COVID Dogs Hate “Back to the Office”
Pets that were adopted or gotten during COVID have more anxiety and separation issues than most pets now that COVID lock down is over.
The COVID-19 lockdown was hard for many people in the year of 2020. Starting in March the government issued a nationwide (United States) lockdown due to the rapidly spreading disease, Coronavirus (COVID-19), due to increasing cases of death. What made the lockdown so hard for some people was having to stay at home from school, work, or regular activities such as grocery shopping, and going out into public meant to follow certain social distancing guidelines. During the pandemic it became a trend to adopt a pet for companionship, they were called pandemic pets or more specifically pandemic puppies. Christie Siettou says, “[…] societal interest in puppies increased during […] The national Covid-19 pandemic response policies, including lockdowns, accelerated this trend significantly.” The Journal of Surgical Research says, “Dogs have been one of the ways people and families have mitigated the emotional stresses of the pandemic.”
According to ScienceDirect, many pet owners reported an improved environment with their pet being there with them, “The majority of respondents indicated that their psychological tension was reduced due to the presence of the dog[…].”
Pandemic puppies thus became used to their owners being home and never worried about them leaving for long periods of time. This created separation anxiety in pets, as stated by the AVMA Publications, “[…]is the second most com- mon behavioral problem in dogs […].”
When the COVID-19 lockdown ended and things started to get back to normal, such as going to work or school, these pandemic puppies gained separation anxiety. Barbara L. Sherman at North Carolina State University wrote, “Separation anxiety is a behavioral syndrome of dogs characterized by signs of distress when the affected dog is left alone or is separated from the person or people to whom it is attached.” Any type of dog can have it whether it is a chihuahua or a husky, “Dogs with separation anxiety may be of any breed or mix” (Barbara L. Sherman). However not all dogs with separation anxiety also “express generalized anxiety or hyper attachment to the owner.” Some characteristics of separation anxiety in dogs as expressed in the Understanding Behavior article are, “destructiveness, housesoiling, hypersalivation, vocalization, and pacing. ” To diagnose separation anxiety these actions must be done when the dog is alone. The ScienceDirect Journal of Veterinary Behavior says, “The separation from only one of the owners could trigger a light expres-sion of distress for a short time, essentially crying next to the door then the dog would settle down.”
Separation anxiety though not set to just one breed it is often seen as unclear as to why some dogs get separation anxiety and others do not, according to Bonnie V. G. Beaver who wrote Canine Behavior Insights and Answers, “Why some dogs develop separation anxiety and others do not is unclear.”
Though there were reports of benefits of having a dog during the COVID lockdown there were also reports of behavioral changes in the pets during the lockdown such as “[…] in particular negative behavioural changes such as increased vocalization, fear of loud or sudden noises, problems with being left alone at home, and aggression towards unfamiliar humans and dogs” (ScienceDirect). Vocalization in dogs comes from a deep rooted action of calling out for their mothers when in distress and not by their mothers side, a separation anxiety. “When young puppies are separated from their mother, they use distress vocalization as a technique to reunite them” (Bonnie V. G. Beaver). According to The Veterinary Record, Volume 187, Issue 8, “Our research shows some early warning signs that lockdown is having a negative impact on some dogs behavior.” Aggression in dogs is identified as “perhaps the most challenging canine behavioral problem presented to behavioral specialists and continues to be the most common reason for referral to veterinary behaviorists” according to Ilana R. Reisner in an article ten for Veterinary Clinics: Small Animal Practice.
Codependency between a pet and their owner can be a big problem. Codependency is “excessive emotional or psychological reliance on a partner, typically one who requires support on account of an illness or addiction” (Oxford Languages). Codependency can include “[…] signs such as barking or crying; pacing; chewing or otherwise damaging furniture or the house; using the bathroom on the floor; and even running away.” (Petbucket).
Separation anxiety in dogs, like in humans, can be managed. The Understanding Behavior states the three ways separation anxiety can be managed is “[…]environmental control, behavior modification, and medication.” AVMA Publications released an issue about a study done to test anxiety medications on dogs, whether they improved in their behavior or not. Thirty-Two of the fifty-two dogs in the study showed improvement in separation anxiety behavior, “Thirty-two (62%) dogs had improved, whereas 20 were the same, were worse […].” Along with anxiety medication there are actions that can be done to fix the behavioral problem, such as music therapy, exercise, and creating a safe space according to Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin and Cathy Johnson. The Journal of Veterinary Behavior says“The importance of environmental influences, learning opportunities, and effects of underlying temperament on the outward expression of fear and anxiety should not be underestimated.”
