How can I teach "quiet"??

[MrsU88]

We have a 1 yr old dog.... and he's driving me nuts.

1... I go to work in afternoons, as soon as I get changed for work he starts whining, if I ignore he will bark. dh works nights so usually gets woken up by the dog. I have swapped routines to try trick him into not realising whats happening, but he seems to know whats happening quite quickly within a day or 2. Once I am gone he will lay outside the bedroom dh is sleeping in and will be quiet.

2...When he's been outside he isnt allowed on the sofa/carpet until his feet have dried. He will stand at the dog gate and whine and bark.

3...If he is left in a room alone he will whine and bark.

4...in the car going anywhere....he will sit and whine for the first 5 minutes.

5...when brushing my daughter's hair....he will whine and bark until I stop.

I have tried ignoring him.... it doesn't work. He just gets louder and louder

I've tried giving treats when he is quiet.

I've tried "time out" where he has to go out of the room. It works to calm him down when he is giddy, but for the whining, it hasn't worked (and again when dh is sleeping during the day it means he is put in an area closer to where he is sleeping so more chance of waking him up)

Forgot to mention.... he will have a long walk in the morning, he walks to school (over a mile) and then the long way home over fields and hills to try and tire him out to not whine when I go to work.

What breed is he? Some are naturally more vocal than others and will whine, bark 'nose whistle' or otherwise vocalise as a matter of course.

It does sound, though, like he doesn't like being left alone when you go to work and doesn't like being separated from you. As far as whining when his feet are wet - could you not just keep a towel by the door and dry them?

When you leave for work you need to (a) distract him and (b) make you leaving a more pleasant experience so that he is not so anxious. Get a Kong, stuff it, freeze it. Give it to him about ten minutes before you have to leave. With any luck that will keep him occupied for a while until he feels comfortable enough to go and sleep by the bedroom door.

For how long are you leaving him in a room alone? If it's something that absolutely has to be done, try increasing the time he's left slowly step by step. Or there's always the stuffed Kong again.

Many dogs will whine in the car, either when first setting off or when arriving. Is it excitement, or fear? Has he ever been or does he now get travel sick?

Not sure what to make of the hair-brushing whining though.