providing him with his yummy food!). He has always been great with other dogs, loved playing with them, and would often bond with one or two dogs in particular that would become his "kennel buddy" while he was boarded.

But when we picked up Gus and asked how he did, the owner said, "horrible!" She said Gus didn't want to have anything to do with her the entire time, he wouldn't play with the other dogs, wouldn't take treats from her, and he just paced a lot. Also, it looked like he hardly ate anything while he was there... it looks like he lost a bit of weight (but we just took him to the vet last week and he got a clean bill of health, so we know it's not health related). The owner actually said to us, "if I didn't know any better, I would think this dog has been abused!" I was horrified when she said this, because my husband and I do NOT abuse our dog in any way.

So we got home, gave him a bath, gave him a snack (which he ate ravenously), and put him in his crate for about an hour nap (he was pretty tired). Then we took him out to chat with our neighbors, which I was worried about because of the fearfulness the kennel owner described, but it took him no time at all to approach them, sniff them, and generally accept them (we told our neighbors to ignore Gus, which they did). By the end of our 10 minute talk they could even give him a pat on the head without Gus acting calm with no fearful reactions. I was surprised by this because the owner of the kennel had just described him to be EXTREMELY fearful, and left me with the impression that Gus's fearfulness was much worse than I originally thought. Now I'm wondering if he was just suffering from separation anxiety. However, we didn't anticipate separation anxiety because of past positive boarding experiences, and also because Gus is crated during the day when my husband and I are at work, and he seems perfectly happy and calm there. He never barks or whines when we leave the house. Gus was back to his old self after we got home from the boarding kennel, happy, snuggly, full of energy, wanting lots of tummy rubs, good appetite, and all the rest.

What does this sound like to you all? I can't figure out if we should be extremely alarmed (at Gus? at the kennel?) and/or if we should just chalk it up to a bad boarding experience. Is there anything we can/should do? My husband and I are considering hiring one of those dog trainers that specializes in "behavior modification" in dogs so that she can come to our home and properly assess Gus's behavior and give us advice on how to help him "modify" his inappropriate (and potentially dangerous) behavior into more healthy behavior. Is this even worth doing?

Sorry again for the long post, and thanks in advance for your input :-)

 Quote: liz thomson

My husband and I are considering hiring one of those dog trainers that specializes in "behavior modification" in dogs so that she can come to our home and properly assess Gus's behavior and give us advice on how to help him "modify" his inappropriate (and potentially dangerous) behavior into more healthy behavior. Is this even worth doing?

If you do, I don't understand why you would do this session at the home; it sounds like Gus does fine there. This is supported by the fact that he had a positive reaction to your neighbors. I would go to the place the dog had problems if the facility will allow you to do a behavior session there.

It seems to me that someone isn't telling the truth here. I don't understand how at one place you have problems, yet never previously had problems. My guess would be it is the person that said everything was fine, just fine. Why would they want to discourage your dog from coming there? I hope this isn't the case, but it is something to keep in mind.

You mentioned the normal boarding facility was booked. Is the doggie day care the same place that you normally board him? Or have you boarded him at more than two boarding facilities to compare?

We've had Gus in two different doggie day care facilities, and a boarding kennel before this most recent kennel. So to date, he's been in 4 different facilities, and every one of those places except this most recent one all said he did great. In addition, from what we observed when we would pick Gus up from these places, he was happily playing with other dogs. But you're right, I do feel as though, as a rule, places like this are not going to be completely candid with me because they either want to cover their butts, or maybe they just aren't around enough to observe the behavior themselves.

We were thinking of doing the dog trainer because Gus acts shy/frightened with strangers in general, whether they're in our house, on our property, or out in town. From what we've observed, his reactions are pretty similar, no matter what the environment.

I also wanted to mention that Gus got his bordatella booster "shot" (it was actually given via nasal spray) the day before we boarded him.... could this possibly have contributed to his behavior? I know this is a shot in the dark, but I've heard that some people don't like to give vaccines to dogs because it can affect them, although I admit I'm not very educated on this subject.

 Quote: liz thomson

I also wanted to mention that Gus got his bordetella booster "shot" (it was actually given via nasal spray) the day before we boarded him.... could this possibly have contributed to his behavior? I know this is a shot in the dark, but I've heard that some people don't like to give vaccines to dogs because it can affect them, although I admit I'm not very educated on this subject.

