Frustrated!!!

I have a male 5 month old English Staffy who i absolutely love. However, he takes the sookiness of a typical Staffy just a little bit too far! He whines and howls and bangs on the back door loudly at various times of the day. It starts as soon as the sun comes up (about 6am) and doesn't stop until i get up to give him his food. He then does it during the day whenever he wants to come inside. And finally, he does it at night to try and get me to let him in. He's not in the yard by himself, he has an adult Labrador for a friend and she seems to be his secururity blanket. Up until 3 days ago he slept inside every single night, which was only because i couldn't handle his whining at night. He now no longer howls at all hours of the night thankfully, which is why he now sleeps outside. He's a huge part of our family and comes inside a fair bit. He goes on daily walks as well. I'm at a loss as to what to do about this whining and howling, i've tried everything! And i'm worried my neighbours might start to complain, especially about his noise at daybreak! Any ideas??

Sez wrote:He whines and howls and bangs on the back door loudly at various times of the day. It starts as soon as the sun comes up (about 6am) and doesn't stop until i get up to give him his food. He then does it during the day whenever he wants to come inside. And finally, he does it at night to try and get me to let him in. He's not in the yard by himself, he has an adult Labrador for a friend and she seems to be his secururity blanket. Up until 3 days ago he slept inside every single night, which was only because i couldn't handle his whining at night. He now no longer howls at all hours of the night thankfully, which is why he now sleeps outside. He's a huge part of our family and comes inside a fair bit. He goes on daily walks as well. I'm at a loss as to what to do about this whining and howling, i've tried everything! And i'm worried my neighbours might start to complain, especially about his noise at daybreak! Any ideas??

Staffords, I'm afraid, are people dogs. They thrive on being close to their human families. At 5 months he's still a baby & will need that close contact.

You say he cries/howls to come in during the day? That's because he wants your company. You also said that he does the same at night, but then you say he doesn't - that bit has confused me, I'll admit. You let him sleep inside & then you've put him out again. I know this sounds harsh, but what did you expect him to do? He is confused & he craves human companionship. Whilst I understand that the temperatures in Australia may be too hot for a dog to live inside, they will still need a tremendous amount of companionship from their human family to make up for it. They just aren't a breed that copes well on their own.

I agree with Caryll.
Staffies are people dogs, and generally want access to human contact.
I've had to effectively isolate mine from doing anything due to neck injuries which have led to disc degeneration and impinged nerves in the spinal cord.
He's kept behind a baby gate in the kitchen, on a huge orthopaedic bed while he, hopefully, heals.
His pain is diminished but he's also to spend another six weeks doing nothing, on vet's instructions and, of course, he's now getting agitated from extreme boredom.
This has led to excessive whining and crying, which has been sufficient to get the neighbours complaining.
To combat it, through reassurance, we've abandoned the lounge and sit in the dining room next to the baby gate during the evening. That, alone, is enough to reassure the dog.
The big problem came at bed time.
Handler upstairs, dog locked in his little prison, alone, downstairs - banished from the sofa he's slept on for five years.
Cue massive howling, which I interpret as mainly being a cry to his "pack" - the humans.
Solution - I now sleep on the sofa, a couple of metres from him, while he heals.
If he whines, which preempts a howl, I simply say: "Good boy, go to sleeps."
And he generally does.
If I try to go to bed upstairs, the whining, crying and howling begins in earnest.
None of which is, of course, relevant to your own predicament, save to show that Staffies don't do well when purposely separated from human contact. He doesn't know why a door has been placed in his way.

It sounds like he has some seperation anxiety because he isn't with you all the time. As already stated Staffies are people dogs and crave your attention. Find some time during the day when it is a bit cooler to have a play with him.

Hide some treats or toys around the room for him to find.

Playing is a great way to cement that special bond between you and your dog.

agree with everything above..at 5 months he really is still a baby..
Staffys really do crave human company...and he won't understand why he was sleeping inside but now is turfed out...
not sure where in Australia you are but we are just coming into winter and poor little Boss will probably freeze..they don't have much fur on them!
At this age he needs lots of love, lots of discipline and lots of training and exercise ...this is really just the beginning...

Dogs are not dumb, he knows already that you will get up and see to him if he is howling and whining. You either need to decide to let him in to stop the whining and let him be a kitchen dog or you need to totally ignore it and not let him inside during the day either.

