Crying constantly while working from home

[Benny910]

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I have no idea what is happening to our staffie, my partner and I have both started working from home - I have been at it for about 6 months and she has been at it for about a month.

ever since she started, our staff does not stop crying unless he is touching her, like pretty much in her face.

He is fine when we leave the house and shows no separation anxiety then but the minute she sits down for work, it is crying and trying to climb on her from the moment she starts to when she finishes (just her, not me)

it’s like he has separation anxiety from her even though she is here? He is not like this on a weekend, only when she is working.

Any advice on how to manage this would or what this is, would be super helpful.

 

[JudyN]

How old is he, and how long have you had him for? Has your wife tried working in a different room, to see if this is related to where she is? Does he seem content if she pays him attention? What about if he has something to distract him, like a bone? Does he have a comfortable bed where he can be close to her - I'm wondering if you could even get him a bed that is raised up to her height so he's right next to her.

I'm just throwing in lots of ideas in case it gives a clue as to what it is that bothering him, but others may have more insights.

 

[Benny910]

How old is he, and how long have you had him for? Has your wife tried working in a different room, to see if this is related to where she is? Does he seem content if she pays him attention? What about if he has something to distract him, like a bone? Does he have a comfortable bed where he can be close to her - I'm wondering if you could even get him a bed that is raised up to her height so he's right next to her.

I'm just throwing in lots of ideas in case it gives a clue as to what it is that bothering him, but others may have more insights.

so he is 6, we have had him since he was 2/3.

we don’t really have anywhere else to move her to, to work from unfortunately.

He is quiet and content if she is touching/petting him but the second she stops he is back to it - obviously she can’t constantly do it cos it stops her from working.

We have tried treats and toys but he is only interested in her and won’t be distracted.

He has a nice bed right next to her desk but he won’t use it, he just lays under her desk while trying to climb into her lap.

we have tried separating him to another room and he just sits and cries at the door so we don’t get any peace from the crying.

She definitely used to spoil him far too much and if he cried for any reason she would be straight to cuddling him - like fireworks, yes he needs comforting - because his big doggy sister won’t play with him, doesn’t need cuddling for that but she used to do it.

She has stopped this now but I think that has something to do with it - but on a weekend, even if we are still on computers or cleaning or whatever, he is perfectly fine and when we go out he is fine too.

The issue is really specific to when she is working and I am baffled.

 

[JudyN]

Hmmm... It might help (eventually) if your wife trained a 'calm settle', using Kikopup's approach:

Or this one might help:

But of course they're not dealing with whatever the underlying cause of the anxiety is, and at the moment I can't come up with anything.

 

[JudyN]

Oh, BTW, any training should start in a situation where he's not already anxious, and only moved to the specific situation when he has it nailed. And then you would start by only asking for short periods of 'calm behaviours' and gradually extending them.

 

[JudyN]

Just another thought - is there any specific equipment, e.g. PC or even desk lamp, that your wife uses for work? She could maybe try sitting at the work desk but with everything turned off, or even doing something 'different', like reading a book, chatting to you, looking out the window. Maybe your dog can sense something different in her focus while she's working.

 

[Rose - Marie Langley]

I have no idea what is happening to our staffie, my partner and I have both started working from home - I have been at it for about 6 months and she has been at it for about a month.

ever since she started, our staff does not stop crying unless he is touching her, like pretty much in her face.

He is fine when we leave the house and shows no separation anxiety then but the minute she sits down for work, it is crying and trying to climb on her from the moment she starts to when she finishes (just her, not me)

it’s like he has separation anxiety from her even though she is here? He is not like this on a weekend, only when she is working.

Any advice on how to manage this would or what this is, would be super helpful.

 

[Rose - Marie Langley]

Hey!

Have you tried any enrichment toys? a Kong stuffed with some meats/ treats/cheese ect? When your wife is about to start her work, maybe place the enrichment toy down to give your staffy some mental and physical stimulation. Or you could even put some of his food in it. I wouldn't do it the same time every day, do various times - before she starts working, just as she is starting or start working then 20/30 minutes introduce the kong.