In my opinion it is absolutely ridiculous for a vet to give a vaccine the day before potential exposure. At best the animal wouldn't have developed immunity until 7-10 days after the vaccination, and there are so many Bordetella viruses that a vaccine can't provide immunity to them all.
http://www.siriusdog.com/articles/dogs-vaccination-vaccinosis-myths-disease.htm
It is a possibility that the Bordetella vaccine made him sick. That could be a possible explanation for his changed behavior. Rabies vaccines can also cause changes in behavior, among other things. http://www.drpitcairn.com/talks/looking_at_vaccines.html
I would not rule out problems caused by the boarding experience either, especially since he acted fine once he was home. How did he act at the kennel when you picked him up?
In light of how he normally acts the whole situation, as described by the owner of the boarding facility, sounds very odd to me.

Yeah, I wouldn't rule out behavioral issues, but it seems like Bordatella could cause a lot of symptoms that could lead to the type of behavior he was exhibiting.

Also, I'd steer clear of places that have exercise areas for multiple off-leash dogs. No boarding site can get to know a dog well enough in a few days for me to trust them to make a decision about who my dog plays with. Try to find boarding that either has a person playing with your dog, or just leaves your dog kenneled. Being in a kennel with no real outlet for a week would suck (a lot), but it would be better than a dog fight that could (at worse) kill your dog, and at best leave it dog aggressive for life.

I know I'm totally paranoid about this issue, but...it is what it is.

Unfortunately our vet was so busy that the day before we left was the only day they had an appointment (even though we called a month before our trip). So it wasn't our choice, but that's just what we got. It sounds like next time we'll be sure not to give him any vaccines before boarding (and thank you for those article links about vaccines... it definitely makes me re-evaluate whether he should have them at all; however, boarding kennels require them, so it kind of puts us between a rock and a hard place!).

Anyway, to answer your question Debbie, when we picked him up from the boarder, he was even unsure of my husband coming into his run to get him... Gus made EXTRA sure it was my husband before coming to him. Once he realized it was us, he was very happy to see us, jumping up on us and giving us kisses. But he was whining a lot, and still didn't want the kennel owner to come near him.

We know Gus has some fear-based behavior issues that we are currently addressing, but I also wanted to be sure we were addressing the RIGHT issue (this experience made me wonder if Gus was fearful, or is is separation anxiety? or both? or one caused by the other?). But I suppose that sometimes the best way to find out whether a technique works is simply trial and error! So, we're going to work on techniques using positive reinforcement to desensitize him and get him used to human manerisms so that he recognizes them as normal and non-threatening instead of something to be afraid of. As he progresses, I think one step in our training will be to take him back to this kennel (for a visit, not to board him!) to continue the desensitizing. But I just don't think we're there yet.

It really sounds like he was just nervous. Seperation Anxiety usually manifests a lot more...violently. Dogs with true SA have been seen pawing violently at doors (until bloody), howling non-stop, and trying to dig through concrete.

I wouldn't say it is the disorder referred to as Seperation Anxiety, but it sounds like a moderate form of anxiety. I'm no expert in this, and hopefully someone with a lot of experience will be able to come in and assess it for you.

What kind of socialization did he receive at a young age? Have you had him since he was a pup? Did you get him from a breeder, or from the pound?

We got Gus from a breeder at about 3 months old. The breeder told us that she breeds for good temperment and raises the pups in the home so that they are used to other animals, household noises, and people coming and going. When he came to our home, he seemed very confident and playful, and for the first couple days he tended to stay closer to me and was a bit unsure of my husband until he got more used to him. Now he is very tightly bonded to both of us, and seems to be very pack driven.

We socialized Gus in our neighborhood which always has a lot of people walking their dogs and kids playing in the street. All the kids liked coming up to Gus and petting him, and he didn't mind a bit. We also took him to a dog park until we were told they can be dangerous places. We also did a puppy obedience class starting when he was about 4 months old, and he was fine with both the people and dogs in all situations. Somewhat aloof, but certainly not fearful.

