Akita dogs don’t talk, but they at least have a unique means of communication. When your Akita cries, the chances are high that it is trying to transmit specific messages to you. Understanding such messages – via determining the inspiration behind your crying Akita dog – goes a long way in improving the bond between you and your dog.
Many things can make your Akita cry. Such crying can be triggered by factors like separation anxiety, pain, stress, or excitement. You could be surprised that your Akita can even cry just to grab your attention. You shouldn’t necessarily be worried by such crying. More interestingly, you can train your Akita dog to stop crying or at least even take advantage of your crying Akita dog.
No doubt, a crying Akita dog can be unsettling, being that it is your beloved dog. Can you specifically tell the reason for the crying? Even when you identify the root cause of the crying, how do you settle the problem? More also, what measures or tactics can you employ to reduce the frequency of your Akita dog crying? These and many more, we will learn in this exciting guide.
Reasons Your Akita is Crying
The following are some reasons why your Akita dog cries.
Separation Anxiety
Your Akita dog could cry from the anxiety of being left alone for sustained periods. Such separation anxiety could result from when you leave your dog for work or leave them behind when traveling for holidays.
This behavior is particular not only to Akita but dogs in general. Some measures can help your dog adapt to being left alone – reducing anxiety. Intervention could significantly help condition your Akita to get used to sustained loneliness.
You can resort to a pet camera to enable you to interact with your Akita dog remotely. You could talk to them using specialized devices when you are away to help your dog feel more secure.
Stress
Stress is an everyday part of life. Would you be surprised to learn that your Akita dog can also be stressed? Most of the times your Akita dog cries, stress could be the underlying factor. There are ways to know your Akita is stressed.
When your Akita dog pants unusually, lick its lips, get withdrawn, cowering, and tail dropping. These are signals that your Akita is stressed and could whine as a result. What would you do then?
Strive to reduce the exertion of your dog. Possibly, you may need to reduce the intensity of their training schedules or allow them more rest across the day.
Pain
Almost any animal would cry from pain, right? Your Akita isn’t excluded and would cry when facing acute pain. Dogs have a penchant for tolerating pain, but a stinging and sharp pain could cause your Akita to whine.
Crying for Attention or Because They are Bored
Who doesn’t love attention? Well, your Akita dog does. Forsaking your Akita and pretending it never existed can get it upset. Your Akita dog needs to be loved; it needs your attention, particularly as its human family. And if you are not giving it enough of it – expect it to cry.
Keeping your Akita dog engaged can reduce the crying in such scenarios. You could give it a mission to keep it busy or enhance your bonding. You can get it absorbed with a toy it is enthusiastic about. The whole idea is to get your Akita entertained.
Punished
Just like you, your Akita dog doesn’t like being physically reprimanded. Therefore, it is only natural that your Akita dog would cry when spanked or punished.
Showing your Akita intense disapproval for things they do wrong could make them cry, but this shouldn’t discourage you from scolding them when they do bad things.
Failure to do could reinforce negative behaviors in your Akita dog. At the end of the day, it is about being moderate when you punish your Akita.
Happiness
Do you know your Akita dog could cry from extreme excitement? Yes, we heard you right: it is very unlikely. Your Akita dog could whine from an outburst of happiness.
This can happen when you give you a beautiful toy, treat it to a tantalizing meal, or just being excited to see you again – probably after such a long time.
An overexcited Akita may struggle to communicate its elation to you via another medium. There are different ways to handle situations like this. If your Akita is crying when you feed it, you may consider giving it that same meal in another setting – preferably another room at the same feeding routine.
Moving
Akita dogs have that natural inertia to changing environments. If an Akita dog has acclimatized to a specific environment or home, it can find it challenging to change it. This is why your Akita could cry when you switch home.
Akita dogs are intelligent animals and could tell a moving process is on hand. When strangers start trooping into your home unusually – the realtors, the potential buyers, the packing up, your dog could sense that a change of home is imminent.
