Separation anxiety/barking

Question
I searched this site but haven't seen a directly-related answer to this
question--I recently adopted a approx. 2-year-old lab mix rescue dog--he
lived with a family for a couple of years but they were moving and couldn't
bring him along so they turned him into the pound.  Long story short, he has
clear signs of separation anxiety whenever I leave the house now.  When I am
home, he is quiet, well-behaved, and a bundle of joy.  As soon as I leave
(sometime he's in his crate, sometimes I leave him out and let him roam
around the living room and have the couch to sleep on) he whines/barks/
cries/howls.  He loves going in his crate at night because he knows I'm
staying in the house to sleep in the room next door, but without fail he freaks
out when I leave.  I'm hopeful he'll outgrow this, but in the meantime I have
neighbors who could get the landlord to kick me out if this doesn't improve
soon.  I leave him with toys, often a bone or kong with peanut butter buried
deep inside, and the radio or TV on, none of which seem to help.

Last night, I left him out of his crate and then left the house but sat outside
for 5 min hoping his barking would stop.  It didn't, so I went inside, yelled at
him in a very reprimanding voice (oh, did he look pathetic because I think he
knew he disappointed me), and left again.  He did not bark for the first 5
minutes, but I'm not sure if he started back up later.  He was not barking
when I waited outside when I got home.  

Aim I on the right track with training?  The reprimanding seemed to work last
night, but was that a one-time thing?  Additionally, I do the whole ignore-
him-for-10-min-until-he-calms-down thing when I get home.  I take him for
at least 30 min walks every morning and stay home with him for about 2
hours before I leave for work so he's not immediately back in his crate in the
morning.  Can you recommend any inexpensive but effective (and preferably
shock-free) training devices?

Thanks in advance for your help--I really don't want to get kicked out of my
apartment nor have to get rid of him, as other than this he is a sweet and
wonderful dog.

Answer
Hi Sarah,

Isn't it amazing that families just give up dogs because they are inconvenient? I don't know of one dog that would do the same to its human.  Congratulations for taking this guy in and taking care of him. There are several things in your post I'd like to respond to.

First, he won't outgrow this behavior but it isn't severe separation anxiety that you describe. Sure he misses you when you leave (his family just ditched him!).  You are on the right track except for three things. One: scolding won't work. Would it work for you if  you were scared?  Two: put him in the crate for 5 minutes while you remain IN the house doing something else, maybe in another room. Gradually build up the time.  Yes, do the 5 minutes with you on the porch, or out in the yard and gradually build up his time alone. I realize with jobs and things this is hard. Three: peanut butter in a kong will last your dog all of about 5 minutes and then it's gone. To properly stuff a kong, he should be able to get to some of the good stuff immediately but he should have to work for about 30 minutes to get all the good stuff in the bottom. This will keep him much more occupied for a longer period of time. Go to www.kong.com for recipes and tips on how to properly stuff a kong. Also you can buy interactive toys for those times you leave him out of the crate. There are several for dogs.

When you let your dog out of his crate, do not let him out if he is whining, barking or carrying on. He must remain calm to get out. So ignoring him for 5-10 minutes is a good idea and you are already doing that.

Something must be helping since you said he was not barking when you waited outside upon coming home. So that's good. You'll never know how long he barks unless you set up a camera or something.

As for training devices, the only thing I could think of that might work in this case is a citronella collar however I wouldn't use it for several reasons. One: I don't like to leave anythign on my dogs' necks when I'm not home. Two: He's lonely, not being bad at all. Three: many dogs learn how to either quickly empty the canister by continuting to bark through it or learn how to bark/whine/make noise sub threshold of the spray.

Lastly, maybe he doesn't like where the crate is in the house. I know this sounds funny but I once had a beagle who did the same thing as your dog. Once I moved his crate from the kitchen to a corner in the living room, he settled down pretty fast.

You are on the right track. Good luck,

Jaz