I felt they programme could have gone into a little more detail, as it did make Separation Anxiety programmes sound very simplistic.
A friend of mine (likes dogs but doesn't have one of his own) knowing I have just been through an SA programme with my elder dog, rang just after it finished and asked me if all you need to do is buy a rug/mat and get them used to emptying a kong on it, then gradually move the rug - and if that's all there is to it, how come it took me so long and seemed to take over my life.
I felt they didn't do enough to cover desensitisation to leaving cues, calm entrance and exits and realistically how long it takes to get a dog over severe SA. They mentioned it's a long process, but didn't really cover how all encompassing it is or that it can take a very long time to sort out.
I think the problem was though, that in order to cover it all properly, it really needed to be a series of programmes instead of a one-off.
I also thought they could have given out clearer info on how to find a suitably qualified behaviourist. They did refer people to their website at the end and I haven't looked, but assume the info is on there, but it would have been nice if they'd directed people to the APBC etc during the programme as well.
I also know of a few people who have been left worried sick that their dog is desperately unhappy if they have to leave them, despite them being quiet and not showing any outwards signs of stress. These are good owners who do everything possible to make sure their dogs have all their needs met and leave them as little as possible, but are now worried that their dogs fall into the category of no obvious outward signs, yet still high cortisol levels - indicating high stress.
The study was interesting, but didn't go far enough. They didn't say how many were rescue dogs, how many had owners that worked, what breeds they were, working vs show vs pet bred, whether they'd had early socialisation etc. I suspect the small category of dogs that were genuinely relaxed when alone were from homes that did early socialisation and training and made sure the dogs were gradually acclimatised to periods of being left alone from a young age and as the people I know who were worried also fall into that category, their dogs - in all probability - are also genuinely relaxed when left.
Maybe I just feel like that because I currently have a rescue pup, who came to me at 10 weeks, had already had a much less than ideal start and was then very ill and I am regularly conversing with lots of other pup owners who have had their dogs from 8 weeks from breeders who gave them an excellent start and who have done everything right in terms of socialisation and training. My pup was never left on his own for a second from when he was found at 24 hours old to when we picked him up at 10 weeks old and had had little or no socialisation outside of his 'foster' home. It has taken from 10 to 19 weeks of consistent hard work to reach a point where he can be left for an hour with a kong and be quiet and settled and I still haven't been able to leave him at home for longer than half an hour, whereas the other puppies I know are all much more relaxed about being left and can be left for a couple of hours with no obvious problems. The difference between my rescue and the other pups I know got me wondering what the differences were likely to have been between the dogs in the study.