01Find your number
Film one ordinary departure and time the first sign of worry. That number is your starting point — for every dog it’s different.
For dogs who panic when left alone
Stop guessing how long to leave your dog.
A calm, step-by-step home plan that starts with one number — how long your dog can really be alone — and tells you exactly what to do after every practice session.
- 111 cited studies & official sources
- Reward-based only. No gadgets, no punishment
- Safety first: it tells you when to stop
82illustrated pages
111sources, all listed
783fillable workbook fields
1clear decision after every session
Why it feels impossible
“Leave for short periods and build up.” How short?
You pick up your keys and your dog’s whole body changes. You’ve tried the chews, the calming music, leaving the radio on, coming back after “just ten minutes” — and come home to a scratched door, a hoarse dog, or a neighbor’s note.
Most advice stops at start small. It never says how small. For one dog that means twenty minutes; for another it means twenty seconds. In a small study that filmed five dogs directly, problem behavior began after just 27 seconds on average.Feuerbacher & Muir 2020
Guess too long, and every practice session teaches your dog that being alone is frightening. That’s why so many home attempts stall — not because owners don’t care, but because nobody gave them the number.
The idea at the heart of the plan
Find your dog’s number. Then stay below it.
Welfare organizations give one simple rule: keep practice absences shorter than the time it takes your dog to become upset. The threshold test finds that time.
Free tool
Time it on your phone, from the other side of the door.
Start the free threshold timer as the door closes, watch your camera, and tap at the first sign of worry. It saves each result, tells you what your number means, and suggests a safe first target.
Works in your browser. Nothing to install, nothing sent to us.
How it works
Seconds today. Hours, in time.
01
02Practice below it
Short, calm absences below the number, a few a day. Tiny steps up — just seconds at first — only when your dog is relaxed.
03Let the Tracker decide
Log each session in about a minute. It tells you to go up, stay or step back — and raises the stop flag if things go the wrong way.
Look inside
Beautiful, clear, and easy to follow on a hard day.
Every page below is the real product. Tap any page to see it full size.
82 illustrated pages · 9 chapters · 111 sources
19 fillable pages · type on a tablet or print · 4 filled-in examples
Excel · tells you what to do after every session
The whole plan on one page
Try the Tracker’s logic
After every session: go up, stay, or step back?
The question every owner gets stuck on. Add how each practice absence went and see the answer the Tracker gives — the same rules, right here.
How did each rep go? (tap to add, up to 6)
Your next step
—
Add the result of each rep to see what to do next.
Rules of thumb from the Seconds to Hours guide, built on ASPCA and board-certified behaviorist guidance. Not a diagnosis.
The full Tracker does the bookkeeping for you
- Drop-downs for each rep — calm, mild or distress
- Your next target, written as a readable time (“5 min 30 s”)
- Milestones with the date your dog first reached each one
- A progress chart that shows the trend you can’t feel
- A stop flag if calm time shrinks three sessions in a row
Built on evidence, not hypeSee all 111 sources →
111 studies and official sources. Every one listed.
We are not vets, so we don’t ask you to take our word for anything. Every section of the Guide tells you how strong the ground is under your feet.
Research shows
A finding from peer-reviewed studies, numbered to the reference list.
Experts advise
Guidance from veterinary bodies, welfare organizations and board-certified behaviorists.
Our rule of thumb
A practical step we chose where no study sets a number — and we say so.
What you’ll learn to see
Calm or worried? Most of us miss it.
People who had never lived with a dog recognized a fearful dog only about 30% of the time. The Guide shows you the signs, in order of how clear they are.
Sources: Wan et al. 2012, PLoS ONE · Gähwiler et al. 2020, Scientific Reports · Silbermann & Gansloßer 2023, Animals.
Honest fit
Made for owners who can’t leave the house.
It’s for you if your dog…
- barks, howls or whines when you leave
- chews doors or has accidents only when alone
- follows you from room to room and panics at your keys
- can’t yet be left for as long as your life needs
Get professional help first if your dog…
- injures themselves trying to escape
- panics before you even leave, or vomits when left
- has shown aggression or bitten anyone
- is older and the problem started suddenly
These dogs deserve an expert from day one. Here’s who to call.
