Why does my Rottweiler bark, howl or whine at night?

If your Rottweiler has been being noisy at night you might be wondering why and what you can do about it.

This post will show you a number of possible causes and what you can do to get it to stop.

So, why does my Rottweiler bark or howl at night? Possible causes are not getting enough exercise, a problem with its diet, rewarding the behavior, fear, separation anxiety, needing to pee or a problem with its sleeping environment.

Your Rottweiler might be being noisy at night for many different reasons and it could be the result of a combination of reasons. However, there are some things you can consider when figuring out the exact cause and there are a number of things you can do about it.

Why does my Rottweiler bark, howl or whine at night?

Below are a number of possible reasons why your Rottweiler does it and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.

Not enough exercise

Rottweilers are meant to get a lot of daily exercise when they are healthy adults. When they do not get enough exercise it can cause them to behave abnormally and it might be why yours has been being noisy at night. This would be more likely if it is quiet on nights where it has gotten a lot of exercise during the daytime.

Generally, it is recommended for healthy adult Rottweilers to get at least an hour of exercise per day.

You have inadvertently reinforced the behavior

It might be the case that you have encouraged it to be noisy at night by giving it things it wants when it does it. If you tend to give it things such as toys, treats or extra attention when it does it, then it might be doing it more in order to get more rewards.

It would help to reward it when it is being well behaved and to try to avoid rewarding it when it is noisy at night unless it seems to be being noisy for a specific reason such as wanting to pee.

Fear

Fear could also be the reason why it has been being noisy at night. This would be more likely if it does it more on nights where there are noises outside such as fireworks or if it is very windy.

Diet

The issue could be that there is a problem with its diet. It could be that it is eating too much, eating the wrong foods or that it is not eating enough. An issue with its diet would be more likely if it has started being noisy at night since a sudden change in its diet or if it becomes noisy on nights where it eats certain foods.

Separation anxiety

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 Rottweiler 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 Rottweiler 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 Rottweiler
• Repeat the above, each time staying outside for slightly longer

You can also do it by applying the same techniques as used in the video below

A problem with its sleeping environment

It might be the case that it is struggling to sleep at night due to an issue with its sleeping environment. It could be the case that it is too bright, too warm or that it is not comfortable enough for it.

It needs to pee

The cause might also be that it needs to pee. This would be more likely if it tends to do it more on nights where it has not been able to pee before bed and if it wants to go outside when it is noisy at night.

How to get your Rottweiler to stop barking, howling and whining at night

Below are some options you have when getting it to stop doing it.

Make sure that you are feeding it correctly

As mentioned above, it could be the case that there is an issue with its diet so it would help to make sure that you are feeding it correctly.

You can look here to see what you should and shouldn’t be feeding your Rottweiler. Feeding it earlier in the evening would likely help as well. It would also help to consult with your vet on its diet when you see them next and to make sure that no one else is feeding it things it shouldn’t be eating.

Give it exercise

It would also help to give it daily exercise. Generally, it is recommended for them to get at least an hour of exercise per day when they are healthy adults. If it is already getting exercise, you could try and get it to wear itself out more by getting it to do things such as to play fetch.

Make its sleeping environment comfortable

It would also help to make sure that its sleeping environment is comfortable. This means that it should be cool, not too bright and there should be a space for it to lay down.

Try crate training

Another option would be to train it with the use of crate training. When done properly, it should give it a space that it can go to where it feels more secure.

Train it to be less anxious without you

If it seems like it might have some separation anxiety, it would likely help to train it to be more comfortable without you.

One way to do this would be to follow to tips mentioned above on separation anxiety.

You can see more on how to do so in the video below.

Avoid rewarding it

It would also help to avoid encouraging the behavior by not giving it rewards when it misbehaves at night. Instead, it would help to reward it when it is well behaved and to use positive reinforcement training to get it to learn to behave the way you want it to.

Get help

If it has started doing it suddenly, you can’t figure out why or it has been acting unusually in other ways, it would help to take it for a checkup with a vet. By doing so you will be able to rule out medical causes and to get expert advice tailored towards your particular Rottweiler.

Things to consider

When it started doing it

When trying to figure out why it has been doing it, considering what else happened when it first started would likely be helpful. It could be the case that there was an event that caused it to start doing it.

If it started doing it suddenly it would be more likely to be due to things such as a sudden change in its diet, a change in its sleeping environment, getting less exercise or becoming ill or injured.

If it doesn’t always do it

If your Rottweiler does not do it every night, it would also help to consider what is different on the nights that it does not do it.

For example, if it goes to sleep quickly when you feed it earlier in the evening, it might be the case that it would help to feed it earlier every night.