[Beholden]

My dog Jack has been off his OCD medication for about 2 months now. He is "cured' from his seperation anxiety! He doesn't eat the door knob, door trim or dry wall anymore.

He did start one other behavior thing though. He never has had a problem going up or down the stairs.

Now he is really anxious about coming down them.

The vet suggested putting his leash on and walking next to him. That does work, but I'm just wondering WHY?

My hubby and I want to start doing pet therapy with Jack. When we first looked into what we have to do, we were told Jack needs to get over his seperation anxiety. I just went on line to see where we go for training.

It is only 2 times a year. So I'm going to get all the books the site suggests as a way to get me prepared. Jack is so laid back and sweet.

Any of you have therapy dogs?

[roads]

I have a therapy cat now. Have had one other cat &two therapy dogs in the past. They do so much good!

jack might have stumbled once or something & it spooked him or he saw a spider or a shoe or anything. could be a shadow once he didn't expect or a noise startled him...could really be anything..are the stairs open backed? stairs can be a tough one for some dogs. you can try leaving treats on the stairs to see if that will entice him to go up & down. don't force..make it a game & let him do it at his own pace.

i have a foster now who fell down some stairs at some point & he is very wary of my back stairs which are open backs. solid ones he is fine on but other ones...he almost refuses to use.

the separation anxiety is a hard one to get over for the test..i had a dog who would have been an excellent therapy dog but that was his downfall. he was fine with wheelchairs, crutches, leaving food, etc but the anxiety was something he could never master...

good luck tho...keep trying if he doesn't pass the class the first time..retake it.

[Beholden]

Thanks stumpy. It's weird about the stairs with Jack as he used to run up and down without thinking about it.

He does really good with the being alone now.

I'm going to make a trip to the library tonight and get a book or order them if not availiable. Hubby just got home, so must run.

[lizardlady]

Beholden, has the vet checked Jack to see if there is a physical reason he does want to go down stairs? If he used to it and doesn't anymore, maybe there's a health reason.

[Beholden]

I told the vet about it, but she wasn't concerned. She stretched his legs to see if there was something going on, did other quick checks.

The stairs are completely inclosed, are carpeted, and we even put a new light on the wall about 4 steps down so he would have more light.

The vet checked his eyes as well, I thought he was having a vision issue since this is a new fear he has. He is healthy.

Anxious about coming down the steps, but healthy. If I put my hand on his collar, but don't pull, he 'feels' safer and will come down with a lot of baby talk.

He doesn't go down the basement at all, which is where he used to sleep with me. Now he sleeps way upstair. (Our house is 3 levels with a completely finished basement.)

I'll keep working with him to reassure him, but it's just weird.