barking/anxious dog

Question
I have an almost 4 year old male, german shorthaired pointer. I have had him since he was about 8 weeks old. When traveling in the car, if i got out to pump gas, he would always get nervous, but leaving him in my home when I went to work, never seemed to bother him. He often never got out of bed when he heard and saw me getting ready. A month ago I moved to a new city/home with my girlfriend. Since then, he becomes anxiouis as soon as I get out of bed, he follows me arond the house as I get ready, runs to the door when I leave, and the neighbors have said he barks constantly when we are gone. I bought a bark collar, but i don't know if it is working. any ideas? please help, i hate to hear him bark(when i pull in the driveway), and i hate that my neighbors hate him, he really is a great dog.

Answer
Hi, Garrett,

If you don't have any way of knowing whether the bark collar is working, I would not use it when you're not there to observe its effectiveness.  

It could be that he always had some form of separation anxiety, but the move has made it worse.  You could try some of the suggestions in these documents, but if you don't have any success, you may wish to contact a trainer in your area for first-hand help.  You can find some good referrals at this website:

www.apdt.com

http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/sep-anxiety.pdf
http://www.marinhumanesociety.org/Behavior/Handouts/SeparationAnxietyShortRx.pdf
http://www.marinhumanesociety.org/Behavior/Handouts/Anxiety.pdf