Last night was challenging. Lacie panted and occasionally howled for three hours after we went to bed, making it impossible for us to sleep. She will pant if she needs to relieve herself, but she had been out just minutes before going to bed. So that couldn’t have been the problem. This is the first time it has happened in the two months she’s been at FLFO; Lacie has always slept through the night, tucked in her cozy area in the reading room at Forgotten Oldies Farm. She is within eyesight of everyone else.
Lacie came to FLFO with known separation anxiety. We were warned! She had previously lived with a 102-year-old woman who rarely left Lacie alone. But now that she’s here, Lacie is often left alone for several hours at a time. She will pant and howl, and occasionally have a bowel movement, but she has never been the type of dog with destructive separation anxiety. We’re grateful for that. But it’s still very upsetting to see a dog so distressed to be left alone.
Lacie has been sound asleep for seven hours now, just getting up for a quick potty break and going right back to her nap. She’s making up for the lost sleep from last night. The humans here wish we could do the same. With all of the chores that need to be done, a lost night of sleep makes for a tough day at the farm.
We’re hoping that last night was just a blip and not going to be the norm for Lacie’s bedtime going forward. But if she continues with this behavior, we’ll need to put together a behavior action plan to help her – and to help us because we all need our sleep!
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