Dog Swap Thursdays.

Zabora is spending the holiday at her other fostermom’s house, so I’m going to do a little switch up and talk about another sweet pup in my life. Stay tuned to Love and a Six-Foot Leash for updates on Z!  Don’t worry, I miss her just as much as you do.

No more than twelve hours after dropping Zabora off, I picked up Mandy (think I have problems with being dog-less?). Like I mention in my Past Paw Prints, Mandy is a dog I dog-sit often. She is a beagle/sheltie mix, which is where she gets the sweetest puppy eyes you’ve ever seen in an eight year old dog.

Mandy actually was adopted from the Montgomery County Humane Society many years ago. She is a true testament to how you can find a wonderful family dog at an animal shelter.

Like many other perfect dogs, Mandy does have a small fault. She recently developed pretty severe separation anxiety, for reasons we will probably never know. Developing this anxiety late in life and out of the blue is surprisingly not uncommon in dogs.

Unfortunately, separation anxiety can be a pretty daunting issue to overcome. Luckily Mandy’s owners are wonderful and willing to work with her on it. A lot of it comes down to both stimulation and distraction, and requires action when you are and are not around. Here is a brief article on separation anxiety that I think covers some key points. Internet articles, books, and professional behaviorists are great resources for learning about separation anxiety. Background knowledge on the issue is crucial to addressing it.

Lucky for Mandy, she is easy enough for me to bring almost anywhere. She frequents my dinner dates with friends, loves coming on car rides, and is probably happiest sleeping on the floor at work with me all day.  She is a joy to have around, and she is absolutely adorable… wouldn’t you agree?