Understanding Your Dog's Whining and How to Stop It

Dog Whining just like any other dog behavior must be understood before it can be dealt with. The best dog training comes from the best understanding.

Whining is one of four basic ways that a dog communicates vocally. Barking, Growling, and Howling are the other three ways.

A dog whines when he is in destress or when he is looking for attention. Whining when in distress is a natural thing and shouldn't be discouraged. You should want to know when your dog is in distress. Whining for attention on the other hand is something that you should want to curb.

There are three basic ways you can respond to your dog's whining:

1. Ignore your dog's whining completely. This is not the right choice because your dog will think that you do not care about him. There is also some chance that your dog is whining for a real reason like a sickness. If this is the case then you will of course want to take your dog to the Vet to have it checked out. You should not ignore your dog's whining.

2. Immediately come to your dog every time he whines even the slightest bit even when you've established that he is whining only for attention. This is also the wrong course of action. This will make your dog think that whining is the best way to get your attention and it will become a long term habit of your dog.

3. Come to your dog and see if he is genuinely hurting or just whining for your attention. If your dog is in pain for some reason then of course you should try to remedy the problem. If you find your dog is whining only for attention then you may want to ignore him when he continues to whine. This can be a difficult call.

You may also want to consider the different reasons why your dog may be whining:

1. Anxiety

Your dog may be experiencing separation anxiety when you leave him alone. One way to solve this problem is to leave him alone for longer and longer periods of time but only very gradually. This way he gets used to spending more and more time alone rather than all of a sudden having to spend very long times alone.

2. Pain

If your dog is whining because he or she is in pain then you'll want to find out what is wrong with your dog and you may want to take him to the vet.

3. Attention Seeking

This is the reason that most needs to be nipped in the bud. You cannot allow your dog to get your attention every time he whines. You have to check at first to make sure that he is ok but then you may want to let him realize that you are not going to come every time he whines.