Every pet owner can agree with us – constant whining gets quickly on the nerves. As much as we love our pups, it is annoying whenever they start to whine, bark, or growl.
We have to tell you this: you are not the only one who asks yourself, ‘will my dog learn to stop whining! However, whether or not you can control the whining depends solely on why the whining starts in the first place.
There can be countless reasons why your dog whines. Maybe it is trying to communicate with you and tell you that it feels exciting, anxious, sad, or simply asking for attention.
To stop a dog from whining, you first need to learn all the possible reasons why it happens. So let’s start with our list of top 3 reasons why dogs whine and teach you how to stop it!
Top 3 Reasons Why Dogs Whine
While all dogs are used to whining once in a while, puppies commonly do attention-seeking whining. This is because puppies are small and still learning to communicate with the outside world; like babies, they often want to ask for something but don’t know.
If you have a constantly whining puppy, you need to watch and figure out why it happens. In most cases, it is obvious. The whining occurs after some action from your side, their mother, or other adult dogs and kids in your home. Finding out the real reason will help you take the appropriate approach. So let’s look at the reasons.
Dogs Whine When They Are In Pain
The first and the most apparent reason for whining is pain. We, people, also tend to whine when something is hurting. So, it is logical to look for injury when someone is complaining. (*)
The next time you hear your dog whining, look for some injury or check if something is causing the dog discomfort. Examine the body language as thoroughly as you can, and see if the pup has some reaction when you touch certain parts of its body.
Once you rule out injury, think about the environment. If the temperature is low, your dog may be feeling cold, hence the whining. The same thing can happen if the dog is too hot.
Another common cause of pain is a bathroom issue. If your dog is constipated or, on the contrary, needs to urinate in the middle of the night, it will start whining immediately. Late-night whining almost always indicates bowel problems.
Usually, it is not that easy to determine whether your dog is whining because it is in pain or is feeling any discomfort. Pay attention if there is any limping or flinching. If there is any indication that the pup is feeling pain, try taking it to the veterinarian and giving him medication. If the whining stops, then definitely the pain is relieved.
Dogs Whine When They Ask For Something Or Seek Attention
It may be food, a walk, or something to play with – whatever your dog wants; it will whine until you give it to him. This usually happens when you are doing something else and not paying attention to your dog’s needs.
We know it is ego centrical, but animals do not have common sense. They cannot understand that you are busy and will not give your loving attention 24/7. Also, if you notice that the whining happens once you get close to your kids or other pets, it is a sign of jealousy. If your dog is jealous, it will be tough for you to communicate with other animals in front of it.
Most dogs often show aggressive behavior when they are around other dogs. For example, they whine during greetings, which can be because of excitement or jealousy. Anyhow, this greeting behavior is widespread in dogs.
Another thing that results in a whining dog is separation anxiety. It relates to attention-seeking dogs because they do not like to be left alone. Dogs often feel stressed when left alone, especially for a long time. If you see your dog whining when you are gone on just before leaving the house, it is pretty sure that it feels separation anxiety.
These dogs show pacing, panting, and sometimes destruction alongside the whining. Some may start urinating in inappropriate places to get your attention.
Dogs Whine To Express Their Emotions
Since they can’t talk, dogs express their feelings through different sounds. Therefore, whining does not always indicate a bad thing; it may be your dog telling you it feels happy or excited about something. (*)
If the whining is accompanied by circling and jumping, we guarantee you the emotion in question is excitement. Still, many negative emotions are expressed with whining as well.
If your dog is marching around the room, it looks all over the place, and the ears and tail are down – it is a sign of anxiety. Dog’s anxiety is the same as people’s; it affects the ability to function normally.
Other than anxiety, stress is a widespread reason for dogs whining. When feeling stressed, whining goes hand in hand with gestures like lip licking, yawning, eye averting, or other signs. This conduct helps your dog to release stress and calm itself down.
Another emotion that dogs express through whining is frustration. When a dog whines and at the same time scratches the walls or doors, be sure that it feels frustrated by something. Quite the opposite, if a dog shows a submissive posture by whining and trembling simultaneously, it is afraid of something. Also, a scared dog will show flattened ears and tucked tail.
Fear often leads to running, so make sure you catch this body language soon enough and eliminate whatever makes your pup feel this way. Otherwise, you will be facing a dog that is constantly hiding and avoiding contact.
How To Stop A Dog From Whining?
Once you get to the bottom of the whining, it is easy to learn how to deal with the problem. The truth is, many dogs can be trained not to whine or to whine less. So, if your dog’s whining gets on your nerves, there is a way to stop it.
Though you need to remember one thing – violence is not the answer. You shouldn’t punish your dog for whining; you should instead find the most effective way to teach it not to whine.