As said staffies are people dogs but can make good outside dogs too if you stick to your guns.

My experience of keeping a staff outside (also with alabrador)

i have always from day one turfed them out. Not to the "real" outside, there is an office in my garage and when i got lexi she stayed in there at night with Henry my huge teddy bear and her little bed, so she was indoor but alone. During the day i usually had her with me and running about outside cause i got her in summer. By winter she was running with the others during the day but at ngiht i still put her in her office with the heat on low cause it was too cold outside. She wasnt outside in the real world until the next summer when it was warmer so really wasnt outside until she was about one year old

Ive always kept my dogs outside, but i dont just let them stay in a kennel with nothing in it. When i had the other two dogs as well as lexi they all slept on a matress inside a shed that i had put hay bales around to make it like a little den, lexi always slept with my lab who was a fluff machine. When he died i bought her a kennel and have it insulated with carpet and i put hay and blankets in it but she pulled them all out so just has the carpet now for summer. in winter i again surround it in hay bales so its a bit of extra insulation and she has her coat for really frosty mornings

they definately are people dogs, as are Labs. It's one of the things i love about them. Just to clarify, him going from sleeping inside to sleeping outside was done over a transition period. To get him used to it. He shares a large kennel with my Lab and the kennel is located under cover so i have no doubt he's warm. The whinging he does at night is done just on nightfall, when we're still up. I go out and play with him for a while to help tire him out and he then sleeps all night. The major problem is him whining and howling just as the sun comes up. I think this is because he wants his breakfast, he seems to settle once he's fed. However, i was hoping someone might have some advice about stopping this because otherwise i think i'm going to have to resign myself to getting up at the crack of dawn each morning to feed him so he quiets down. I'd hate to have the neighbours complain about him. I'm a little stuck with the whole letting him inside thing. I want both dogs to be a massive part of the family and love to bring them in, but at the same time they need to be happy outside too. Is there a happy in between? My little girl and i love our dogs so much and spend a LOT of time with them because this is what makes them happy. But clearly Boss wants this to be a 24hr thing :-)

Don't know what to say really tbh , Tilly just loves people and she finds them inside not outside. I'm really lucky like this morning at 08.00 she was still flat out on our bed but she's comforted as she knows we are there with her , out walking at 08.30 with my daughter and then straight back into bed with mummy for a lie in

staffies are very much people dogs and don't like to be away from them for long periods, we only get away with marley sleeping in another room by crate training and him associating his crate with bed time but he knows we are only in the next room and settles really well

When I got Buster a couple of months ago he was an outside dog. He slept outside all night and was out most of the day. He had been used to this from day one. Because we already had LuLu we decided that keeping him outside when we were not here would be easier than crate training him to keep seperate. Now he stays outside when we have to go out and he cannot come, which he is fine with, and he sleeps in our bedroom on his bed at night. He hates being shut outside if we are in though and will howl, whine, and make various other odd noises. It didn't bother him when we first had him, but now he has got used to human company he hates to be shut off from it.

When we shut him out if we are going out he has his food, water and a few treats and toys that I hide around so he has to find them, then I think he pretty much sleeps till we get back (it is never for longer than a couple of hours as he does come most places with us) but even if I do this when we are in he goes mad. I know he doesnt make a sound when we go out as I have asked the neighbours.

The first week when he slept in our bedroom he was awake when the sun came up and very hyper so I think that may be an outside dog thing, now he is used to our routine and loves a lie in and at the weekends when I have mine he wont even get up early for a wee!

Is there anyway you could do something similar? Keep him inside for the most part untill you need to go out, etc?

i tried to keep him outside from day one as he was mostly going to be an outside dog, however his howling was constant and would go on until all hours of the morning and so i had no choice but to let him sleep inside. Plus, we have a lot of Staffy's being stolen in my area at the moment so keeping him in over night while he was still so small was also for his safety. I work 9-3 every day during the week and he stays outside without any problem. I let both dogs in as soon as we get home for about an hour or so then take them for a walk and they stay outside after that. I think he is very slowly getting used to being outside at night, but it's only been a week. He still starts to howl as soon as the sun comes up though, that's our biggest issue right now. Even if he sleeps inside, he starts to whinge as soon as he sees daylight. So i'm not sure why that is or how to fix it

Sez wrote:Plus, we have a lot of Staffy's being stolen in my area at the moment so keeping him in over night while he was still so small was also for his safety.

