What do you think?
Rate this book
Be Right Back! Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition
Worried that you might never be able to leave your puppy? Discover ways to help your excitable new arrival relax, build confidence and be comfortable at home alone.
Are you struggling to return to the office because your puppy freaks when you leave? Trying to put them at ease when they’re left alone? Tired of coming home to chewed-up shoes and destroyed furniture? Globally respected trainer, behavior consultant, and separation anxiety expert Julie Naismith has helped thousands of caregivers provide the best for their canine fur babies. And now she’s here to share her strategies for reclaiming your freedom while giving your precious puppy a leg up on life.
Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a humane, relatable, and fact-based guide to reducing stress and instilling your new family member with independence. With a tested and empathic approach, Naismith uses simple explanations, step-by-step plans, and detailed training exercises to mentor readers toward a rewarding and robust bonding experience. Whether you’re a first-time puppy owner, short on time, or simply overwhelmed by an especially jittery adolescent, you’ll soon unleash your companion’s sense of calm.
In Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition, you’ll discover:
What you can do to prevent home-alone issues, even before your puppy comes home.
Ways to tell whether your puppy’s home-alone behavior is normal and what to do if not.
Practical advice that shows it’s never too late to teach a puppy alone-time confidence, even if he’s already developed a fear of being left.
Clues to detect whether your puppy’s behavior is is driven by anxiety and what to do even if it is just regular puppy frustration.
Approaches for dealing with a puppy who’s glued to your side.
Help with responding to criticism from family and friends and dodging the judgment
Actionable supplementary resources, helpful videos, myth-busting, and much, much more!
Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a down-to-earth handbook for anyone looking to regain control of their lives and foster an enriching upbringing for their little tail-wagger. If you like non-judgmental guidance, upbeat support, and results-focused direction, then you’ll love Julie Naismith’s comprehensive tuition.
Are you struggling to return to the office because your puppy freaks when you leave? Trying to put them at ease when they’re left alone? Tired of coming home to chewed-up shoes and destroyed furniture? Globally respected trainer, behavior consultant, and separation anxiety expert Julie Naismith has helped thousands of caregivers provide the best for their canine fur babies. And now she’s here to share her strategies for reclaiming your freedom while giving your precious puppy a leg up on life.
Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a humane, relatable, and fact-based guide to reducing stress and instilling your new family member with independence. With a tested and empathic approach, Naismith uses simple explanations, step-by-step plans, and detailed training exercises to mentor readers toward a rewarding and robust bonding experience. Whether you’re a first-time puppy owner, short on time, or simply overwhelmed by an especially jittery adolescent, you’ll soon unleash your companion’s sense of calm.
In Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition, you’ll discover:
What you can do to prevent home-alone issues, even before your puppy comes home.
Ways to tell whether your puppy’s home-alone behavior is normal and what to do if not.
Practical advice that shows it’s never too late to teach a puppy alone-time confidence, even if he’s already developed a fear of being left.
Clues to detect whether your puppy’s behavior is is driven by anxiety and what to do even if it is just regular puppy frustration.
Approaches for dealing with a puppy who’s glued to your side.
Help with responding to criticism from family and friends and dodging the judgment
Actionable supplementary resources, helpful videos, myth-busting, and much, much more!
Be Right Back: Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a down-to-earth handbook for anyone looking to regain control of their lives and foster an enriching upbringing for their little tail-wagger. If you like non-judgmental guidance, upbeat support, and results-focused direction, then you’ll love Julie Naismith’s comprehensive tuition.
325 pages, Paperback
Published August 1, 2021
1 person is currently reading
7 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 16, 2026
I picked up Be Right Back! Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition by Julie Naismith from my ever-growing “to read” pile. As a canine behaviour therapist, I’m always interested in books that tackle separation anxiety, especially when they focus specifically on puppies.
Overall, my first impression of the book was very positive. The book contains only a few small illustrations, but honestly, I didn’t miss them. With a topic like separation anxiety, clear explanations and practical guidance matter much more than visuals, and the writing does a good job of guiding the reader through the subject.
One small criticism I did have while reading is that the book is very clearly written during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are several references to lockdowns and the lifestyle changes people experienced during that time. That’s understandable, of course, since many dogs developed separation issues during that period. Still, five years later it does make some parts of the book feel slightly dated. I imagine this could easily be updated in future editions.
