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My puppy whines at everything. How can I stop this?

15K views 28 replies 15 participants last post by  Jag  
#1 · (Edited)
My 9 week old puppy whines a lot as I am told by the people who have met her. She whines when shes in her crate, when she is outside, when she has her harness on, when she sees a leaf, when she is with me, when she is in the car, when she sees her shadow, when she is just sitting there, etc. How can I minimize the whining? The whining is so high pitch that my neighbors keep thinking that I am strangling her.
 
#5 ·
My 11 week old does the same, though probably less...I don't coddle her...she settles down in her crate with her toys...she does a pretty good job of letting me know when she needs to go potty (well, sometimes)...is she used to constantly seeing you, and then whining when she can't? At first it was non-stop here...but she has calmed down quite a bit. I let her run herself ragged with one of my older dogs who loves to play, he wears her out...and she's tired..and quiet...
 
#9 · (Edited)
I dont agre with "it will stop" high drive pups whine. Every morning when I let my 13 week out her cage it looks like one of those soldier returning vids, she whines and cries out of joy. licking/biting my face. Shell do the same out of food drive, when i get her food she sounds the same as when i drove her home from the litter like im hanging her by the tail. but when unsure she barks with a deep tone.

Its not ideal but get used to it, I think an ecollar can be used to correct it if its an issue, get training before using it. Also I noticed you said the 9 week old is a furniture destroyer, definitely start some training classes asap. It sounds like itll be cheaper in the long run.
 
#12 ·
I dont agre with "it will stop" high drive pups whine. Every morning when I let my 13 week out her cage it looks like one of those soldier returning vids, she whines and cries out of joy. licking/biting my face. Shell do the same out of food drive, when i get her food she sounds the same as when i drove her home from the litter like im hanging her by the tail. but when unsure she barks with a deep tone.

Its not ideal but get used to it, I think an ecollar can be used to correct it if its an issue, get training before using it. Also I noticed you said the 9 week old is a furniture destroyer, definitely start some training classes asap. It sounds like itll be cheaper in the long run.
:headbang: No, please do NOT even entertain this idea! Some GSDs are just whiners. Some outgrow it when they're more comfortable, some don't. How are you bonding with her if she's in her kennel all day? Sounds like she needs more interaction, more play, more exercise, etc. She needs to become comfortable with you and your family and home. Training classes may be good for her when her vaccines are further along. Grim is very vocal, so I hear whines, groans, grumbles, etc. on top of barks. Have you talked to the breeder about this at all? Does she otherwise appear healthy and energetic?
 
#10 ·
My pup is 6 months old and he still whines though it has lessened some. But he whines when we do anything new or are in the car, when I pet him... I just always assumed it was a GSD thing.

Best thing to do is ignore and don't coddle or pay extra attention if they're whining... also I'm not against e-collars but I think 9 weeks old is way to young for one!
 
#13 ·
Please don't use an Ecollar on a 9 week old puppy. He's too young, won't understand, and you could cause all sorts of issues.

Six months is the generally accepted minimum age for Ecollar use.
 
#14 ·
GSDs are vocal, some more than others. You need to get her out of the cage and spend more time with her. Your stern tone of voice telling her "no whine" or "hush" when she whines, plus a treat when she stops, will *train* her not to whine, or at least to hush on command.

I think she's telling you that she wants to spend more time with you and interact with you. GSD pups are high-maintenance and very people-oriented, not content to sit in a corner and contemplate their navel. You should use this time to bond.
 
#18 ·
she probably won't grow out of it, but it will decrease. Some GSD's just whine a lot, it's how they communicate. My other GSD barely vocalized at all, and she had a really calm, even temperament. My new GSD (about 3.5 months old now) whines A LOT, and has kind of a nervy, excitable temperament. She whines about everything, like you said. Whines in her crate, the car, when she's excited, when she's being petted, etc etc etc. She seems to have different whines for different things, i'm starting to learn the difference between her "bathroom" whine, her "i dont like the car" whine, and all that.
 
#19 ·
+1 for it probably will get better, but she won't grow out of it. The best you can do is teach her that it will not get her anything (not even attention) and hope she will extinguish this behavior.

You also have to separate dogs that do it because they learned it gets them what they want and dogs that don't even realize they are leaking (vocalizing, shaking, etc).

My dog is 3 years old, and we spend a lot of time training. No matter what - he'll always stay a whiner.

Keep her calm, make sure you don't amp her up pass the point that she can handle. And see if you can interest her in other things if she's whining in the crate and such - dogs can't chew (or lick a kong full of peanut butter) AND whine at the same time (but my dog seems to get close by the way LOL )

And, i think its obvious at this point - NO ECOLLAR FOR A 9 WEEK OLD PUPPY!!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE
 
#21 ·
Both of my GSDs are major whiners. When I pull in the driveway after work it sounds like my entire house is winding up for intergalactic space travel!

Oh, and Jack's "We're about to play ball!" vocalizations are all kinds of crazy...crazy Cute.

I mostly don't acknowledge it, though, because they will quickly get out of hand and take advantage. Trust me, my dogs are NOT starved for attention, as they would lead one to believe. My neighbor sabotages me with my 12-yr old. Whenever she whines and the neighbor is there she will love all over her crooning hush, hush. Not helping, I say again and again. :headbang:

I also have a "Shut It" command. Works best when whispered at the wall :crazy:

This is probably not the same as what your pup is going through right now, but be prepared, the breed is VERY vocal. And they will take you the full range from making you want to SCREAM to ROTFLYAO!

Ah, training.
 
#28 ·
Train her not to whine.....

Teach her that the sound of a clicker is good.....
Click, treat, click treat, click, treat.....

When she is in between whines, click and treat. Each time she pauses from whining click and treat........

AFTER she gets the idea, add hush-click-treat. AFTER she understands the word hush, give the command pause for a very short minute then click and treat.

Slowly extend the pause in between the hush command and the click, treat.

After a few weeks, if your timing is good, you can hush and not click and treat after each command. Eventually you can stop giving the click and treat, excpet for once and a while.

This is done in combination with usual obedience training.
 
#29 ·
That might well work. However, to me it sounds like trying to stop the wind. Whining usually gets better with age. Although... it may turn into other vocalizing. I don't see the issue. I guess personal preference. I prefer my GSDs vocal.