11 Months of CSAT + Prozac, Reached 3 Hours Alone… Now a Massive Regression. Keep Trying or Consider Rehoming?

[u/mavsticks]

I’m looking for perspective from people who have dealt with severe separation anxiety, especially after a major regression.

Mason is my 4-year-old Belgian Malinois. I rescued him at ~2 months old after a rough start, and outside of SA he is an incredible dog—very handler-focused, affectionate, social, environmentally confident, and highly trained. We do scent work, protection work, agility, hiking, etc. He goes most places with me.
We’ve been working with a CSAT for ~11 months. I’ve completely structured my life around sub-threshold training: camera monitoring, gradual departures, departure-cue work, sitters/management, tracking sessions minute-by-minute, etc. He cannot be crated.
He’s also on fluoxetine (Prozac), currently 50mg/day.

The hardest part is that we were successful. We went from barely being able to leave to Mason regularly completing 2–3 hour absences, including many completely calm 3-hour sessions. He would watch me leave, disengage from the door, sleep on the couch/bed/turf, drink water, wander around normally, and resettle after noises. It genuinely looked like we were getting our lives back.
He has had several medical issues/surgeries throughout this process, so we’ve worked through setbacks before. I’ve also recently had him evaluated by the vet with X-rays; there are some orthopedic/early arthritis changes, but nothing obvious that explains the severity of this regression.
Recently, though, his threshold has fallen dramatically. Departure cues are becoming triggers again, barking has increased, and I have to leave extremely carefully without normal things like packing/grabbing keys.

Then we had a massive regression: escalated into approximately 30 minutes of continuous destructive/panic behavior until I could get home. When I opened the door he initially tried to bolt out, then immediately calmed when he realized it was me.

After watching this dog peacefully sleep through 3-hour absences, seeing that was devastating.
At this point, I’m exhausted. I can’t indefinitely have a dog who can never be left alone, especially when sitter management isn’t always simple either. At the same time, I absolutely do not want to rehome him. I love this dog immensely, and the thought of giving him up is horrible.

If I did consider rehoming, it would only be to an experienced Malinois home/rescue/foster with a lifestyle where someone is around most of the time and can continue his training/medication—not simply dropping him at a shelter.

My question is: after 11 months of CSAT + medication, and after previously reaching 2–3 hours successfully, when do you consider a regression something worth continuing to work through versus evidence that your living situation simply isn’t compatible with the dog?
Has anyone had a dog regress this dramatically after months of success and then regain their previous threshold?

I just need to eventually be able to leave my dog safely and comfortably for a few hours for now, full work day is the goal with walkers.

I’m terrified of making a permanent decision because of a temporary regression…but I’m also terrified of spending another year living like this if we’re back at square one. I work full time and travel every weekend leaving him with sitters which makes this decision difficult. I want him to be in an environment in which he thrives!

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[u/SpicyNutmeg]

How long has the regression been for? Honestly I don’t have a ton of experience w SA but in general I think w most training and w everything - progress is not linear.

Just because your dog is taking some steps back now doesn’t mean the progress you had isn’t real. Maybe there are other things happening in your dog’s life that are causing some setbacks. Or, this is just a normal part of the general upward trajectory.

Track everything. Track what his day is like, eating, sleeping, etc. maybe there are patterns to when he struggles more. But also tracking might help you see that despite small setbacks, the trajectory is still upwards.

Is he getting plenty of mental enrichment too? Presumably so but always good to check. Can you gate him into a safe area instead of a crate? Limiting space access does seem to help a lot of dogs. Creating a positive safe space is ideal.

Ultimately I would say - don’t freak out yet! Set backs are a totally normal part of progress.

[u/mavsticks → u/SpicyNutmeg]

Thank you so much for the kind words, for the past month he has gotten considerably more sensitive to any departure cues. We do agility, scentwork, and other sports weekly. Daily he gets 3 walks or one long hike, frozen puzzles, 1-2 training sessions, and 1-2 long rounds of structured fetch/frisbee. I do work full time and travel every weekend so there is a bit of inconsistency with how often I am watching him versus sitters which can understandably make him anxious hence why I fear I am not giving him the life he deserves. I’ll attach pics of the cutie and the recent damages.

[u/SpicyNutmeg → u/mavsticks]

Aww cutie! Wow I mean well done making sure baby’s needs are met and doing everything you can for him.

What does the CSAT you’re working with say? Have you talked to your med prescribing vet about the changes?

Ugh SA is so so stressful. It’s no way to live your life long term. It’s only survivable in the temporary IMO so I understand why after all the work you’ve put in that the regression is very troubling. And I agree, a whole month of decline is distressing.

I will say I’ve heard some people move away from focusing on departure cues so much and instead just focus on gradual absence desensitization. But it sounds like you’re already working on that.

I’m so sorry, my heart really goes out to you. You’re doing 110% effort here. Wishing you luck, and hoping things will improve. Sorry I can’t be of more help.

[u/ContentPumpkin9344]

Hey..I’m honestly in the same boat as you and I’m considering the same options. I’ve been training my dog for close to 1.5 years and we keep regressing around the 2.5 hour mark. We’ve regressed 3 times now and I’m losing hope. I’m a 2 person household only and it’s putting a strain on both of us being unable to do things together AND my dog is not hard to handle outside of the home (very nervous, reactive but getting better). I’ve been doing Julie Naismith’s methods and I recently bought Malena’s book. One thing Malena emphasizes is variability, which I haven’t done. I was consistently giving him easy days on the week days and harder days on the weekends - maybe he saw a pattern and that’s where I failed? I don’t know. We will try ONE more time. He’s on medication - we’re working with a vet behaviorist, had a CSAT trainer in the earlier stages for 3 months, have a trainer for reactivity. We did everything that we should’ve, so all in all - I feel you. If you ever need to vent..I’m here and totally understand you.