Last Updated on February 15, 2022 by Marco
Do husky anxiety symptoms include the dog being sad, grumpy, and not in a mood to play or what do they include?
Did you know huskies suffer from anxiety attacks? The husky anxiety symptoms are not that different from any other dog’s.
A husky’s anxiety usually manifests in barking, whining, howling, escape attempts, and destructive behavior. Although huskies are an outgoing type of dog, socialization doesn’t always prevent this breed from suffering from separation anxiety. The good news is that you can help your husky overcome his condition with time and patience.
Husky Anxiety Symptoms: What To Look Out For
1) The husky still cries when far away from you even after you have taken him to train classes or if he has undergone training by a professional trainer. This is the most common husky anxiety symptom. When your husky gets used to being in class or when they are trained by a professional husky trainer, huskies start to feel safe and secure. If they are trained well enough, huskies manage to relax even when alone or left at home for short periods of time.
2) Continuous barking or howling of the husky. This means your husky is still anxious about something; what could it be? Often huskies bark more often due to anxiety caused by their owner’s neglect or failure to satisfy some of the husky’s basic needs like exercise, playtime, and companionship (if you go out for work).
3) Escaping from the crate or room where he has been kept while you were gone. When your husky escapes his confinement it shows that he is not feeling safe in his surroundings. He is worried that something bad might happen to him while his owner isn’t around or that he might not be able to protect himself from whatever threats he thinks are out there.
4) Destructive behavior in huskies after you have come back home. It’s a husky anxiety symptom because your husky doesn’t feel secure and tries to regain control over the things and situations surrounding him by engaging in destructive behavior like chewing, scratching, and dismantling everything within his reach.
Read more about: Husky Traits and Behaviors
5) Less playful behavior of husky is another husky anxiety symptom. When you come back home after work all excited and full of energy; but your husky acts as if nothing happened! This is an obvious husky anxiety symptom that can make both of you feel awful. It means huskies become so preoccupied with their feelings of anxiety that they just can’t seem to play as usual.
How To Handle An Anxious Husky
Now that you know the symptoms to look for, let’s learn how to handle your anxious dog.
- First of all, learn to identify husky anxiety symptoms early. This can help you stop the problem from escalating.
- If your husky has a tendency to howl a lot when left alone for some time, learn the simple way how to stop a husky from howling when left alone. Simply leave some music on while you’re gone so he can associate your absence with something positive and calming.
- Limit the time you leave them alone. How long can you leave a husky alone? You may not be able to play with huskies all day long, but you can certainly try to spend as much time as possible with your husky. Don’t leave huskies home alone for too long. If you have to go out for work, hire someone else to take care of huskies. Talk it over with your husky and explain how leaving home works; otherwise, the separation anxiety will persist. This is probably one of the most effective husky anxiety remedies.
- Prepare huskies for places where they should wait like training classes and veterinarians’ clinics by using desensitization and counter-conditioning techniques. Teach your husky that spending time at such places isn’t that bad after all! This can help.
- Give your husky more exercise. Exercise is an excellent husky anxiety treatment because it will keep his mind occupied and tire him out so that later in the day he won’t be as anxious. Huskies who get enough physical activity are less likely to develop destructive habits like chewing on furniture or digging on the carpet when they feel anxious about being abandoned by their owner.
- Teach your husky a few tricks and commands. Training huskies isn’t difficult. As a husky owner, you can enroll him in professional husky training classes or you can do it yourself. Teaching your husky some basic manners is an excellent husky anxiety treatment method because it gives him a sense of purpose as well as makes him more obedient. In huskies that are less anxious, good obedience training has been seen to reduce barking by up to 50%! It can also help make them better watchdogs since huskies with better obedience tend to bark only when there’s something really worth barking at.
- Huskies aren’t big chewers. This may be hard for you to believe but they usually love their chew toys and won’t destroy anything else unless they really feel it is necessary for them to do so. If huskies with husky anxiety symptoms chew on things they shouldn’t, you should take the items away and find suitable husky chew toys instead. You can also try putting these husky-proofed items at a place where your husky can reach them but not destroy them.
- Watching TV together. Try spending some time with your husky by watching TV programs with huskies in them. It will help him become more familiarized with other huskies like himself and help teach him that he will be safe even when alone or abandoned by his owner (possibly because his owner has left to watch TV).
Handle husky separation anxiety fast!
Don’t give huskies the opportunity to develop anxiety problems. It is never too early or too late to start training huskies. The earlier you start with husky socialization and husky training the better.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can husky separation anxiety be cured?
Huskies with severe husky anxiety symptoms usually require professional help before they will learn how to relax when their owner is not there. Anti-anxiety medication may work but only for a limited amount of time. Professional dog trainers have had success teaching huskies how to be calm and relaxed even when left alone at home by using counter-conditioning husky obedience commands that are usually combined with desensitization techniques.
Are Huskies prone to anxiety?
Huskies may get husky anxiety symptoms if they aren't socialized early enough and huskies with husky anxiety will also need husky obedience training to be able to cope with being alone. You can teach your husky how to behave when you are not home by using husky separation anxiety tips like the ones above and husky training classes. Some of these husky training methods might work for you and some of them might not but it's always worth a try!
How long can huskies bark?
Huskies bark excessively when they feel that the environment around them is unsafe or that there is danger. This behavior has been observed in many wild dogs such as wolves so don't be surprised if your husky barks a lot. If huskies bark a lot when they are left alone in the house it might be an indication that husky separation anxiety is already starting to manifest itself.
Why is my dog suddenly anxious?
The dog could be experiencing a change in its schedule or missing its owner. Anxious huskies can be trained to become calmer huskies with husky anxiety symptoms. This is done by using husky separation anxiety training techniques. The desensitization method has been proven to work in teaching huskies how to relax when their owner is gone and some huskies even get rid of their husky separation anxiety symptoms on their own once they have been taught that being alone does not necessarily mean something bad will happen to them.
Conclusion
To tame the husky anxiety symptoms early enough, start socializing your dog early enough. Husky socialization should begin as soon as your husky comes to live with you, even if he is still a puppy.
Take him out in public places so that he can get used to loud noises, people, and different situations until he becomes more confident around strangers. You can also enroll him in obedience classes for huskies near your area where huskies will learn not only basic husky commands but how to behave on dog shows and public gatherings like fairs, pet expos, etc.
This way huskies will learn how their owner wants them to behave around other huskies. If you are not able to enroll huskies in husky training classes near your area, you can always train huskies yourself by using husky training manuals or husky e-books which are available online.