she never stops crying/whining! help!

[amartin]

i picked up lily about two weeks ago from the humane society and she hasn't really been out of my sight since. (shes adorable) i think that this is a major reason in why she won't stop crying whenever i leave the room. if i crate her while i take a shower, i can hear her crying the entire time, if i leave to go to the bathroom, she doesnt stop. when i come in the room she used to stop immediatley, but now it takes her a little time to calm down. if she isn't crated, she follows me constantly. when she cries in the crate, i feel absolutely awful and want to rush in to help her, but i know that i need to be consistent if i ever want to leave the house knowing that she is ok... but i'm at my wits end. i don't want to leave my house with her alone, because i feel so horrible about it. i tried leaving her in for different lengths of time, giving her treats, and even leaving her in when im in the room so she doesnt associate her crate with a bad place. (it's right next to my bed) she doesn't tear up her blankets or harm herself, but she does chew up the newspaper in her cage (but she does that while im in the room as well)... so i dont know if she has separation anxiety? i need something to do that won't break either of our hearts. thankkkk you! :eek:

[bubbatd]

How old is she ????

[candy722]

Yeah sounds like she has lots of anxiety. I guess you can do it gradually. Even if she cries you just have to ignore it. Why don't you start leaving her alone every 15 min. Or just leave her in whenever she stops crying. I did this and it worked. TOki still cries when I leave the house but he stops after 3 min because he knows that I won't be back and I can't hear him. It takes some time. I spoiled TOki by taking him every where when he was a pup but when he just got older I can't take him everywhere and he cries. But now he knows better.

[amartin]

How old is she ????

almost ten weeks and a lab/chow mix. oops.

[amartin]

Yeah sounds like she has lots of anxiety. I guess you can do it gradually. Even if she cries you just have to ignore it. Why don't you start leaving her alone every 15 min. Or just leave her in whenever she stops crying. I did this and it worked. TOki still cries when I leave the house but he stops after 3 min because he knows that I won't be back and I can't hear him. It takes some time. I spoiled TOki by taking him every where when he was a pup but when he just got older I can't take him everywhere and he cries. But now he knows better.


i don't understand why she would hate her crate so much if she was in one for her entire stay at the humane society? i don't know if that is an ignorant thing to think... but i just feel awful.

[gapeach]

Sounds like she was taken from her mom too early. Maybe a hot water bottle or ticking clock. Something to sound like Mama. Help me out here Grammy! Grammy will know. :D I'm no expert. Just thought I'd give my thoughts. She might have cried at rescue too.

[Babyblue5290]

Maybe if you leave something that has your scent on it....like a shirt or sock you had just worn.....with her might help if she is so attatched with you.

[gapeach]

We have some dog trainers on here that I'm sure will be able to help more. Wecome to Chazhound though! Do you have any pics of Lily?

[amartin]

We have some dog trainers on here that I'm sure will be able to help more. Wecome to Chazhound though! Do you have any pics of Lily?



thank you! reading through these forums has all ready given me some wonderful tips and not to mention everyone is very welcoming and helpful!


<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v710/notdarkyet/DSC04081.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

[gapeach]

Your welcome and yes it's very informative here and we're like family :D By the way we can't click on to your pic

[necterine0]

I got to the pic ...go here: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v710/notdarkyet/DSC04081.jpg

[gapeach]

Thanks Necterine!

Lily's very cute Amartin

[necterine0]

your welcome gapeach

[gapeach]

We have such nice manners here :D

[amartin]

Thanks Necterine!

Lily's very cute Amartin



thank you, she is certainly a handful.

[gapeach]

It'll get better. Is she your first dog?

[amartin]

It'll get better. Is she your first dog?


my first puppy on my own. i lost my family dog a few years ago after 16 years... so i decided to move out and get my own puppy. it's very overwhelming but i know that it will be worth it. i just wish there were a magic pill to get her to listen! after midnight she becomes a little brat, haha.

[gapeach]

Yeah it's def worth it. Although Carey was a very good puppy (besides eating things she shouldn't) I lost my Smokey in January he was 15.

[Doberluv]

after midnight she becomes a little brat, haha.

"After midnight...we gonna let it all hang out..." That's a song! 70's. (?) LOL.

Just so you know....puppies can't be adults overnight. LOL. It's like expecting a 1 year old child to act like a 20 year old in a week or two. (It ain't gonna happen.) LOL

Let your pup be a pup while you're helping him to grow and learn.

[Renee750il]

One thing no one has mentioned is the crate might be the problem! If she's from a shelter that crate could easily be associated in her mind with being back in a kennel cage in the shelter, making her afraid of being abandoned. A puppy proofed room might solve your problem, plus, as she's going to be a larger dog, she needs to be able to move about freely for her bones and muscles to develop properly. Crating can seriously interfere with that and cause problems later on.

[Doberluv]

I'm sorry...I wasn't very helpful, was I. Well... I always used a crate for my dogs when they were pups, but not for too long of a period at a time. I would put the crate next to my bed and my most recent pup, my Doberman slept in there with me or when I couldn't watch him, he'd go in with a treat and some toys. It was never associated with punishment and he was rewarded when he went in with my command, "go to bed." He got so he liked his little place to be quiet, very little stimulation and protected. It isn't good to leave them their too long, like Renee said. So, if you can make a puppy proof room, that would be GREAT! I was afraid my Doberman would eat the walls and door jams, so I used a crate. He was a monster. But he got plenty of exercise and play time so that he didn't mind settling down once in a while.