They could start crying before you leave for your new place or whine when they become uncomfortable at your new place. When moving is imminent, strive to stick to the routine you operate with your Akita dog.
Try to stick to its regular mealtime and exercise routine. This will reduce the agitation and anxiety on the part of your Akita dog.
A change of environment and the consequent anxiety (or feeling of insecurity) that comes with the new place can also place undue stress on your Akita dog. This can result in health conditions like vomiting, diarrhea, and even lack of appetite.
This is only a natural consequence of unfamiliarity with its surroundings. With more time, the smell and the look of the place would slowly blend in with your Akita adapting.
Should You Be Worried?
A crying Akita shouldn’t worry you too much. The possibility is very high that your Akita may be crying from one of these reasons we have mentioned.
You have to identify the existing realities and try to derive the cause from the said conditions we have mentioned.
However, if after trying to pick out the supposed cause (pain, stress, separation anxiety…) and your Akita yet cries excessively, you may want to consider a visit to a veterinarian to precisely identify the root cause of the sustained crying and the solutions to pursue.
Can You Train Akitas To Stop Crying?
Of course, you can train your Akita dog to stop crying. How relieved do you feel hearing this? We are going to point out some steps for you to build the attitude and psychological capacity of your Akita to not always resort to crying as its first expression.
Study Your Akita
A whining behavior is most likely not going to be unprovoked. More than 65% of the time your Akita dog cries, a particular feeling, sensation, or condition is behind it. It is, therefore, important to try identifying the reason first.
We don’t doubt it, excessive whining from your Akita can really be discomforting, but be patient enough to pick out the triggers of the crying. This shouldn’t be too challenging for you if you know your dog’s typical behavior to a reasonable extent.
Your Akita’s whining sound can tell you the reason. You can tell from the pitch and volume of the whining if it is boredom or need of something that is inspiring the whining. You can also tell from studying the sound of the whining if your dog is under pain or stress.
If your Akita is crying from pain or stress, it is likely the crying could be accompanied by a bit of aggression. Yelling at your crying Akita could (depending on the situation) can aggravate things. It would be a grave error to yell or punish a whining Akita dog that is suffering from anxiety, stress, or fear.
If your dog is whining for want of something, you can provide it for the Akita dog if you feel that it is worth the situation. This is because it is crucial not to reinforce negative behaviors in your Akita dog.
Build Positive Habits in Your Akita
Trust me, Akita dogs are pretty smart. They may persistently resort to whining if they interpret that it gets them anything they desire.
You must not give in at once to the desires of your crying Akita dog. You may want to redirect the Akita to a positive behavior before granting them their desires. If your Akita is crying for a toy, you must not always give it the toy at once.
You may want to deliberately deny it the toy temporarily by ignoring it when it cries. When it stops crying, you can give it the toy. This way, your Akita would learn that it is more likely to be rewarded for quietness than whining.
You Can Massage It
For stressed Akita dogs, you can massage them to ease the tension. Before massaging a stressed dog, make sure that the dog is receptive to your touch as some Akita dogs can be aggressive when stressed.
This massage can help calm down your Akita. You can even combine such massage therapy with relaxing scents like lavender.
Using Crying to Your Advantage
While a crying Akita isn’t the best company you can have, you can take advantage of the whining of your Akita dog. When your Akita dog cries for more attention, how about just using that time to exercise both of you?
You could run around with your Akita dog, do some jumping games together. This way, it is a win-win for both of you. Your Akita dog gets busy and engaged, and you healthily exercise and keep in shape. Sounds like a fair bargain?
A crying Akita can teach you to be more empathetic. You may not believe this, but caring for a whining Akita could make you more tolerant emotionally and caring for people around you. You can learn to step out of your comfort to proffer solutions to the pains of others.
This makes you more emotionally sensitive rather than that stone-cold iron heart who doesn’t care too much for more than himself.
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Mike is the Founder of Familylifeshare. Mike is well-knowledged in marriage, parenting, dogs, blogging and committed to sharing his knowledge and expertise with his readers. Know more about Mike from here.