Everything in the kit
Four tools. One calm plan.
The Guide
82 illustrated pages, 9 chapters: the threshold test, the plan from seconds to hours, protecting progress, helpers that work (and don’t), medication and who to call, plateaus and setbacks.
The Workbook
19 fillable pages — type on a tablet or print. Threshold test, session log, absence-cover plan, vet visit sheet, weekly review, progress chart and milestones, plus 4 sheets filled in for a fictional dog so you can see how it's done.
The Tracker
An Excel spreadsheet that turns each session into a clear next step, tracks milestones and flags when to stop.
Quick-Start Card
The five rules, the stop rule and the test on one page for the fridge.
Questions
Straight answers
Is this a replacement for my vet?
No. Separation problems can be caused or made worse by pain and illness, and some dogs need medication only a vet can prescribe. The plan starts with a vet visit and tells you exactly what to ask. It also lists the red flags that mean you should get professional help before training at home.
How long will it take?
Think in weeks and months, not days. In a controlled trial, a structured behavior program helped most dogs within 12 weeks (Blackwell et al., 2006) — some move faster, many move slower. The Tracker shows the progress you can’t feel day to day.
My dog panics within seconds. Is this still for me?
If your dog worries before you even leave, or can’t cope with a few seconds, the Guide has a separate first stage for the leaving routine — and it will recommend involving a professional. If your dog injures themselves trying to escape, please see a vet or veterinary behaviorist first.
Do I need Excel?
The Tracker is an Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx). The Workbook is a fillable PDF you can type into on a tablet or computer, or print — and the back of it shows four sheets filled in, so you can see what goes where. If you don’t use Excel, the Workbook’s paper session log does the same job by hand.
Is it all just “leave for a bit longer each day”?
That’s the idea at its simplest — the hard parts are knowing where to start, how big each step should be, what to do after a wobble, and how to cover the rest of your day while you train. That is what the kit is for.
Do you use punishment, bark collars or “crying it out”?
Never. The plan is reward-based only. Controlled studies found no advantage for electronic collars and more signs of stress, and veterinary bodies advise against devices that cause pain or discomfort.
What exactly do I get?
An 82-page illustrated Guide (PDF), a fillable Workbook (PDF) with 19 sheets plus 4 filled-in examples, the Excel Tracker and a one-page Quick-Start Card. Instant download. Your PDFs are yours to keep.
Who wrote it?
SureFoot Pets researches and writes plain-English guides for worried dog owners. We are not veterinarians — so every clinical statement is attributed to a named study or veterinary body, and each section is labeled “Research shows”, “Experts advise” or “Our rule of thumb” so you can see how strong the ground is.
More questions? 45 common questions, answered with sources.
Free reading
Every article, fully sourced
- How long can a dog be left alone? (And a dog with separation anxiety?)
- Separation anxiety training: the step-by-step plan that works
- How to teach your dog to stay home alone, calmly
- Dog barking, howling or whining when left alone: what it means and what helps
- Should you crate a dog with separation anxiety?
- Does my dog have separation anxiety? Signs, look-alikes and what to rule out
- Will getting a second dog help separation anxiety?
- Calming toys, music, vests and supplements for separation anxiety: what the evidence says
- Separation anxiety medication for dogs: what to ask your vet
- Puppy separation anxiety: what's normal, and how to prevent problems
- Separation anxiety in older dogs: why it starts late, and what to do
- Separation anxiety in rescue dogs: what to expect in the first months
- How long does it take to fix separation anxiety in dogs?
- Dog anxious when one person leaves (but fine with others)?
- Dog breeds with separation anxiety: what the research can (and can't) tell you
- Who to call for dog separation anxiety: vet, behaviorist or trainer?
- 12 dog separation anxiety myths — and what the evidence says
Browse the Learn library by topic →
Limping, a cruciate tear or an older dog slipping on the floor? Read our sourced mobility and knee-brace guides →
Start today
One number. One calm plan. One day at a time.
Not ready yet? Start with the free guide — the complete threshold-test chapter and the Quick-Start Card.
Get the free guide
Free PDF · 14 pages · 25 cited sources. No card needed.