In conclusion, the COVID-19 2020 lockdown affected dogs greatly in a sense that they gained separation anxiety for their owners when left alone for long periods of time. It is evident that dogs thrived on the continuous presence of their owners. The sudden return to a regular schedule is stressful on them. More time together strengthened the bond, making it harder for pets to adjust to being alone more often when the COVID Pandemic Lockdown ended.
References
Aisa, B., Arhant, C., Arvelius, P., Asher, L., Batt, L., Batt, L. S., Battaglia, C. L., Bennett, P. C., Bijlsma, E. Y., Blackwell, E. J., Blackwell, E., Bosch, O. J., Bradshaw, J. W. S., Burghardt, W. F., Casey, R. A., Casey, R., Coppola, C. L., Meester, R. H. D., Dreschel, N. A., … Koolhaas, J. M. (2016, December 12). Minimizing fear and anxiety in working dogs: A Review. Journal of Veterinary Behavior. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1558787816301770?casa_token=2cBJe7d_3AIAAAAA%3A7yJXkDCgMMj_Qk606GdA2VYApgV3O3MQFhLmUPyin7Y6mbydTqeWhBB3QHNgt9oDyRnzqufY5yE
Elsevier. (2006, December 5). Relationship between attachment to owners and separation anxiety in pet dogs (canis lupus familiaris). Journal of Veterinary Behavior. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S155878780600116X
Elsevier. (2021, July 1). Changes in the health and behaviour of pet dogs during the covid-19 pandemic as reported by the owners. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159121001829
Elsevier. (2021, September 16). Societal interest in puppies and the COVID-19 pandemic: A google trends analysis. Preventive Veterinary Medicine. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167587721002403
Engineering, D. of I. (n.d.). Is the lockdown important to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic? … : Annals of medicine and surgery. LWW. https://journals.lww.com/annals-of-medicine-and-surgery/fulltext/2020/08000/Is_the_lockdown_important_to_prevent_the_COVID_19.10.aspx
Google. (n.d.). Google search. https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=what%2Bthe%2Btop%2Bway%2Bto%2Bsolve%2Banxiety%2Bin%2Bdogs&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
James. (n.d.). Signs your dog is co-dependent and how to help him. Petbucket. https://www.petbucket.com/blog/65662/signs-your-dog-is-co-dependent-and-how-to-help-him.html
Loder, R. T., Siettou, C., Dixon, C. A., Saleem, S. M., Piccart, F., Tuckel, P. S., & Overall, K. L. (2022, April 1). Pandemic puppies: Man’s best friend or public health problem? A multidatabase study. Journal of Surgical Research. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S002248042200110X?casa_token=XFnnbIepwksAAAAA%3AtpQiQjfewn_lA_ayIJ8OHKdXVXJF1qyKEy5G24BgFANFrrdXEWcbgytKE-qi6mhF_VVqkN-NuYo Takeuchi, Y., Houpt, K. A., & Scarlett, J. M. (2000, August 1). Evaluation of treatments for separation anxiety in dogs. AVMA. https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/217/3/javma.2000.217.342.xml?tab_body=fulltext
Counterintuitive Fall 2024 
Your References are very peculiar, imaginary.persona.
What’s with all the Author links to panel overlay stuff?
You’ve produced a strong draft that gathers and presents some interesting and relevant material (and some that doesn’t benefit you at all), but there’s plenty of room for improvement, imaginary.persona.
First of all, it’s only partly Definitional/Categorical. Not to worry. This is a common shortcoming of first drafts of the first 1000 words. But it’s important to address all available aspects of def and cat before moving on to causation.
You hint at just one Definition aspect in your Introduction: “families have mitigated the emotional stresses of the pandemic.”
Do you see the categorical value of that claim? You’re saying that Pandemic Puppies were specifically adopted TO ALLEVIATE THE STRESS of their owners.
Is it any wonder, then, that the animals would develop a deep psychological connection to owners WHO WERE DEPENDING ON THEM FOR EMOTIONAL ATTACHMENT?
That’s partly a Causal Argument, but it’s also categorical: COVID Dogs, by definition, are Emotional Support Animals. How do you support this claim?: “The majority of respondents indicated that their psychological tension was reduced due to the presence of the dog[…]”
Pandemic puppies thus became used to their owners being home and never worried about them leaving for long periods of time. YES. But it’s just as true that the owners were just as dependent on the dogs always being at home for THEM.
If you can find quotes from owners who now regret having to return to work and leave behind what for them had become an essential support system, you can nail down this two-way-street dependency.
