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My 1 1/2 yr. old daschund sleeps in a crate at night and has always done good sleeping 7 to 8 hours a night. Just this last week he has started whining and yipping during the night in his crate. Starts anywhere between 2:00 am to 4:00 am. There has been no change in his routine and I can't seem to figure it out. Thinking maybe it's separation anxiety. Any thoughts?
Well, short of there being a medical issue...
I would recommend that you stop that behavior before it becomes a habit.
The thing w/ dogs is that they always try and change the routine.. This is what they do. They are always asking IN THAT MOMENT, for leadership. (Unless of course the dog is ill.. ).
You need to find a sound, like "Tshhhhhh" and say it loud and as unpleasantly as possible. He needs to be made aware that whining is an innaproprate sound/behavior and it will get a negative response from his pack leader.
If he doesn't understand that the sound you are making is negative.. then get up and give his crate a little knock while saying "Tshhhhhhh!" loudly.
I know it sounds cold and mean, but he's a dog and reaction is the only behavior he learns and understands when it come to this...
I'm sure you're a warm and loving pack leader... so when the time is right for negative feed back, let that sound lead you to help lead him...
Hope this helped... (and that you understand what I mean.. lol).
If it's not a medical issue, like sweetdee suggested, and if it's not for loneliness or anxiety, which would be a little strange coming out of nowhere, consider the possibility that he might be picking up on things that dogs' sensitive ears can hear when ours can't. Does a street cleaner pass by at that time? Garbage trucks? Could it be other animals he's hearing or smelling like raccoons or other night creatures?
I hope it also goes to say that you should have a vet check for possible medical issues before you start with any aversive actions such as making noise or knocking on the crate.
The other thing is to talk with your dog as you put him in the crate before you go to bed. My cat used to scratch at my bedroom door around 5 am because she wanted out to eat or use her litterbox. (She doesn't "need" to use the litterbox - as you will see.) Finally I just "spoke with her" about this. I told her as we were going to bed that I expected her to sleep through the night and no more scratching at the door. If she got up and scratched at the door I scolded her, then brought her back to the bed and petted her and helped her go back to sleep. The next night, I reminded her again that we were going to sleep through the night. That did the trick - now she patiently waits for me to open the door when I get up - if she forgets and goes to the door I call to her - first scolding her and then calling her to come back to bed, and she gives up at the door and comes back to bed. I now this sounds weird and touchy-feely, but it really does work.
I mean no disrespect, but a canine is a DOG and they don't need a "speaking to"... before you put them in their crate. It will do absolutely nothing in respect to changing the whining habit your dog is beginning.
It's not rude to enforce a law in your house, providing you with the pack leader position. All breeds respond to leadership, even the "soft" dog that doesn't need a forceful reminder. This type of dog would only have to be "Tsssshhhhhhhhh-ed" once for the rest of days of his life... lol!
If you watch dogs in a pack you can see that there is no "talking"... just noise making. This is communication in the most basic of ways. It gets their point across faster...
Don't make it complicated... and hurry and stop this new habit. Not only is it a habit wanting to form... but for a dog to be allowed to create a behavior, it also teaches him that he get to change the rules... and THAT'S never good.
If you haven't tried it, then you have no way to know if it will work or not.Quote:
Originally Posted by SweetDee
It works by helping the person make their intentions clear. Many times people don't ask their pets to do what they want - they just magically expect the pet to figure it out. By making the request, you make your own intentions clear - not just in "words" but in tone and in conviction - leadership.
Sometimes what the dog wants when it wakes up in the middle of the night is attention. Any attention - even scolding - can be reinforcing and can sometimes lead to more of the unwanted behavior. My experience is that when someone comes to a forum like this with a problem of this type they have already tried scolding, and it isn't working - they have encountered the "attention reinforces the unwanted behavior" problem. Plus, you already mentioned the scolding approach - so that's covered. That's why I suggested an alternate approach, in case they need another idea.Quote:
Originally Posted by SweetDee
Jcdill, when I was a young girl my mother adopted a dog... and since I was young and inexperience I did talk to the dog and ask her to stop barking and peeing on the carpet... and I learned that talking to a dog like a person isn't effective... Now if you're saying that you talk to your dog w/ a "tone and conviction"... then that would be like scolding, no?
Thank goodness for you that you have a soft dog that takes to softly spoken commands. I too have a dog like that. It's almost as if he came into this world pre-trained. It's a gift from God to have a dog that is so easily trained. Statistically, it's not the case to have a dog like that. Proof is in the amount of dogs given to shelters EVERY DAY. If dogs were so easy to train there would be less need for dog trainers... (which I am one!).
TRUTH BE TOLD, I SPEND MORE TIME TRAINING THE HUMANS THAN THE DOGS THEMSELVES...
