We have moved house and been in there for two weeks. Max is not coping at all
Whenever we leave him he is howling and whining and getting himself in a right state.
My mum lives next door and is at home at the moment so she can hear him and has told me how bad he is, I also could hear him on the phone while speaking to my mum. She has to go back to work soon so unfortunately can't doggy sit for us and we need him to get used to being left as he did in the previous house. I know he wasn't silent in the old house but I'm sure he wasn't this bad either, our old neighbours only ever mentioned it twice (we have had him for over a year at the old house) and my other neighbour (not attached) said she never heard him.
I have tried loads of different things, it's been difficult to try and train while we are decorating. But we've tried leaving him downstairs while we go upstairs and he hasn't created as bad but it's because he knows we are still in the house. We've been shutting the doors and coming back in and just ignoring him.
We kept his routine exactly the same as before, 30 minute walk in the morning, left him in the kitchen with his bed, his small kong and a dental stick. He used to eat anything we left but is now leaving them, a sign of stress.
We've tried leaving a blanket that smells of us in his bed.
A big kong filled with treats, he didn't touch it.
Tried leaving our other dog with him, didn't work. He clearly prefers human company.
Left him with the run of the house, hasn't worked.
Left him in his crate which he happily goes in at night in our bedroom to sleep, didn't work. He ended up in a worse state than ever!
We're trying to be strict with him and not allow him to keep jumping up and having a cuddle when he wants it as I've read this can reinforce the 'over-bonding', we've stopped him following us everywhere in the house too.
I am just at my wits end!
I don't know what else to do, I hate the thought of him being so stressed which is making me stressed. I don't want to annoy the other neighbours either - I have knocked and told them he is unsettled at the moment and they've been understanding but how long that will last for I don't know!
He is left for three hours in the morning, I then come home for 1 hr lunch and then he is left for another three and a half hours.
He is absolutely fine when we are there, he does bark at noises but whines very little unless he gets excited.
He went to doggy day care Friday just gone and got on well there so I am going to take him there once a week to hopefully get him well exercised and hopefully calmer for the rest of the week. We don't really have the money to pay for a dog walker/day care for everyday and I'm not sure it would help as it seems to be when he is left alone.
The next option is to try one of those recorders that you can speak through to see if it would help him think we are still in the house and settle a bit better?
The absolute last option would be to rehome him as its not fair on him if he can't settle. I don't want to do this as we love him to bits but I would do it for the benefit of him!
Any suggestions would be appreciated
