Why your German Shepherd whines (and how to stop it)

If your German Shepherd whines a lot then you’re probably wondering why and what you can do about it. In this post, I will show you a number of reasons why it might be doing it and I will give you a number of things that you can do about it.

So, why is your German Shepherd whining? There are a number of possible reasons. It could be hungry, it might need to go outside, it might want exercise or attention, it might be in pain or it might be saying sorry for something that it did. 

And, what can you do to stop the whining? There are a number of things that you can do to stop the whining you can give it more exercise and attention, you can give it distractions, train it not to and you can take it to the vets. 

Before trying to get the whining to stop it’s important to consider what might be causing the whining. By doing so you will be able to get it to stop much more easily.

Possible reasons why your German Shepherd whines

There are a number of possible reasons why your German Shepherd might have a habit of whining. Below I will mention a number of them. If you are unsure of what might be causing it then consider taking it to the vets to rule out illness or injury.

Hunger

The reason why your German Shepherd whines a lot could be because it is hungry. This kind of whining will be more likely to occur at the time that you would normally give it food as it is anticipating that you are going to feed it soon.

This type of whining could also happen when you forget to feed it as it is its way of letting you know that you have forgotten to give it food.

Needs to pee

The cause of the whining could be that your German Shepherd needs to pee or poo. This kind of whining will be more likely to occur when it has not had the chance to go outside for an extended period and it is letting you know that it is time to let it out.

This type of whining will be more like to occur in the mornings. To prevent this it is necessary to let your German Shepherd go outside regularly.

It’s not getting enough exercise

The cause of the whining could be that it is trying to let you know that you need to give it more exercise. German Shepherds were bred to work with humans on a daily basis doing very intensive tasks.

With that being the case, it can take a lot of exercise to properly stimulate them and if they don’t get it then it can cause hyperactive behavior. If your German Shepherd isn’t getting a lot of exercise then it is important to make sure that it does. You can read the next section to see some ways that you can do so.

Related post: How to exercise my German Shepherd?

Pain

The reason why it is whining a lot could be because it is in pain or it is ill. If you think that it might be the reason then you should take it to the vets.

It wants attention

The reason why your German Shepherd has been whining a lot could be because it is hoping for you to give it some kind of attention. If you have not been giving it much attention then it will make this type of whining much more likely. You’ll also be encouraging the behavior if you reward the whining with attention. If the reason that it whines is to get attention then you should try ignoring the behavior and then rewarding it when it is being well behaved.

It’s saying sorry

If it has done something that it knows will make you unhappy then it can cause it to whine as that is one of the ways that dogs will submit and say that they’re sorry.

Related post: How to tell if your German Shepherd loves you

How to get your German Shepherd to stop whining

There are a number of things that you can do to get your German Shepherd to stop whining that I will. mention below.

Give it exercise

German Shepherds are a breed that were bred to work with humans doing intensive tasks for hours on a daily basis. With that being the case, it is necessary to give them lots of exercise in order to avoid behavioral and health problems.

You might find that even walking your German Shepherd for an hour a day isn’t enough so it will be necessary for you to find ways to wear them out a bit more quickly.

Below I will mention some ways that you can give your German Shepherd some efficient exercise

• Walk it

The most obvious way to give your German Shepherd exercise is to walk it. Walking it can have benefits for you too since walking is a good way to improve your own health.  However, you might find that it’s not enough to properly stimulate your German Shepherd so you’ll need to find ways to make it harder for it.

Some ways that you can do so would be to walk it further, walk it faster, walk it in a hilly area, let it loose in the dog park (teach it to come to you first), or you could put a weight vest on it that is designed for dogs that doesn’t weigh more than 10% of its bodyweight.

• Teach it to play fetch

Teaching your German Shepherd to play fetch would be a great way to give it a lot of exercise. By playing fetch you will be able to wear it out quickly since it will be doing a lot of sprinting without much rest. It will also help to improve your relationship with your German Shepherd since it will teach it to respond to you in a positive way.

It can be difficult to teach dogs to play fetch at first but I have written about how you can do it in the past here in a step by step manner.

• Teach it to swim

Teaching your German Shepherd to swim is another good way to give it a lot of exercise. When your German Shepherd swims it will have to move its legs around quickly in order to stay afloat this will wear it out fast and cause it to get the stimulation that it needs. It’s also good for the summer months since it will help to keep it cool.

