dog depression

Question
Hi,
We recently had to lay to rest our older dog, the younger dog (5.5yrs) seems to miss her companion.  She is not as playful as she was, she seems to whine for no reason, and most recently deficated in the kitchen.  Could this be signs of depression? What are typical signs of depression in dogs?  If it is depression do you have any suggestions to help ease this transition from 2 dogs to 1 dog?

Answer
Dogs grieve the loss of any pack member, human or otherwise, and part of the grieving process is loss of appetite, loss of interest in activities (such as playing fetch, going for walks, etc.), whining, searching rooms repeatedly, howling at doors, barrier frustration (chewing at or scratching at windows and doors), in other words: expressing their distress and apparent confusion at the loss of this important individual.  Defecating can be marking behavior, meaning that your dog leaves her scent (this stool should be especially stinky) in an attempt to mark the area so that the missing pack member can "find" it.  It might also be a sign of stress (as in irritable bowel in humans).

Your remaining dog will recover from this depression, but what you do in the mean time is important.  Do not correct or punish her in any way for her lapses in social function (whining, pacing, inappropriate elimination, etc.)  Instead, be a stable, patient and consistent leader.  Interact with her as you always have; take her out, offer play time, ask her for trained behaviors that you can reward, and pamper her just a little bit.  Within a few weeks, she should return to her normal self.  You may see some new behaviors, since she is now the only dog and will be asserting that position, but these shouldn't pose any problem.