What has gotten into her?!

[linz06]

Layla has been acting very strange lately. I don't know what's going on. I left for a three-day weekend, because I had a 6 hour drive to my best friend's house to go bridesmaid dress shopping for her wedding. Layla would HATE being in the car for that long, and I didn't want to just leave her in a strange house all day while I was out shopping, so she stayed home with my roommate taking care of her.
When I was leaving, she was just SCREAMING. She was in the house and the windows were closed and I could hear her from my car out behind our backyard. My heart was breaking!
Yesterday when I got home my roommate said she was barely eating all weekend, and for some reason she has started barking at EVERYTHING. Any person outside, any door that slams. Even when someone came to our door, she would not stop until my roommate picked her up and took her away. I noticed it yesterday too, she was barking almost all night!
When we went to bed she was laying on my bed growling at the wall for a long time, and I tried petting her and comforting her, but her whole body was just TENSE. At 3 am I woke up to a noise beside my head and I saw movement on my night stand. My heart jumped until I realized it was Layla. I thought she was going to get hurt! I turned on my lamp and grabbed her so she wouldn't fall or try to jump, but it startled her and she started struggling and kicking and knocked everything onto the floor... candles, books, a glass that luckily didn't shatter. She knows not to go near my night stand, and she was actually completely ON it. She was so startled though that she was shaking like crazy so I cuddled her until she calmed down.
This is just completely out of the ordinary for her. I thought the barking and stuff was from me leaving, but would she keep acting weird even after I'm back? I don't know what to do!

[Lou]

Give her some time to get back to normal. Obviously your leaving really upset her and she is still reacting to it. Just try to act normally and respond to her actions in the same way you would have before you left. Don't baby her but do give her a little extra attention. But mainly just give her some time.

[linz06]

Thanks for the reply! It just seems so odd that 3 days would have that effect on her. I left her with my parents while I went to Mexico for a week earlier this year and she was completely fine with it. I know my roommate was even taking her out for walks, which is an area I've been slacking in lately! Maybe she just didn't feel comfortable being with her the whole time.

[Lily5]

I'm sure it's just anxiety I would also just give her time to adjust. I would also just try to calm her down when she's barking and growling at pretty much nothing! When I go to bed Lily goes right under the blankets and sometimes she stands at the end of the bed growling and barking at nothing I always say shes just protecting me and scaring away the ghosts! lol Jk!

[Hansch99]

From what I've learned, there's no easy solution. Unfortunately, that severe level of attachment is one of the potential consequences of letting a dog sleep with you at night. She probably felt abandoned. I'm sure your dog will be back to normal once it gets used to having you back again, but it will probably happen again if you leave her for a few days. She'll cope better if you give her a place to sleep other than your bed. In the short term, she'll feel pretty lonely, but she'll eventually be able to spend time better while you're away. You just need to condition her to fend for herself while she's alone.

[Betty'sMom]

That is sad that she was so upset. Does she like your roommate? Is she acting the same toward her/him since you've been back? Maybe your roommate scared her in some way (??) Try leaving her with your parents (even if you just walk outside, without really leaving) and see if she acts the same way.

[linz06]

Well usually she doesn't sleep with me. She has a bed right outside my bedroom door but she rarely sleeps there either. She prefers the floor, or the living room couch. She usually starts off on my bed before going to sleep (she sucks on the corner of my pillow to calm down) and soon after I turn off the light she's gone. Sometimes she's back in the middle of the night, and sometimes she's not back until morning.
I'm not sure how much she likes my roommate. They get along okay, but Layla never really goes to her or cuddles or anything. I know my roommate gets frustrated with her sometimes, and she hates when Layla licks her or does dog things like that. But I don't think she'd ever do anything bad to her. She loves her too, she even calls her "our" dog and was pretty concerned about her not eating much.
Anyways, last night I got home from work and Layla and I went to Petsmart. She was soooo happy. She was a little needy for attention when we got home, but we played and she was better. My brother came in at about midnight, and she got a little riled up but I ignored it, and she stopped. She was quiet for the rest of the night, despite a party going on right across the alley!

[yorkieusa]

It sounds as though she became very scared while you were gone and had no one to make her feel safe. She probably began being scared of shadows and noises, too. She needs to feel safe and she needs to learn that those things she's seeing and hearing won't harm her. I'm sorry that happened. I do feel sorry for her.

[PANAMA69]

Originally Posted by yorkieusa

It sounds as though she became very scared while you were gone and had no one to make her feel safe. She probably began being scared of shadows and noises, too. She needs to feel safe and she needs to learn that those things she's seeing and hearing won't harm her. I'm sorry that happened. I do feel sorry for her.

I agree. Give her time, and extra, extra attention