I do not agree w/ giving in to the attention a dog wants while in the crate, (I'd like to be more agreeable but I can't). At night, when you command the dog to go into the crate (of course after you've already put him out.. ) it's best to teach him/her that it's time for "quiet" up UNTIL you invite him/her out... Otherwise you risk giving your dog choices, which in doggy language means, "I can change the rules, which gives me power?" Dogs need to learn their place... it's not mean, they don't feel sensitive about the pecking order. They just fall in line...
One of the best things you can do with your pets is talk to them... a LOT. They learn a larger vocabulary, it helps your bond grow, and it teaches them a lot more about what your tone means in different situations. I don't think jcdill's advice is totally nuts. The only thing is that it depends a lot on the pet to understand. I have a friend with a gigantic dog. She brought him up whispering in his ear. Whenever she wants him to do something, she whispers it to him. Of course, it won't work for everyone! :)
Other than "ignore," all actions towards the situation are some form of "attention," be they positive or negative. Coming over to investigate the problem is attention. Scolding is attention. Yelling is attention. Whispering is attention.
It doesn't sound to me like the dog, who has started whining in his crate between 2 and 4am, is doing it to dominate, right? Sweetdee, you said that he's looking for leadership at that moment. If it isn't a medical problem, why would he start doing it at 3 in the morning?
By the way, sweetdee, I'm really, really happy to have a trainer on this site! I've really enjoyed reading your advice across the threads, and I'm sure I'll be needing more of it for my own little puppy in future! Happy to see you!
I have been having this problem with my puppy too. Puppies whine either because of being uncomfortable (having to eat, pee, drink water) or in my puppy's case being lonely. Your puppy loves you and only wants to be with the owners that love him back! When my puppy whines because of lonliness she usually stops because we ignore her and she won't get her way. But if she continues for a very long period, get her leash and let her out to pee and give her a drink. Then put her right back in. Then she will probably stop whining. Mine does.
Sweetdee, I don't mean that when I talk it is always like a scolding. When I talk to an animal (cat, dog, horse, etc.) I talk like I would to a small child. I explain what I want. In doing so, I'm being alpha, but not necessarily scolding (unless scolding is called for). If you haven't read Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin, you might want to pick up that book. Animals can understand a lot more than we give them credit for, but we often get stuck in thinking they are "dumb animals" and don't give them the benefit of a chance to communicate with them directly. It's not just a matter of vocabulary (although animals are able to comprehend a much larger vocabulary than most people realize), it's also all the non-verbal communication that happens when you speak. There is tone of voice, there is posture, there is simply having the conviction that you are saying something and you expect it to be heard, understood, and obeyed. Speak "as if" your pets understand just as well as a child does, and pretty soon your pets WILL understand.
I agree w/ you all when you say that you need to talk to your dog... I mean, my dog has a TON of words capability. I am trying to stick to the issue here and the point is that we are talking about a dog that is whining in it's crate. Talking to a dog that is whining in it's crate, (knowing the dog has ALREADY eliminated and assuming the dog is not ill... ) is the issue at hand. (Can I find another way to say and stay on point here? Lol!)
If the worry is that the dog might be ill, then taking him to the vet should confirm whether that is the issue or not.
Personally, in my experience this dog is just having anxiety. The best way to cure the dog of separation or any kind of anxiety is to reassure the dog. To reassure a dog about "wanting" to stay in it's command is to pressure the dog against resistance. Reassurance is NEVER offered w/ a change of rules under any circumstance. To take the dog out of it's routine IS changing the rules. The dog will learn nothing but that when he cries he gets to be cuddled. This teaches him to cry... What dog doesn't like a good cuddle.
A cuddle is a reward... in my books one rewards their dog for a job well done. Is whining a job well done?
SweetDee - we have a saying when working with horses and something bad happens:
What happened before "what happened" happened?
In almost all cases there are small signs that occur before the big problem occurs. If you see, and react to the small things, you can prevent the big thing from ever happening.
When I say to talk with the dog before going to bed, this is attempting to address what happens "before" - before going to bed. It's trying to head off the problem, rather than react to the problem after it has happened.
A) As we all know, first you have to rule out a medical issue.
B) Once the problem happens, any attention (even scolding) can be "reinforcing". If scolding works, then use it! However, you had already suggested scolding, and
C) My experience is most people try scolding and only seek out additional assistance when scolding is ineffective (inadvertently reinforcing) so...
D) My suggestion to talk to the dog before bed is trying to head off the problem rather than react after the problem occurs. At worst, it accomplishes nothing - but no harm is done. But at best, it improves communication with the dog, and might help.
That's all I was trying to say.
Jcdill, we'll just have to agree to disagree then.
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