That's the thing, above everything else, that would stop me keeping any dog outside, but especially a stafford. Dog theft in the UK is quite common. They tend to be stolen for baiting - barbaric.

people around here suspect they're being stolen to put in fighting pits. If that's true, these thieves are picking the wrong breed for it! It's disgusting. I certainly wasn't going to take any risks with my boy

I don't keep my dogs outside as I don't see the point (they're pets and I want them with me!) I'm not against people keeping dogs outside if the dogs get enough attention, stimulation, warmth, they're happy with it etc. and i know some breeds are typically happier out of doors however I wouldn't've thought a staffy is a dog that would be happy to be outside if his people are inside...

It sounds like he has learnt from a young age that whining gets him what he wants so why would he want to stop? He knows if he whines you'll let him in or get up and give him his breakfast etc.

Is there a reason he has to be an outdoor dog?

Galadriel wrote:I don't keep my dogs outside as I don't see the point (they're pets and I want them with me!) I'm not against people keeping dogs outside if the dogs get enough attention, stimulation, warmth, they're happy with it etc.

I am the same. I have never kept any dog outside before, and I don't think any of my family ever have, although I know people do. If we didn't already have LuLu who was used to having run of downstairs then Buster would've been a completley inside dog. He is happy outside though, as long as we are not in. His mum was also kept outside, and I'm not sure, but I think he was born outside so it really has been since the very start for him.

If he makes any noise while outside I will not let him in untill he shuts up. He never goes on for too long as I have done this from the start, but if you have been going to him then it will take him longer to stop - he will think that if he carries on for long enough you will go to him.

I do worry every time we leave him out there that he will get stolen though, but I'm hoping it won't happen as there is no access to our back garden, unless they go through 3 neighbours gardens first, and there is always one of my neighbours in. I know it can still happen, but I hope not. I am lucky that he isn't out all day as even when I have to work he can go to work with my OH.

When he sleeps in your room where does he stop? Maybe it would be worth crate training him so he cannot wake up and start bouncing about, and maybe try a blackout blind so it stays darker for longer? I don't know what you could do to stop him waking up so early outside. Even if you start leaving him untill he is quiet before you go to him it will take him a while to be completley quiet, which means he will still be waking your neighbours early. Have you tried getting feeding bowls with a timer on? Set it up the night before then set it so it opens just after he normally wakes up? I have no idea what they are like, but could be worth a try if he normally settles back down after food.

I know that if I ignore his whining he will eventually stop, however when he was doing it at 2am non stop I really did have no choice but to go get him. Thankfully he no longer whines during the night. But he does it at sunrise and again I know that it would be better to leave him so he learns that shining won't get him what he wants, but again it has the potential to cause trouble with the neighbours if he wakes them up. He is VERY loud! When he slept inside at night, he was in the bathroom and had my Lab with him. I haven't had him inside overnight now for nearly a week and he seems to be doing fine so far.

And the reason he is a mostly outdoor dog is because I live in a rental property and am actually not supposed to have them inside at all. Plus I have a cat and although she is outside most of the time, when she is in both digs go insane over her if they're inside too. We had a Staffy x Bully for 16 years and she was more than happy to be outside. Coming inside was a treat for her. I'm sure that if I persist and be patient the Boss will hopefully settle as he gets older.

I haven't actually heard of a food bowl with a timer, didn't know they existed! If I could find one, it might help though

I just double checked to make sure /i hadn't dreamt about them! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-AUTOMATIC-PET-FEEDER-DOG-CAT-BOWL-24hr-delivery-/280722471538?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item415c5cfa72 I know you are not in the UK, but this type of thing

Awesome! Thank you, I'll check it out

Sez wrote:people around here suspect they're being stolen to put in fighting pits. If that's true, these thieves are picking the wrong breed for it! It's disgusting. I certainly wasn't going to take any risks with my boy

They tend not to be used for fighting, but for baiting - ie they are tied up and dogs training to be fighters are set on them to 'test' them. Bait dogs end up being ripped to pieces.