Let’s go through some techniques you can use to calm your dog and get it to stop whining.
Encourage It To Change The Behavior
If your dog is complaining because it wants something from you, you shouldn’t just give it right away to stop the annoying sound. Instead, once you figure out what it wants, get it to stop whining before providing it.
When the dog wants food or your attention, try averting it to be quiet and to lay down. After it does that, then you can award him with a treat. You should not give up immediately and provide everything right away. We know it may be difficult to withstand a whining puppy, but you need to be firm to avoid looking after a spoiled adult dog.
For your dog to understand that it needs to be quiet and calm to get praise, you need to repeat some patterns. Pet owners tend to give attention to their pups only when they are whining or when they misbehave. Try changing that by providing your dog the attention it needs when behaving well.
For example, praise them or give them a treat when they are calm instead of nervous. If you repeat this enough, your pup will understand that it needs to act reasonably to be treated well.
Give Them Enough Exercise / Massage
Often, unwanted behavior happens because extra energy needs to be burned in the body. If a dog is tired, it will not have the strength to whine and act out.
It is common sense that training helps relieve stress and anxiety in animals and humans. So if your dog has very little physical activity and exercise, you shouldn’t be surprised when it starts whining over nothing.
Lazy pets are not happy pets, so get your dog out of the couch and start training it as much as you can. When we do exercise, the body releases happy hormones such as endorphins. These happy hormones help us stay happy and less anxious.
Along with practicing dog sports, you should try building your dog’s confidence. Once in a while, do obedience training that uses treats as awards for good behavior. This way, you can teach your dog the power of positive behavior, plus spend some quality time together.
Another thing besides dog training you can try is giving your dog a massage once in a while. Your pup will feel calmer and more relaxed if you do it properly. If you can combine the massage with a music selection that calms down, you’ve got yourself a winning combination – it works like a charm both with humans and pets.
Avoid Punishment
We understand that punishment is an instinct for bad conduct. However, try to stay away from it; this goes for people. Punishment, primarily physical distress, may seem like it’s working at first glance, but it will make your dog whine and act out even more after a while.
Any physical or verbal abuse will lower the dog’s self-esteem, leading to appeasement whining. After a while, you will not know why the dog is whining anymore.
Also, if you try denying it your attention, it will make the dog feel isolated and alone. That feeling almost certainly leads to fear and anxiety, which goes back to whining. It is a magic circle!
Almost always, whining means that someone is afraid, under stress, or in pain. But, of course, you wouldn’t want someone to discipline you for that, right?
While it may help the whining go away immediately, the punishment is not a good plan in the long term. It will trigger additional stress and more whining in the future. What you need to do is the opposite– try to reduce the things causing stress and anxiety!
Selection – Give It What It Wants Only When Needed
Under certain situations, you should give your dog what it wants or needs. For example, there will be cases when your pup is whining about doing on a potty break, which is certainly not something you want to ignore.
Also, if you know that your dog is whining because it’s hungry or needs to burn some energy, it is not a good idea to deny it. Instead, try to understand the reason behind the whining, and it will be easier for you to make a selection – when to give it what it wants and when not to give it.
Still, there will be times when your pup is just bored and wants your attention. What should you do in these cases? Well, sometimes it is best to ignore it. Any touching, talking, or even eye contact gives attention, so try not to do anything. Instead, do something dramatic – turn your back, fold your arms and deny eye contact.
This kind of behavior from you will indicate that the attention-seeking whining is not working, and the dog will quickly get tired.
In addition to this, you need to reward it when it calms down. Then, your dog will understand that being calm pays out with this mental stimulation!
If you feel like anxiety is causing the whining, you need to remove the cause. Any nervous dog behavior like pacing and lip licking indicates that your dog is under a lot of stress, and it is best if you address that as soon as possible. If your vet agrees with your assessment, there are a lot of anxiety medications that can help your pup feel normal once again.
However, please do not give it any medicine on your own. Always make sure to consult with a veterinarian or a certified animal behaviorist.
FAQ
Conclusion
As we mentioned before, dogs whine for all kinds of reasons; they feel excited, anxious, stressed, afraid, in pain, or need something. Every whining has a different sound and can be caused by anything. It is your job to find the right cause and act accordingly.
Suppose your dog is feeling anxious or stressed, your need to find the source and eliminate it. Otherwise, the whining will not pass, and your pup will be unhappy.
Try some counter conditioning that will increase the positive behavior in dogs just seeking attention and acting out. Ignore them until they calm down, and then give them a treat.
Still, if none of this works, you should refer to a certified professional dog trainer or certified behaviorist to help you. In any case, you must stay calm and patient until you reach the results you want.
Related: Why does my dog snore?
*photo by Glebas86 – depositphotos