9 Reasons Why Your Whippet Is Always Nervous + 3 Tips

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Whippets are known for their gentle, quiet, and friendly demeanor. They can sometimes be overly shy & seem nervous about everything.

What causes a whippet to be nervous in the first place? Are they just naturally nervous all the time or is something bothering them?

Why Are Whippets Nervous:

Whippets tend to be a dog breed that is more nervous by nature than others. This can often make situations intimidating for them, resulting in anxious and nervous responses. Whippets can also become nervous for reasons such as environment changes, illness, lack of socialization, and anxiety.

In this post you’ll discover:

9 reasons that cause a whippet to be nervous
3 tips to help your whippet become more calm (Tip #1 can help them fast!)
And much more…

Let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

9 Reasons Your Whippet Is So Nervous

1) Sudden Changes

Change can be difficult for some to handle.

If your dog has experienced some large environmental changes recently this might be causing their nervousness.

If your whippet was recently brought home, understand they might just be adapting to a massive change in their life.

However, there are many other environmental changes that could make a dog nervous.

For example, if you recently had a baby, adopted another dog, moved houses, traveled somewhere, etc.

Any massive disruption to their habit and routine can make whippets uncertain and nervous.

2) Your Whippet Hates Being Alone

Whippets have a friendly, loyal, and loving nature, but it can make them a little too attracted to some owners.

This can lead to clingy behaviors and separation anxiety. When a whippet experiences separation anxiety they may become nervous more often.

If you head to work everyday at the same time they may anticipate this and become nervous leading up to you leaving them.

3) Phobia

When your whippet is about to do certain things is that when you notice their nervous behavior?

Do they shake and tremble before getting into a car?

There are situations that may cause your whippet to become fearful and scared.

Whippets can be afraid of a variety of things based on their experiences.

Things like loud noises, large vehicles, fear walking over metal grates, umbrellas, car rides, other dogs etc. The list goes on and on.

In fact, there is a study done on dogs and their fear of veterinary clinics.

The findings found that out of 135 dogs, 78.5% were scared of the vet clinic.

These fears can be considered phobias to your dog.

If you notice any time you do something your dog becomes nervous, it’s likely the fear of that thing causing their nervous response.

4) They Sense Something

Dogs are theorized for having a sixth sense about certain things. In fact, throughout history there have been stories where dogs have fled areas before disaster struck.

If you find your dog pacing all over the place, hiding, or nervous, there may be a storm approaching.

Dogs are able to pick up on barometric pressure changes and electromagnetic fields. This can allow them to basically predict weather.

In addition, they can feel vibrations in the ground that helps them detect things like earthquakes.

Further Readings: 7 Unexplainable Things Dogs Can Sense Before They Happen

5) Your Whippet Is Sick

The next reason your whippet may be nervous is because they are sick.

If this was a sudden change to your whippets behavior, they may be ill.

In addition to your dog being sick, old age can also cause some memory issues.

This can make dogs feel unsafe in familiar surroundings.

This is called Canine Cognitive Dysfunction, and studies show 62% of dogs with this display anxiety/nervousness.

They basically become forgetful and don’t remember things so they become fearful of their surroundings.

Lastly, your dog might also have another form of illness making them uncomfortable.

Check to see if they are sore in any parts of their body.

You’ll also want to check for areas of their body they are licking, chewing, or scratching.

6) You’re Accidentally Making Them Nervous

Dogs have senses that are beyond our understanding as humans. This allows them to sense things better than us.

Have you ever been in a room and someone negative, angry, or upset walks in? How does that person’s energy make you feel?

In my experience you can tell the energy of the room has gone down when those types of people enter a room.

Imagine a dog experiencing a similar thing with you, except in a more intense fashion since their senses are far beyond ours.

It’s quite possible your dog is feeling anxious because you also feel that way.

They also might know you are sick even before you do and that’s making them anxious.

In fact, dogs might actually be able to smell cancer cells, and changes to blood sugar levels in people with diabetes.

These crazy senses allow dogs to sense people who are about to have a seizure before it happens!

So it would make sense they can pick up on your level of stress and respond accordingly.

7) Bad History / Trauma

A dog remembers experiences, if any one of those experiences were negative this can result in nervous behaviors.

This is extremely common for dogs who were abandoned by previous parents, or those with a rough past on the streets, in breeding camps, or in shelters.

Any negative experience may cause trauma that stays with them.

Only time, constant reassurance, and positive experiences can slowly diminish a dog’s old trauma.

For example, some whippets may not like being touched in specific areas, they may not like walking in the streets, etc.

Every dog will have their own triggers of past trauma which can make them seem nervous and scared more often than not.

8) Lacking Socialization

Does your whippet become nervous around other people or dogs?

This might be due to a lack of socialization.

Whippets in particular can become very nervous and shy around unfamiliar people or dogs when lacking socialization.

When a whippet is young it’s important to socialize them with different environments for this very reason.

This is especially important for whippets and can lead many to be a bit nervous without it.

9) Unintentional Reinforcement

If anytime your whippet gets nervous, do you come to the rescue by giving them a reward?

This can be in the form of a treat, toy and even your affection.

If so, this might be reinforcing the behavior. Anytime they want something if they just act nervous or anxious they get what they want.

Now, it’s important to note that of course, when our furry family members are upset we want to comfort them.

Just make sure there is something that’s actually making them nervous and they are not just playing you.

Dogs are very smart and use their adorableness against us.

3 Tips To Calm A Nervous Whippet

How you calm a nervous whippet is by first identifying what is causing their nervous response. Then responding to eliminate the triggers that are causing their nervousness.

Here are some tips to help you calm your whippet when they are nervous:

1) Socialize Them To Build Confidence

As mentioned already, whippets are known for their shyness. This makes socialization and building their confidence more important for them over most other breeds.

A properly socialized whippet does not get nervous or anxious about new environments. They are adaptable and able to adjust based on their surroundings.

2) Schedule & Routine

Dogs thrive when giving structure and routine. If your whippet is nervous it might be because of the unpredictability of your schedule.

When you set up a schedule for your dog it gives them predictability. Thus, allowing them to know how their day is going to go before it happens.

Most whippets just need a pattern they can easily follow and that will reduce their anxiety.

The areas you should focus on creating consistency around are, feeding time, potty time, play time, and sleeping & wake times.

3) Reduce Anxiety

If you think your dog is experiencing separation anxiety, here are a couple of tricks you can deploy for reducing anxiety:

Give Them The Attention They Need
There is nothing more relaxing for your whippet than petting them and making them feel better. Sometimes all a dog needs is some loving to calm them down.

Use Soothing Sounds
Music therapy has been proven to reduce stress and anxiety in both humans and dogs. Research shows dogs typically prefer classical music. Give this a try to see if your whippet responds to soothing sounds.

Tire Them Out
Before leaving your dog make sure to give them exercise and mentally stimulate them. If you can really tire them out it will help to calm them down.

A dog sleeping is not able to experience anxiety! Plus, this will create a habit for them that anytime you leave, they sleep.

Get Some Expert Help
If all else fails and you cannot eliminate your dog’s anxiety, your best bet is to seek professional help.

Other posts you may find interesting:

8 Reasons Why Whippets Dig & 7 Tips To Stop It

11 Reasons Why Whippets Bark So Much + 7 Tips To Stop It

16 Reasons Why Whippets Lick So Much + Helpful Tips