Moment Dog Who Hates ‘Staying Alone’ Realizes She’s Going Out With Owner

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The moment when a dog realizes she isn’t staying home alone has melted internet users’ hearts.

At first, the owner (@reyna.1313) begins to take her belongings off the side, which include sunglasses, purse, car keys, and, last but not least, the dog’s lead. In between each collection, the camera turns to the Shih Tzu, who is sat a few feet away from the owner. It looks like she doesn’t want to get her hopes up as she slowly wags her tail, but then she cannot keep her cool when the lead is picked up, and the small dog begins to jump for joy.

The clip captioned, “They just HATE staying alone,” has received up more than 5.4 million views and over 785,000 likes, at the time of writing.

The pet food company Purina says that Shih Tzus are charming and crave attention, making them affectionate companions. They are lovable, intelligent, and loyal, offering the perfect blend of affection without being overly clingy.

However, some dogs, regardless of the breed, can suffer from separation anxiety, which is when they exhibit extreme stress from the time their owner leaves them alone until their return.

Previously, Newsweek spoke to Joe Nutkins, a dog-training instructor based in England about the following five tips aimed to prevent separation anxiety in pets:

  • Don’t make a big deal about leaving.
  • Don’t make a big deal about returning home.
  • Give the dog breaks throughout the day so it’s away from you.
  • Teach the dog the art of doing nothing and how to self-soothe.
  • Spend quality time together, along with the breaks.

Nutkins said: “What I like about these five tips is that they are cost-effective. They can be started immediately by any dog or puppy owner without needing to spend money, making the advice accessible to all.”

The American Kennel Club (AKC) says owners should teach their pets how to be alone as a puppy to stop it from turning into a serious condition. However, that doesn’t mean they can stay at home for hours on end.

“An adult dog can typically wait six to eight hours between outside bathroom trips, and for puppies, this time frame can be as short as one to two hours, and the interval gets longer as they grow older,” Jennifer Fryer, a veterinarian at Chewy, previously told Newsweek.

“However, leaving a dog alone at any age risks accidents in the house or urinary tract infections from holding urine in for too long,” Fryer said. Energetic or anxious dogs can become destructive when left alone, because of separation anxiety or because they may be bored and need to let off some steam, she added.

Dog
A Shih Tzu looks up with its tongue out. A similar dog has gone viral for its response to an imminent walk.

Yaraslava Melchanka/iStock/Getty Images Plus

“The way she was patiently waiting for her invite,” read one comment.

Another user compared the dog’s reaction to their own and wrote, “Me when I get invited to go out lol [laugh out loud].”

A third posted: “Never leave the house again without that baby.”

Newsweek reached out to @reyna.1313 for comment via TikTok. We could not verify the details of the case.

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.