Your Game Plan

This is slow work, and rushing it resets the dog to square one. Three moves carry the whole plan:

• Micro-absences first. Step behind a door for two seconds and return before any distress, then build to five, ten, thirty.
• A treat that only appears when you go. A stuffed Kong or puzzle feeder reserved for departures turns your leaving into something good.
• Boring exits, boring returns. No drawn-out goodbyes, no guilty glances back. Keys, door, gone, back, all matter-of-fact.