• Walk it with other dogs

Another good way to wear it out faster would be to walk it with other dogs. By doing so it will play with the other dogs and use up more energy in the process. It can also help to improve its behavior so you can benefit from that as well.

• Have it pull you

You could try getting it to pull you along on a skateboard or on a bike. By doing this you’ll be able to get it to do a lot of running that should help to wear it out more. But, if you do, make sure that it wears a harness and not a collar.

• Use a dog walker

If you don’t have the time to give your German Shepherd the exercise that it needs yourself then an alternative for you to do would be to get a dog walker to do it for you. There are apps that you can download now that allow you to book a dog walker in your area through the ap quickly and easily.

Train it

You could also train it to stop whining using positive reinforcement training.

Positive reinforcement training is where you train it by encouraging it to behave the way you want it to by rewarding good behavior. You can use this to get your German Shepherd to stop whining by ignoring it when it whines and then rewarding it with your attention and treats when it is behaving the way that you want it to.

When you ignore it you should make sure not to give it any attention at all and not even bad attention as this would be giving it what it wants.

If you want more tips on how to train your GSD, take a look at The Dunbar Academy Training Program. you can get the first month free using this link.

Give it distractions

You could also stop the whining by giving it lots of things to be distracted with.

One way to do so would be to give it lots of toys to play with. That way you will be able to direct its attention onto something that you don’t mind it being focused on instead of something like your sofa. Giving it lots of toys to play with is especially important when it’s in the teething phase as that’s when it naturally wants to chew on things a lot.

You could also give it some puzzle games to play with. There are a number of puzzle toys that you can get know that are designed to make your German Shepherd think about what it is doing in order to get the treats inside. If you do get a puzzle game for your German Shepherd get one of the harder ones since German Shepherds are a smart breed and it will get bored quickly if it’s an easy one.

You could also give it some chews to chew on. There are chews that you can buy now that are designed to calm your German Shepherd down. So, you might want to consider getting some for when you think that it might be about to misbehave.

Give it attention

To stop your German Shepherd from whining you’ll also need to give it attention when it is appropriate. There are a number of ways that you can do so in an effective manner that I’ll mention below.

• Tug of war

Playing tug of war with your German Shepherd is a good way to give it the attention that it wants. German Shepherds love to play tug of war so you’ll probably find that yours will enjoy playing it.

• Training

One way to give your German Shepherd exercise would be to train it. Obviously, this will have the added benefit of getting your German Shepherd to behave the way that you want it to.

If you haven’t trained your German Shepherd before then you should start with the basics such as to teach it to sit and stay in an environment where there are not many distractions. You can then teach it harder things in locations with more distractions like a park.

• Play fetch with it

By playing fetch with your German Shepherd you’ll not only be able to give it attention but you’ll also be able to exercise it in an efficient manner.

• Doggy daycare

If you don’t think that you will have the time to give your German Shepherd attention then consider taking it to a doggy daycare. By doing this you will be able to avoid problems such as having it misbehave while you are away.

Take it to the vet

If you are unsure of why your German Shepherd might be whining a lot and you can’t get it to stop then consider taking it to the vet to get it checked out.

Things to Consider

When trying to figure out why your German Shepherd whines a lot and how to stop it there are some things to keep in mind that I’ll mention below.

Age

If your German Shepherd is still young then it will naturally whine a lot more. The whining should reduce as it gets older. While it is young make sure to take the time to train it properly.

When it whines

When you’re thinking about what might be causing the whining consider when your German Shepherd whines. If it whines in the mornings then it might be because it wants food or because it wants to go outside. If it whines at a time when you normally walk it then it probably is reminding you of that.

Where it whines

You should also consider the location of the whining. If it’s where you normally feed it then it is probably hoping that you’ll give it food for example.

Be patient

When you’re training your German Shepherd to stop whining it is important to be patient since it’s not something that you will be able to get rid of in one training session.

Communication

It’s also important not to get frustrated by your German Shepherds whining. They can’t communicate the same way that we can and whining is one of the options that they have available to them.

Related

Why is my German Shepherd whining suddenly? If your German Shepherd has suddenly started to whine a lot then consider recent events that have happened and changes in its normal routine. It is also possible that it is sick or injured and you should get it looked at by a vet.