The book begins with a clear explanation of what separation anxiety actually is and why it can develop. Naismith describes what happens emotionally and behaviourally when a dog struggles with being left alone, which helps readers understand the problem before moving into training strategies.
One aspect I particularly appreciated is that the book doesn’t only focus on treating separation anxiety, but also on preventing it. There is a significant section dedicated to preparing a puppy for alone time and building positive habits from the start. For new puppy owners, this preventative approach is incredibly valuable.
Later chapters move into structured training plans for puppies who are already struggling with being alone. The training approach is clear, step-by-step, and strongly focused on the dog’s pace and wellbeing. Naismith also addresses something that is often overlooked in training books: the mindset of the owner. Working through separation anxiety requires patience, consistency, and realistic expectations, and the book does a good job of acknowledging that.
As a behaviour therapist myself, I have to admit that I didn’t learn many completely new things from this book. However, that was actually part of what I enjoyed about it. Reading it felt like a confirmation of many principles and training approaches that closely match my own philosophy.
Because I’m also a breeder, I see a lot of value in the preventative focus of this book. It’s definitely one I would feel comfortable recommending to my puppy buyers, as it helps owners build good habits around alone time from the very beginning.
Overall, Be Right Back! Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a clear, practical, and thoughtful book about a problem many dogs and owners face. Whether you’re trying to prevent separation anxiety in a puppy or working through it with a young dog, this book provides helpful guidance and a sensible training approach.
Definitely recommended.
Overall, my first impression of the book was very positive. The book contains only a few small illustrations, but honestly, I didn’t miss them. With a topic like separation anxiety, clear explanations and practical guidance matter much more than visuals, and the writing does a good job of guiding the reader through the subject.
One small criticism I did have while reading is that the book is very clearly written during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are several references to lockdowns and the lifestyle changes people experienced during that time. That’s understandable, of course, since many dogs developed separation issues during that period. Still, five years later it does make some parts of the book feel slightly dated. I imagine this could easily be updated in future editions.
The book begins with a clear explanation of what separation anxiety actually is and why it can develop. Naismith describes what happens emotionally and behaviourally when a dog struggles with being left alone, which helps readers understand the problem before moving into training strategies.
One aspect I particularly appreciated is that the book doesn’t only focus on treating separation anxiety, but also on preventing it. There is a significant section dedicated to preparing a puppy for alone time and building positive habits from the start. For new puppy owners, this preventative approach is incredibly valuable.
Later chapters move into structured training plans for puppies who are already struggling with being alone. The training approach is clear, step-by-step, and strongly focused on the dog’s pace and wellbeing. Naismith also addresses something that is often overlooked in training books: the mindset of the owner. Working through separation anxiety requires patience, consistency, and realistic expectations, and the book does a good job of acknowledging that.
As a behaviour therapist myself, I have to admit that I didn’t learn many completely new things from this book. However, that was actually part of what I enjoyed about it. Reading it felt like a confirmation of many principles and training approaches that closely match my own philosophy.
Because I’m also a breeder, I see a lot of value in the preventative focus of this book. It’s definitely one I would feel comfortable recommending to my puppy buyers, as it helps owners build good habits around alone time from the very beginning.
Overall, Be Right Back! Puppy Separation Anxiety Edition is a clear, practical, and thoughtful book about a problem many dogs and owners face. Whether you’re trying to prevent separation anxiety in a puppy or working through it with a young dog, this book provides helpful guidance and a sensible training approach.
Definitely recommended.
August 22, 2021
This book is similar to Julie’s original Be Right Back but with more of a puppy focus. There’s several passages that are the same (and obviously so is her method) but I still think this is such a valuable resource based on science for any new puppy owners. My one is 11 weeks and I think we’re about ready to start taking it seriously. With the extreme rise in people still WFH this is a must have if you have a puppy! It also includes a bit on more general puppy raising that I think is useful for everyone.
The only negatives are that I’d like more info on what is normal - I know the puppy will be clingy when they come home, but when should it subside? I had also hoped the chapter on sleeping apart at night would be longer.
The only negatives are that I’d like more info on what is normal - I know the puppy will be clingy when they come home, but when should it subside? I had also hoped the chapter on sleeping apart at night would be longer.
August 15, 2021
A must have for any new puppy owner, whether you're worried about separation anxiety or just want to teach your puppy how to be home alone in the gentlest possible way, Julie has written an easy to read guide to help you help your puppy. Highly recommended!
August 25, 2022
Great book
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews