Separation anxiety is one of the most common behavioural problems in dogs, causing severe distress when left alone, and is both preventable with early training and treatable with appropriate intervention.
Separation anxiety causes genuine acute distress each time a dog is left alone. Dogs with severe anxiety cannot be left for normal periods without suffering equivalent to a panic attack. Prevention through early graduated training is far easier than treatment. For established cases, a combination of medication to reduce baseline anxiety and systematic behaviour modification achieves lasting improvement.