A French Bulldog who hates being left alone is not being difficult. Separation anxiety is genuine distress, and dogs in it are not choosing to bark, chew or soil the house.

The breed is a strong candidate for it. Frenchies were bred to be companions, and PDSA notes they dislike being left alone even for short periods and shouldn’t be left more than four hours (PDSA).

Is it actually separation anxiety?

The signs are vocalization, destruction or house soiling when separated from you, often with restlessness, trembling, drooling, refusing food, or frantic greetings when you return (VCA Animal Hospitals).

Plenty of things look identical from the outside, though, and the fix differs for each:

  • Being left too long. If the mess is worse the longer you’re out, your dog may simply be alone beyond what they can manage.
  • Incomplete house training, which our potty training guide covers.
  • Boredom, where a dog chews because nothing else is happening.
  • Noise phobia, where the trigger is thunder or fireworks rather than your absence.
  • A medical problem, or cognitive decline in an older dog.

The simplest way to tell is to record your dog while you’re out. Anxiety usually starts within minutes of you leaving; boredom tends to start later and look calmer.

What actually helps

Graduated departures

This is the core of it. Leave for seconds, come back before your dog becomes worried, and build up gradually and unpredictably — your dog must always be relaxed before you extend the time (VCA). Minutes, then longer, over weeks rather than days.

Going too fast undoes progress, because every departure that ends in panic teaches your dog that being alone is frightening.

Defusing your leaving cues

Dogs learn the sequence: keys, shoes, jacket, gone. Break the pattern by performing those cues and then staying home, repeatedly, until they stop predicting anything (VCA). Pick up your keys and sit down. Put your shoes on and make coffee.

Keep departures and arrivals low-key. An emotional goodbye raises the stakes.

Exercise and something to do

A vigorous play or exercise session before any lengthy departure helps (VCA). Follow it with something absorbing: a stuffed rubber toy makes being left behind predict something good.

Our KONG recipes are built for this, and a frozen one lasts longest.

A durable chew works for dogs who aren’t interested in food puzzles.

Leave anything your dog might swallow out of reach, and choose a size they cannot get into their mouth whole.

Medication, when it’s needed

For real separation anxiety, behaviour work is often not enough on its own. Most dogs do best with fluoxetine or clomipramine over several months, sometimes alongside other anti-anxiety drugs, always combined with retraining rather than instead of it (VCA). That’s a conversation with your vet, not a supplement aisle decision.

What doesn’t help

  • Punishment. Anything that adds to your dog’s anxiety makes future departures worse (VCA). The veterinary position is broader: methods relying on force, pain or discomfort shouldn’t be used in dog training at all (AVSAB).
  • Getting a second dog. It rarely helps a dog who is anxious about your absence (VCA).
  • Crating an anxious dog. This is the correction that matters most here. Earlier versions of this article recommended crate training as the answer. For dogs with separation anxiety, crates should be used with caution, because they can promote intense escape attempts (VCA) — and a panicking dog can injure themselves on the bars. A crate is excellent for a dog who already loves it, which our crate training guide covers, but it is not a treatment for anxiety. If your dog panics when the door shuts, a dog-proofed room is safer.
  • Relying on a pressure wrap. Anxiety vests are popular and appear safe, but the evidence is thin: a systematic review found only four studies, of variable quality, with some suggestion of benefit for thunderstorm phobia and separation anxiety (Grigg and colleagues, 2024). Worth trying alongside real treatment; not a substitute for it.

A realistic plan for a Frenchie

  1. Rule out the lookalikes above, starting with how long your dog is actually alone.
  2. Record a typical absence so you know what you’re dealing with.
  3. Start graduated departures, and defuse your leaving cues in parallel.
  4. Exercise first, then leave something worth staying for.
  5. Talk to your vet early if your dog panics rather than protests.

Rushing is the most common mistake, and the second is assuming a crate will contain a problem it can make worse. Progress in this is measured in weeks.

When to get help

Call your vet if your dog injures themselves trying to escape, salivates heavily, refuses food all day, or if weeks of graduated departures aren’t moving. Your vet can rule out pain, discuss medication, and refer you to a veterinary behaviourist.

Left untreated, separation anxiety rarely resolves on its own — and it’s one of the more treatable behaviour problems once someone qualified is involved.