We had him in doggie daycare from the time we got him at 3 months old until he was about 6 months old. We began noticing the behavior changes (shyness toward strangers) around 5 months old. I admit, we were not as diligent with the socializing as we should have been. When he was about 4 months old we moved into a house and renovated it, so our time was sucked up by that. I'm not saying that as an excuse, that's just the reality of what happened. We still exposed him to all the neighbors and the many workers coming into the house, and at around 6 months old Gus began "feeling his oats" and getting those protective instincts by barking at people coming into the house. But then we started noticing the shying away as well, and began to worry. We continued to walk him around people and see if he would approach them or shy away, but obviously we need to do more and better socalization, such as positive reinforcement techniques to desensitize him.

It occurs to me as I write this that it could be the combination of all those changes going on that possibly eroded his confience and made him fearful. Is that possible? We do regular obedience training with him, which he excells at, and he is crate trained, but maybe we should also be doing other things to increase his confidence in other ways? I feel like we obviously did something wrong, and wish we could go back in time, but since we can't we need to just figure out what's going on and deal with it now, before it gets any worse!

liz,

if i am reading your story correctly, you boarded the dog when he was very young, and then not for 7 months, and again when he was 1 yo. i think he may have a fairly normal reaction to boarding. he is not used to it.

the first time we left a terrier when we went on vacation, she sat by the front door for three days and didn't eat, and that was in our own apartment with our own familiar roommates.

we have a gsd/lab who we boarded twice, 1 week each time. the first time she acted like she hadn't slept the entire week we were gone, she practically crawled into my lap in the car on the way home. the second time she was fine. different places, but could also be different times in her life.

appologize for no caps, stupid gsd broke my finger last week when i was trying to correct him for lunging. apparently he is pretty strong.

Hi Liz! Sorry to hear Gus has had a bad experience with a boarding kennel. I worked in a boarding kennel for a year, my first job actually, so I know how things tend to work at those places.

I would say that the shot msot likely caused him to feel ill, and having an adverse reaction to a shot while in a strange environment with strange people, strange dogs, and no security (meaning his home, his territory, his people etc) it does not surprise me that he would wind up this way.

Boarding kennels are interesting places. Depending on the facility the owner is not the one personally caring for or supervising your dog 100% of the time, maybe not even 10% of the time. Are there other employees? If you can, talk to them without the presence of the owner/manager etc to get some other facts about Gus's stay there. A lot of people can end up handling dogs in a boarding kennel, and there are often dogs that are nervous and very scared at kennels, and vocalize this fact constantly, which contributes to an already uneasy dog's "foul mood" so to speak.

To me this sounds like stress, pacing, not eating, being "anti-social" (though being anti-social seems to be his general attitude, as we have discussed in other posts)

I personally would ask if I could take him back to the kennel just to walk him around the grounds and see what his reactions are to things. Generally they should allow you to do this especially if you explain that you want to find out why he was behaving the way he was, in order to discover and help solve the issue for "future boarding visits." Walk him around and see if he reacts fearfully towards certain objects, certain people, etc. BUT I would probably wait for a bit, at least a week, so he gets settled back into life back with family, at home.

This will help you find out what may have happened, if he was just not feeling well from the shot and stressed out, or if something really did happen, or if he was just bothered by a few things that caused extra stress and him to overly avoid people. One thing I generally suggest for nervous or even overly friendly dogs that are going to be boarded is that the owner introduce the dog to the people that will be caring for it and supervise interaction that way.

If it is Seperation Anxiety, which if it was doesn't sound too severe (was he barking all the time, whining a lot, pulling at the chain link, trying to get out of the kennel?) but SA comes from dominance and fear/nervous issues. Most dogs have "Seperation Anxiety" and bark, whine, scream, scratch, tear things apart, and wreak havoc, because they are reacting to their pack member leaving without permission. It is a possessive type behavior. You are THEIR human. You are NOT allowed to leave without them! It is dominance based in that you are seen to be essentially disobeying the alpha by leaving the territory.

With that said, in a boarding kennel situation it is generally caused by the dog not being in it's pack. It is in a strange environment surrounded by strange people and strange dogs, and is stressed and reacting to the environment and not true seperation anxiety. Though yes dogs do exhibit manic "neurotic" SA behavior in kennels and such but those are generally more confidant dominant type dogs or ones that have been allowed to get to that point through no behavior modification, no training, etc.

I would suggest some groundwork and OB, to continue to help with his nervous/fearful behavior. Bonding through possitive experiences and OB will increase his confidence and his respect of/for you and help eliminate any issues that may (or may not) be forming with SA.