I do think your pup will get over this. Just don't worry too much or make a fuss over him when he's doing all that. He'll learn that that works and you'll have problems later on. Give him ample attention, a little training, (sit, come, down, let's go etc...get him use to the leash gradually..that sort of thing) Let him romp several times a day out in the yard with you. Take him to visit some neighbors, but make sure it's all pleasant and nothing scary happens to him. You can even carry him part of the way. It may be too far for him to walk at this age.

Encourage him with gentle play, treats and toys. Show him new things, but don't overwhelm him. Give him plenty of chances for naps. I really think he'll be fine. If you've done enough with him, you feel good about the time you've spent with him, he's fed and gone potty, has water and he's sleepy looking, put him down for a nap and ignore the whining. You can be pretty sure he's comfortable. He'll figure out that that doesn't bring you. He has to learn that he can't have constant attention.

Give it time and patience. I think he'll be fine.

[Fran27]

My puppy was doing the same thing. It took him over a month to get used to the crate, at first we couldn't leave two minutes and he was already whining. My guess is that if you let her in the room with a baby gate and leave, it will be the same thing.

Just ignore her until she stops whining. If you don't, she will learn that whining gets your attention. If you ignore her, and only let her out or give her attention when she's quiet, she will understand that it isn't going anywhere and will stop. It took a while for my puppy to get it, but now he's fine with it and he knows the 'go to bed' command as well (although it requires a treat with peanut butter to work... stubborn he is). He still has his moments when he hears us in another room and whines, but it's because he wants to be with us, but he's really way better about it. It just requires lots of patience.

Good luck.

[amartin]

I'm sorry...I wasn't very helpful, was I. Well... I always used a crate for my dogs when they were pups, but not for too long of a period at a time. I would put the crate next to my bed and my most recent pup, my Doberman slept in there with me or when I couldn't watch him, he'd go in with a treat and some toys. It was never associated with punishment and he was rewarded when he went in with my command, "go to bed." He got so he liked his little place to be quiet, very little stimulation and protected. It isn't good to leave them their too long, like Renee said. So, if you can make a puppy proof room, that would be GREAT! I was afraid my Doberman would eat the walls and door jams, so I used a crate. He was a monster. But he got plenty of exercise and play time so that he didn't mind settling down once in a while.



My roommate just moved out so I have an entirely empty bedroom. I was thinking of putting the crate in there and covering up the electrical sockets, door jams, etc. and leaving her there with her toys when I have to leave the house. I figure she will learn to lay in her crate when she is tired and have a bigger space to run around when im gone for 2+ hours. I've been letting her sleep on the floor next to my bed and she has been doing great with that, no accidents or anything. I think that what Renee said about her associating the crate with her cage at the humane society may be the deal here. Does this sound like a good idea or should i be trying to get her to use the crate with a little more force? Is her sleeping on the floor or in my bed a bad idea?

[bubbatd]

Sleeping with you is fine !!! You might try covering the crate with a blanket to make it more like a den.

[Renee750il]

That sounds like a good plan, Martin. And don't worry if she doesn't ever really get enthusiastic about a crate. There are more of us who have never owned a crate than there are who depend on them. They aren't a necessary part of dog ownership :)

[poeluvr]

yea, i had a crate for my old dog. but this time the crate is way to big for my puppy, and we decided anyways a puppy proof room would be better

[LindaRusiecki]

We used to have the exact same problem with our Boxer puppies. Our trainer told us how to solve the problem, and it worked!

Dogs whine because they feel that they are being abandoned by their pack. In the wild this is useful, but in the home it just becomes aggravating. They won't stop until you correct the behavior.

Half an hour before you plan to leave or go to bed, kennel your dog.

Take a dozen tennis balls with you to wherever the kennel is. Put the dog in the kennel, using the phrase "Go Kennel" or "Kennel up." If the dog resists going in, lure it in with a treat.

Sit across the room from the dog. The second that it starts to make any kind of a whining or a barking sound, throw a tennis ball at the crate. It will make a loud sound that will startle the dog. Yell "QUIET!" as you throw the ball. Repeat until the dog stays quiet.

For kennelling during the day, this trick also helps. Go to your local butcher and get a REAL cow bone (a femur section for a large dog, a smaller bone for a small dog). They come with a little meat still on them and plenty of marrow. Start kennelling your dog for about half an hour at a time with the bone. They will LOVE it and chew on it. When that half an hour is up, take the bone out, put it in a plastic bag, and stick it in the fridge or freezer. Don't let them have it for longer than half an hour at a time, since their body needs to adjust to digesting the marrow. Gradually work your way up to up to three or four hours in the crate, but no longer for a puppy. Pretty soon your dog will associate the smell of the bone with the crate and look forward to being kennelled. THESE BONES ARE FOR THE KENNEL ONLY. If you let them have them in other parts of the house, they'll make a mess. Gross.

Don't put the dog to bed with the real bone, or they'll get incredibly thirsty in the night. Instead, put the dog to bed with a treat, and use the tennis ball technique.

Hope this works for you.

[CreatureTeacher]

Sit across the room from the dog. The second that it starts to make any kind of a whining or a barking sound, throw a tennis ball at the crate. It will make a loud sound that will startle the dog. Yell "QUIET!" as you throw the ball. Repeat until the dog stays quiet.

...Jesus. I'm speechless...