How to Get Your Yorkie to Stop Whimpering

When dogs whimper or whine, it is considered a form of barking and is the animal's main way of communicating. Yorkshire terriers ("Yorkies") whimper as puppies and transition to whining as they grow into adults. They do this when they are in distress, hurt or lonely and need your attention. Always check to make sure they are okay when they whine. In addition, you can take preventative measures to eliminate or reduce the whimpering.

  1. Give Your Dog Love

    • A properly-cared-for Yorkie tends to whine less. When it is given ample love and affection from the moment it is brought into the home, your Yorkie is less likely to whimper from nervousness, as it will feel secure in the environment and in the love of its owner.

    Crate Training

    • When crate training a Yorkie, keep the crate in a busy part of your home. Yorkie puppies tend to whimper when they are in their crate, as they crave human interaction and often suffer from separation anxiety. If they feel they are in the middle of the household action and can see their owner around, they are less likely to whimper and whine.

    Potty Needs

    • Check to see if your Yorkie needs to go outside to urinate or defecate if it is whimpering during the night. Many dogs will whimper or whine when they are confined to their crate, because they will not relieve themselves in there; they consider the crate their home and do not want to soil it. Take your Yorkie outside for a potty break and often the whimpering will cease when you return it to the crate.

    Ignore the Behavior

    • As with human babies, Yorkies tend to whimper for attention. Also as with humans, if you ignore the whining, it will often stop. If when they whimper long enough you give in and, in effect, reward them with attention, you are reinforcing the behavior. As long as you know your dog is not in any serious distress, it is okay to walk away and ignore it. It will eventually learn the whimpering is not getting anywhere and stop. It may be aggravating for you to listen to at first, but in the end your dog will learn the whimpering is not working and will cease to use it as a ploy for attention.