I have more, but that will have to be all for now. Talk to you again later.
You seem to feel obligated to include contradictory evidence that you might be able to suppress without deceiving your readers, i.p. For example:
Any type of dog can have it whether it is a chihuahua or a husky. As Barbara Sherman explains it: “Dogs with separation anxiety may be of any breed or mix” while “[most] express generalized anxiety or hyper attachment to the owner.” The article Understanding Behavior describes characteristics of separation anxiety in dogs as “destructiveness, housesoiling, hypersalivation, vocalization, and pacing.”
—Sherman may or may not have used the word “most,” but it’s the more persuasive way for you to interpret “not all.”
—Notice also, please, that I eliminated the parenthetical author tags (Barbara L. Sherman) since we don’t use those in this class. Name Sherman as the author of your quote and readers will find her in your References list.
Regarding this claim:
Separation anxiety though not set to just one breed it is often seen as unclear as to why some dogs get separation anxiety and others do not, according to Bonnie V. G. Beaver who wrote Canine Behavior Insights and Answers, “Why some dogs develop separation anxiety and others do not is unclear.” (Bonnie V. G. Beaver). Most dogs with separation anxiety tend to be mixed-breeds, “Although the dogs most commonly presented for separation anxiety are mixed-breed dogs from shelters, purebred dogs that have lived in the same home all of their lives can be subject to this problem” (Simpson, 1998).
—I’m going to suggest that most dogs surrendered to shelters are mixed-breeds just as most dogs adopted from shelters are mixed-breeds, so your finding that most dogs with sepanx are such doesn’t mean much.
Though there were reports of benefits of having a dog during the COVID lockdown there were also reports of behavioral changes in the pets during the lockdown such as “[…] in particular negative behavioural changes such as increased vocalization, fear of loud or sudden noises, problems with being left alone at home, and aggression towards unfamiliar humans and dogs”
—How does this contribute to your theory that dogs adopted DURING COVID are suffering sepanx AFTER COVID? “Behavioral changes during the lockdown” don’t appear to contribute to your needs.
(ScienceDirect). Vocalization in dogs comes from a deep rooted action of calling out for their mothers when in distress and not by their mothers side, a separation anxiety. “When young puppies are separated from their mother, they use distress vocalization as a technique to reunite them” (Bonnie V. G. Beaver). According to The Veterinary Record, Volume 187, Issue 8, “Our research shows some early warning signs that lockdown is having a negative impact on some dogs behavior.”
—Again, this would be helpful if it reflected behavior SINCE the owners of adopted dogs started returning to fulltime work OUTSIDE the home (not during lockdown).
Aggression in dogs is identified as “perhaps the most challenging canine behavioral problem presented to behavioral specialists and continues to be the most common reason for referral to veterinary behaviorists” according to Ilana R. Reisner in an article ten for Veterinary Clinics: Small Animal Practice.
—That’s reasonable, but what does it have to do with your theory? You haven’t established that dogs since the end of the pandemic have become more aggressive, have you?
Codependency between a pet and their owner can be a big problem. Codependency is “excessive emotional or psychological reliance on a partner, typically one who requires support on account of an illness or addiction” (Oxford Languages). Codependency can include “[…] signs such as barking or crying; pacing; chewing or otherwise damaging furniture or the house; using the bathroom on the floor; and even running away.” (Petbucket).
—This will be useful, especially if you connect the “separation from an emotional support animal” as evidence of (or an example of) codependency.
Separation anxiety in dogs, like in humans, can be managed. The Understanding Behavior states the three ways separation anxiety can be managed is “[…]environmental control, behavior modification, and medication.” AVMA Publications released an issue about a study done to test anxiety medications on dogs, whether they improved in their behavior or not. Thirty-Two of the fifty-two dogs in the study showed improvement in separation anxiety behavior, “Thirty-two (62%) dogs had improved, whereas 20 were the same, were worse […].” Along with anxiety medication there are actions that can be done to fix the behavioral problem, such as music therapy, exercise, and creating a safe space according to Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin and Cathy Johnson. The Journal of Veterinary Behavior says “The importance of environmental influences, learning opportunities, and effects of underlying temperament on the outward expression of fear and anxiety should not be underestimated.”
—All this material on medication will be useful, too, but NOT UNTIL you find evidence that anti-anxiety medication PRESCRIPTIONS have increased dramatically SINCE the end of the pandemic.
I’ll grade this post as is, imaginary.persona. I hope the feedback will encourage you to revise for an upgrade. Put the post back into Feedback Please or into Regrade Please (or both) following any significant improvements.