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26 FEB 2000, From the American Humane Association
Home Alone
If you own a dog, you're one of at least 63 million Americans who share their lives with canines. However, most of these households are also empty during the day, leaving the family dog at home alone.

Dogs are not naturally solitary animals, so when they're left alone, they may exhibit annoying or disturbing behaviors. If your dog becomes aggressive toward you when you try to leave the house or chews, digs,soils the floor, or barks excessively when you're gone, it may be suffering from separation anxiety.

How can you help your dog? First, don't punish your dog. Dogs associate punishment with what they are doing the instant it is administered. When you come home and punish your dog (for something done earlier), the dog will think the punishment is for what it was doing the moment you became angry, which could have been enthusiastically greeting you!

Second, change your behavior or routine. Your dog's anxiety begins when you indicate through your actions that you are about to leave without him. To get your dog accustomed to your leaving, pick up your keys and walk toward the door, but don't leave the house. Do this several times (possibly over several days) until your dog no longer exhibits anxious behavior.

The next step is to leave the house for a few minutes at a time. Gradually increase these planned absences so that your dog never has a chance to show any separation anxiety. When you return, greet your dog briefly (don't gush) and return to normal activities. This training may take some time, but the results can be well worth it!