What to do with my dog.  

You have a tough problem there. The time to train them is when they are young, but for what it's worth, try leaving him alone a little at a time. You and wife go out then come back in 5 min. then the next day go out for 10 min, and so on every day, after a while he will trust that you are comming back then you will be able to go out for hours. Of course I dont recomend you leave him for too long like a day.

We take our Labs with us almost every place.

You have to re train him. He needs to know you will come back. Start by leaving the house a few minutes at a time. Do your normal routine. Get keys, jacket, shoes and so on. Go out and start the car. Wait 5 min and come back inside. Now in a few hours do it again. After a couple days of this increase the time to 10 min then 15 and then he should be good for a few hours. He has lost trust in you. You have to get that trust back.

Attachment disorders are common with rescue dogs. I went through a severe one with my husky/shepherd after we brought him home from Animal Services.

First of all, disregard one thing the first post says. It is NOT true that it's easier to train them when they're young. Not at all. That's a widespread myth that holds no validity. Dogs of ANY age are easy to train, when the handler is familiar with the problem and proper training techniques. It is easier to train a 3 or 4 year old than it is a puppy, simply because the hyperactive stage is over.

With Max, we settled the problem with incentives. We tried kennel training him, but there was no way he was going for that. So, we took treats with us when we went out. When we'd get home, he'd be going psychotic ... whining and jumping around the furniture, just generally going a little crazy because we'd left him alone. I should mention that the reason he was at Animal Services in the first place was his previous owners had moved out ... leaving the animals in the house. Out of 4 animals, Max is the only one that survived. So it's to be expected he'd have some abandonment issues.

Anyhow, when we'd come in the door and he'd be going nuts, we ordered him to his bed. If he tried jumping on us, we'd turn our backs and walk away. The WORST thing you can do is to encourage their behavior by acknowledging it! You're of course tempted to soothe them, pet them, comfort them ... but it's the worst thing you can do in terms of training. By literally ignoring them, until they calm down, you're showing them that behavior isn't acceptable.

As soon as he calmed down (and it only takes minutes ... dogs can't keep up that level of excitement for an extended period) we'd reward him with treats that we had brought home with us ... he'd see them taken from a shopping bag.

Now when we come in, he goes immediately to his bed and waits calmly for his treat. Instead of going psychotic and jumping around, he learned that he's rewarded for calm, complacent behavior.

It takes persistence, and time ... but it does work. Good luck!

I am in the same situation as you are in.I have a very small dog that my grandson brought to me from a ice storm, she was just 5 days old.I cuddled her, fed her with a bottle, and at night i would put her in a box next to my bed and get up every 4 hours and feed her a bottle..sometimes she would cry and i would reach down and wrap her in the covers with me and cuddle her until she went to sleep.I bonded with her..She got sick a couple of times and we rushed her to the doctor, she had infections and all kinds of things..but she pulled through..She is a little over a year old now and very healthly and we love her,like she is our child,shes very spoiled, and she is not real socialable either..I have a carrier which makes a nice bed for her, and that is her safety zone. she sleeps in it at night, and if we go anywhere without her we put her in it and she is happy because she knows we are coming back ...she is happy to be there if she is without one of us..So maybe you could get her a carrier,they sell them, put her a pillow in there and when you leave for a little while tell her as you put her in her bed, we will be back and she will feel safe while you are gone..We often take our dog with us, as long as she can see us, she is fine.if you take her some where that is not an ideal place or they do not like dogs , just put her in there and sit it next to you, thats what i do..Your dog does not feel secure while you are away.If my dog knows we are going someplace, she jumps right into her bed where she feels safe, rather we take her or not, she knows we will come back..I hope this helps.

You might wanna get him another dog as company, if it is ok with you. In that way, he would have a friend to play with while you guys are out, so he wouldn't feel that lonely.

Unfortunately this is your fault :(
Please don't take this the wrong way but the reason he is like this is because you have allowed him to become this way over the past 4 years since you have had him.
What you need for him to do, is perhaps go to some behavioural training, get him used to being alone, because he cant be with you 24/7 & should have been taught that from the beginning.
It sounds as though you kind of mothered him far too much & he's now extra reliant on you because it's all he knows.
Allow him to spend time outside alone, get him toys & treats, teach him basic commands & he will eventually get used to it & will be ok with being home alone. Your only other option would be to take him with you EVERYWHERE you go & that's not really healthy!!!
I think he really needs to be better socialised with other people & dogs as well - have you considered getting him a playmate? That might help with his freaking out while you're away, he'll have someone there with him to keep him company!
Good Luck!

I agree with RetivedTvguy2,you can train it slowly.Before I had a dog, I raising it when it is very small.We have established a deep affection. When I go to collage,my mother told me when i left home,the dog find me everywhere,she try her best to pull it get back home.All this for a few days. Fortunately,my family has accompanied it.Every time,when my mother said she miss me,rubbing her eyes,The dog will be rubbing its eyes.Maybe you don't believe,but it is true.Dogs also have feelings.

try max to take the pet with you

I have a toy pomm that pees in the house. Im going to train him. I didnt know you can train them after they have grown. I was just going to breed him but I would rather bring him in the house. Shelters are bad because they use a garden hose and the dogs just freak out over this. Very mean. I want to use a garden hose in their house and see how they like it.

Aww that is too bad! Sorry it is so hard for your dog to be alone. But I hear problems like this all the time, and I always give the same suggestion.

You should adopt another small dog. This way, you are saving another life and giving 2 dogs new friends. You should try to adopt one that is around the same age as your current dog. He might not be so lonely and tramatized by your absence if he has another friend in the house.

And if you do get another dog make sure there are toys for them to play with together! :)

Good luck.