Dog with extreme anxiety separation please help

[DBD1975]

We have recently taken on a rescue dog who has settled in very well. However the dog has extreme separation anxiety which we are trying to work on resolving but the issue is the dog is overly attached to me and exhibits extreme anxiety every time I leave the house even if there are other family members in the house (so the dog is not alone).
I have a hospital appointment which is over 50 miles away from where I live for treatment which is going to take all day.
I am anxious enough about the procedure but the situation with the dog adds in another layer of anxiety.
The dog will be staying at home with other family members but I know they will be tearing their hair out by the time I get home and I dread to think what state the dog will be in.
In the circumstances I am just wondering if anyone has used medication, from the vet, for calming purposes and if so what has worked.
The vet has previously prescribed gabapentin for anxiety whilst travelling in the car but this didn't work.

Firstly, huge sympathies - bad separation anxiety is awful, oth for the dog and for you. My Weimaraner, who I’ve had from a puppy, developed it after my older dog died when they were in kennels together, and then lockdown just reinforced it. With her, the panic started as soon as I went through the door, she’d throw herself at the door and the windows, yelping and howling, and I used to worry that she’d hurt herself. The genuine panic she felt was obvious - racing heart, dilated eyes, panting and even frothing at the mouth. Awful.

I had so many trainers and behaviourists, all of whom agreed that she was a particularly bad case (no shit Sherlock 🙄) but their method of start short and build up wasn’t really useful as she started the instant the door shut. I persevered on my own, trying all sorts of things, and now, at the age of 8, she’s ok for a couple of hours. Mostly 😁

What has worked for us is to tire her out with a good sniffy walk, so she has lots of mental stuff to process. Then I clear the kitchen worksurfaces (damage limitation), and wedge the door shut (she can open handles) before I give her a frozen split marrow bone from the butcher. Frozen means she has to lick it, rather than chew. When I leave the house, she’s better when she sees me go (against everything the trainers said) as then she knows she hasn’t mislaid me somewhere, I imagine.

She also has a dog-walker twice a week, who she absolutely adores, and this has been helpful I think for her to realise she can have fun without me being there. I think the thing is, you need to find what things will suit your dog, and it might not be the conventional methods. I did find the dog enrichment ideas on the internet were really helpful. It’s not a quick fix, unfortunately, so it won’t help you for your hospital appointment this time, but don’t give up. I wish you good luck in finding a solution for your boy.

Thank you so much, very helpful advice and very much appreciated 👍.

We have had our dog for six months, he was abandoned. At first because he was in such a sorry state I arranged time so that I didn’t leave him, to get him fed up, vaccinated, de-flead and de-wormed. So I was with him 24 hours a day until he felt less traumatised. I couldn’t leave him alone, he would howl, cry and become very distressed.

So I kept him in the kitchen and got him a nice sized crate, made it really comfortable with a bed and chew toys. The whole point of the crate is to create a safe place for him, not to lock him into. It is his den. Once he got used to it he calmed down. When I go out, in he goes and I say ‘stay,
I won’t be long’.

Long walks to tire him out. During the day the crate is left open and he comes and goes into it as he pleases. He still follows me every where I go, he’s my Velcro dog but he doesn’t cry anymore when I leave because he is safe and comfortable in his crate. When I do go out it’s up to my husband who is at home most of the time to open the crate or not depending on how long I’m gone and if he finds that he is getting distressed he guides him into the crate shuts the gate and he settles.

As you know it takes time but it’s worth it. My dog is now more confident and my life has returned to normal because the overwhelming stress that you describe is a lot less now.

Thank you to everyone for your very helpful responses. Just thought I would post an update. Vet was very understanding and prescribed Tramadol which worked perfectly.
Gave the dose one hour before leaving, dog slept until early afternoon, woke up to toilet and then dozed until I got home at 4pm (which was a lot earlier than I expected) however not a single bark out of the dog all day.
Did I like or want to meditate the dog, absolutely not. Was it the best thing for all concerned, including my dearly loved dog, absolutely.
Would I do it again if necessary - yes.
Fortunately the situation won't arise very often as the dog is very well behaved and we only frequent dog friendly places. However if anyone else has a similar issue, the Tramadol works well, with no side effects, and I would recommend using, if no other options available, for dogs with severe separation anxiety, but I would only do so if other family members at home to monitor the dog and keep a close eye on the dog.
Thank you all once again x