Question for dog lovers. re: A dog's memory......

[clarice]

I know it sounds silly but....my husband left on a 3 week business trip
and his dog has been mopey and isn't eating well.
My question...how long is a dog's memory? How long will he know that
his master isn't here? Does this question even make sense?

[onehandle]

1. Longer than 3 weeks, sorry.

Play with/pay attention to him and give him extra treats.

He'll be ok.

[clarice]

2. Thanks, that is what i figured. nt

[underahedgerow]

3. I know it sounds silly, but explain it to him! Tell him 'daddy' will be back in a few minutes, lol

dogs don't seem to know from 5 minutes, 5 days or 5 weeks, I get the same greeting, so I always tell lil Kevin I'll be back in a few minutes.

But commiserate with him, he misses his daddy.

Poor sad pooch. It makes perfect sense, the leader of your pack isn't there and he's a bit lost without some direction. But it does help to explain it to him, they understand far more than we think they do, especially if you make the effort to communicate with them.

[woodsprite]

4. So true! We had a beagle that would act the same way when my Dad

went on a business trip. He would know when Dad was coming home as well. He would start whining to be let outside about an 45-min before we expected Dad to arrive home from a trip. He'd just sit outside on the porch staring up the driveway, ears alert, just waiting. Somehow Barney could always tell. We always said it was like he knew when Dad hit that 5-mile radius from home.

Talk to him, give him extra love and he should be fine. Since 3 wks is a rather long time, a few extra treats might help keep him from losing too much weight while Dad's away. If you have a t-shirt of your husband's (something with his scent on it), you could see if it helps to put it in his bed with him.

[Avalux]

5. Someone told me once that when every time you leave, the dog doesn't know you're coming back.

They can't think "it's ok, she'll be back in a few hours". They literally don't have the expectation to see you again.

I don't know if that's true, but it could explain the greeting I get when I come home, whether it's 5 minutes or a week.

It might be a good idea to distract your mopey pup with walks, dog park, playing fetch, whatever. Give him something to do.

[bigwillq]

10. That just made me teary-eyed.

I never heard that before or thought about it that way before.
Dogs are such awesome creatures.

[Skittles]

11. I heard that after 10 days they assume you are dead

[underahedgerow]

13. My lil Kevin has learned key phrases I use for reassurance. I ALWAYS say 'I'll be back in a few

minutes' when I leave, I started this when he was a pup, the few times I had to leave him. I started with the same phrase in the house as training, leaving a room & closing the door and saying 'Ill be back in a few minutes'. He's a sensitive dog and needed a lot of reassurance when he was little. He learned of course that I'll always be back and has absolutely no insecurities when I have to leave him home. He just settles in and takes a nap.

It's important to use key phrases in training and to be very consistent. In 'potty training' him, he caught on immediately as I'd take him out to 'do his business' every couple hours and after meals, I'd rush him outside and let him start his stroll and when he finally peed or poo'd I would give him a treat and say, 'do your business'. I transitioned into saying 'do your business' the moment we got outside and he caught on really fast, in just a few days, and to this day if I say 'do your business', his little leg flies up and he'll do a little piddle. Of course he would have accidents in the house when he was a wee pup, but never, ever, anymore.

Remember that it's also important to not make a big fuss at all when you return from anywhere, and in fact, if your doggie gets over-excited that can increase any anxiety he may have had in your absence. I made a point to ignore Kevin for a few minutes on any return, and that prevents and resolves any jumping up, attention seeking behavior, which is very unpleasant for guests. It creates the pack leader scenario, where, he gets your attention when you decide, not when he decides and establishes your dominance, fostering a calmer, more controlled cohabitation.

You're right about the walks too. Consistent walks establish the needed pack leader scenario so that when 'daddy' is away, the doggie knows that when he is gone, (you) are the other pack leader. It's very reassuring for them to know everyone's place in the home pack hierarchy.

I'm a huge fan of Cesar Millan.... Dog owners benefit amazingly from his insight and knowledge, I just love his work.

[MicaelS]

6. Do you have a something with your husband's "scent"?

Dogs have much better sense of smell then ours. A dirty T-shirt with your husbands odor might do well to calm the dog. Give it to him, and let him sleep with it. Consider it "lost in the wash".

[clarice]

18. That's a GREAT idea. Thanks nt

[TexasBushwhacker]

7. I know this sounds goofy

But maybe your husband can call and you can put the phone to your dog's ear.

[PRB]

9. Not really goofy. I actually used to do that when out of town.

Our dog would recognize my voice. Just use the speaker and utter familiar things.

[Skittles]

12. I remember once seeing the results of a poll

where a great percentage of pet owners confessed to leaving phone messages for their pets

[Rhiannon12866]

15. Not strange at all. I've done that, too...

[a la izquierda]

16. My husband does that when I travel

I'll call and he puts me on speaker. My chihuahua comes running!

[shenmue]

8. My poodle freaks out when Dad leaves the house

[Rhiannon12866]

14. My dog was particularly attached to my father

My Dad was a huge animal lover and was equally attached to the dog. My parents were great travelers, my Dad would spend most of the year planning their annual vacation, visited places in Europe, China, Russia, Israel, Egypt, countries he thought were important to see. They'd be gone for as long as three weeks and the dog certainly noticed. My job was to pick them up at the airport and, of course, I brought the dog. And the first couple of days after they came back, the dog - as much as he loved my Dad - would completely ignore them. My mother was upset by it, though he always got over it, but my Dad understood and found it kind of amusing. He was obviously a very smart dog - had him until nearly his 19th birthday - but no one will ever convince me that dogs don't understand things, and remember.

[magical thyme]

17. he will know that mr. clarice isn't here until mr. clarice returns.

So tell him mr. clarice will be back soon. Try holding the phone to his ear so he can hear mr. clarice's voice -- maybe that will help.

ooh, and if you still have a dirty sock that mr. clarice wore before leaving on his trip, see if letting him have that will give him some comfort. (I just cleaned out the dog's crate to wash their quilt, and found some missing undies and socks hidden in the quilt :chuckle

[clarice]

19. lol. I'll look. nt

[clarice]

20. Thanks to all for your wonderful suggestions. nt

[Nitram]

21. Outside a Tokyo, Japan train station (Shibuya) there is a statue in memory of a dog

That went to the train station every day until it died to meet his master coming home - for years after his master died.

[AngryOldDem]

22. Their memories are astonishing, I think...

...especially for creatures who really have no concept of time.

Our oldest is out of the house and basically comes home once or twice a year. For some reason, she seems to be our dog's favorite. When she comes into the house, the dog goes nuts, and is basically at our daughter's side the entire time she's home (again, it could be a year between her visits). Then, when she leaves, the dog is definitely depressed for awhile. Mopes around, doesn't really want to play, etc.

You'd think it would be "out of sight, out of mind" after a year, and my daughter would be a virtual stranger to the dog, but no. Dogs are amazing.