If your husky has been whining a lot when you leave the house you might be wanting to know why and what you can do about it.
This post will show you a number of reasons why it might whine when you leave and what you can do about it.
So, why does my husky whine when I leave? Possible reasons are that is has separation anxiety, you might have inadvertently rewarded the behavior or it might be hungry or thirsty.
There are actually multiple reasons why it might whine when you leave and it could be a combination of multiple reasons. However, there are also a number of things you can consider that will help you in figuring out the exact reason. Once you have a good idea of the cause, it will become easier to get it to stop.
Why your husky whines when you leave
Each of the different reasons why your husky whines when you leave will likely come with a number of clues in the way that it does it.
Below, I will show you a number of reasons why it might be doing it and what would make them more likely.
Separation anxiety
The reason why it cries when you leave is likely to be that it has separation anxiety. This is where it does not like it when it is left alone and it becomes anxious when it is left alone. This would be more likely if your husky also shows signs of being anxious when you are leaving such as pacing.
If it does seem to have separation anxiety it would help to train it to be less anxious without you.
To do this you could do as follows:
- Make it seem like you are about to leave by doing something such as picking up your keys
- Reward your husky for not being anxious and repeat these two steps a few times
- Make more moves towards actually leaving such as by picking up the keys and putting your hand on the door handle
- Reward your husky for not being anxious and repeat the process a few times
- Actually open the door and go outside for a few moments then come back and reward your husky
- Repeat the above, each time staying outside for slightly longer
It’s hungry
It could be the case that it does it because it is hungry and it does not want to have to wait a long time before it is fed. This would be more likely to be the reason if it does not whine as much when you leave on days where you have already fed it.
You have been reinforcing it
It could be the case that you have actually trained it to whine when you leave by giving it things that it wants when it does it. If you reward it when it does it then it will do it more in order to get the rewards.
Instead, it would help to reward it only when it is behaving the way that you want and to use positive reinforcement training to get it to behave how you want.
A lack of exercise
Huskies are a breed that is meant to get a lot of exercise on a daily basis. When they do not get enough exercise it can cause them to behave abnormally. A lack of exercise could be why your husky whines when you leave especially if it does it more on days where it has not gotten exercise already.
Generally, it is recommended for them to get at least an hour of exercise per day. If your husky is not getting that much exercise it would help to make sure that it does.
Things to consider
Below are some things you can consider that will help in figuring out why your Siberian husky has been whining when you leave.
When it first cried when you left
It would help to consider when your husky first started crying when you left since it could be the case that there was an event that caused it to start doing it.
It might be that it whined one time and you gave it something that it wanted so it continued to do it whenever you leave. Alternatively, it might be that you stopped giving it as much attention when it started doing it.
What is different when it does not whine when you leave
It would also help to consider whether or not it always cries when you leave and what is different on the days that it doesn’t do it.
If it does not always cry when you leave it would make it more likely that it does it due to things such as hunger or wanting exercise.
How to get your husky to stop whining when you leave
Below are some options you have when getting your husky to stop whining when you leave.
Train it not to using positive reinforcement training
Positive reinforcement training is where you reward your husky for behaving the way you want and avoid rewarding it when it does not.
To use positive reinforcement training to get your husky to whine less when you leave you could do as follows:
- Get some treats that it likes
- Reward your husky with a treat then make a small movement towards the door. If it does not whine reward it with a treat. If it does whine then wait for it to stop then make a much smaller movement towards the door and reward it for not whining.
- Carry on making small movements towards the door and rewarding it until you are able to open the door without it whining.
- Start to actually walk out the door and then come back in and reward it for not whining. Each time you do it stay outside for slightly longer.
You can watch the video below to see how it is done as well as a number of other very helpful tips on what you can do:
Give it exercise
As mentioned above, it is important to make sure that your husky is getting enough exercise. You can exercise it by walking it yourself or you could get a dog walker to do it for you.
Avoid negative reinforcement
As mentioned above, it could be the case that you have trained your husky to whine when you leave by giving it rewards when it does it.
Instead, try to use positive reinforcement training to get it to stop as shown above and to avoid rewarding it when it does whine.
Get help from a dog behaviorist
If you cannot get your husky to stop whining when you leave or you cannot figure out why it does it, consider getting the help of a dog behaviorist in your area. By doing so you will be able to get expert advice tailored towards your particular husky.