Sleeping through the night... when does that happen!?

[BettyAnn, Holmes & Lucy]

Hello. I know this has been addressed before and I've read a lot of the other posts about this subject... but thought I'd ask again: How do I get my 9 week old to sleep through the night? Specifically, I'd like to move him out of my room but not sure if I should or not since he still needs to go out once per night. He's in a small crate right next to my bed right now.  

Last week he slept for 4 hours straight- which was wonderful. I was looking forward for that to continue and improve. But this past weekend was the opposite! He whined/yelped to get out every 2 hours. I tried to ignore the loud whining, thinking he'd go back to sleep but it just intensified and turned into yelping/barking. SO, I got him out to go potty before he woke everyone up.

A couple times while I was putting on my socks to take him out he curled up in my lap and fell back to sleep!!! I was pretty irritated with that and made him go out anyway. Each time he did go pee but I'm sure he could've held it. 

I was wondering if his crate may be too small? I'm borrowing my friend's right now because I'm not sure how big he will get. He's in small crate  that belongs to a 10 lb chihuahua. He can sit and stretch out, but it's going to be too tight soon.

I take away his water around 7:30 pm and his last time out to pee is at midnight.

I just want him to sleep from midnight to 6am. Any suggestions?

[Brody and Valor]

We cover the entire crate so that no light gets in. We've noticed that when he sleeps on his bed in our room he sleeps with his head under the bed so that it's complete darkness lol

[Erin & Maizey]

Just to echo everyone else - 9 weeks is still really young - give it some more time. Maizey as a puppy would never, ever go to sleep in her crate upstairs.  Lots and lots of whining and non-stop barking.  I tried the just let her bark it out thing and she could go for an hour.  While I felt really bad about it at the time, I finally tried putting her to bed (when I went to bed around midnight) in her crate in the family room downstairs, with a whole host of things - cover over the sides and back of the crate, put on one of those white noise machines along with a puppy heartbeat pillow and it actually worked.  I'm not sure if I was somehow distracting her or what but the crate in the bedroom never worked for her.  She started sleeping better and would bark once in the middle of the night (3am) to go out and then would go back in her crate with a morning wake up around 6 am... I can't remember how long the middle of the night thing lasted (maybe a month?)  Now she will sleep until 8 or later if I let her (she's 1 year and 2 months).   Hang in there - there's a light at the end of the tunnel!!  Also she stopped sleeping in her crate probably at about 6-7 months or so once she was super trustworthy potty-wise and she sleeps in my room now.  Good luck and try to enjoy the puppy phase, they really do grow quickly!!

[Suzanne Newman]

Hi BettyAnn!

I find if I wear Whidbey out first- and take her on several long walks during the day she is tired.  My husband makes sure to give her treats and he talks to her as she is resisting a bit being locked in the crate.  For the past two nights she has settled in to her bed and slept from about 10:30 till about 5AM!!  HOPEFULLY she will learn to sleep longer.  

We still have her in our room, and that will likely stay that way I suspect. 

S

[Janelle & Finley]

My puppy is 8 weeks and he hates being by himself and is up every hour.  I bought the Snuggle Puppy (they have a goldendoodle) and put that in his crate last night.  He did so much better.  He still cried but only got up 3x's instead of 4.  We also cover the back and sides of his crate with a blanket and moved the divider back a little more than maybe what others would recommend.  It really helped.  My husband was on puppy duty last night because I had been up with him the last 2 nights so when I came downstairs he was asleep snuggled with his new Snuggle Puppy.  :) 

[BettyAnn, Holmes & Lucy]

I was looking at those snuggle puppies.... I'm wondering if Holmes would like it. He loves fuzzy/furry things but not squeaky toys :) Got him this kinda creepy teddy bear that was on sale at the pet store-- he love chewing on the tag.

[Janelle & Finley]

Lol!  Yeah Finley like the tags on things too.  So funny.  The Snuggle Puppies are definitely fuzzy and soft.  They are pricey but worth it if it works.  :)  I am glad he slept better for you.  

[BettyAnn, Holmes & Lucy]

Thanks everyone for all the tips, they've really helped A LOT! I am so very, very happy to say that I'm getting much better sleep :) Got 6 hours last night! yay!

My kids and I now play with Holmes before bedtime and I can already tell a difference in just a few days-- he's pooped and ready for bed afterwards. The biggest thing though is that he really did grow out of the small kennel I had him in. I've ordred a new large one from Amazon that will arrive tomorrow- can't wait. SO, in the meantime, he's under my nightstand with his blanket. I was very leery of having him sleep there, but he has been wonderful!!! (I hope I don't jinkx myself here :) Last potty break before midnight and he'll wake up around 5:30-6, which is great for my schedule.

Thanks again! Amazing how much a good sleep will do for ya! 

[Tara & Scarlet]

I wish I could give some advice but I am having the same issues with Scarlet. So I guess we are all tired :) Believe it or not she slept good her first couple of nights home but she is not getting up every hour or so. These puppies are awfully cute but they sure are a lot of work. She doesn't like her crate either but I am going to try to cover it completely tonight.

[LORRIE PAULUS]

I have a Doodle that's going backwards in sleep and I am tearing my hair out!  My Springer never had this issue--she's almost 5 months old and when we got her at 8 weeks she was sleeping 6-7 hours straight through the night right away--she's keeping me up more now than at 8 weeks!  Previously when she woke up at night or early morning I knew she had to potty.  Now she's waking up at 4:45-5 am on the nose every morning (used to be 6:30-7 a).  I take her out to potty and she usually will go--no praise, no talking, back in crate.  My husband doesn't get up until 6:30 (I leave at 5:10a) and she basically cries and barks from 5-6:30 in the crate relentless!  This is not a big deal FOR ME during the week, but weekends it's awful.  This morning she woke up at 1:45 I took her out--NO POTTY.  She woke up at 4:50 again, took her out before I left--NO POTTY and when I tried to bring her back in on the leash she fought me--I think she knew if she goes potty she goes back in the crate--she is smart like that (aren't they all).  I hate to not take her out to potty when she wakes up but am I doing the wrong thing by taking her out, esp since she was going 6-7 hours at night?  I am at my wits end, I hope it stops SOON!  I am losing more sleep now than when we got her!

[Hollidoodle]

Lorrie, when your husband gets up at 6:30 is the routine that he is getting ready for work too? Meaning is she having to go back in the crate for the morning also, or just until your hubby wakes up? If you both are at work and she has to go back in the crate, maybe take her on a walk early to tire her out before going back in. If not and it's just until hubby gets up, I know what would happen at our house- if she went potty she would get to snuggle in bed until he woke up ;) Ours is a super-snuggler though. 

And we have great strides now that Maddy is 15 weeks...she slept 7 hours straight! Ahhhh. The first full night's sleep for me since she was 8 weeks old! The next night (last night) she was up at 3 am, but that was my fault for forgetting to pick up her water. There is hope! :)

[LORRIE PAULUS]

He gets up at 6:30, feeds her hangs out, gets ready for work and usually leaves around 8-8:30.  This morning she barked from the time I left at 5 until he got up at 6:30.  She ate and THEN went #1 & #2, almost 2 hours after I took her out.  I am really wondering if she's hungry.  We have been having food issues with her, in finding a food that doesn't give her the runs.  Most recently she had an issue 2 weeks ago with a transition to Blue Buffalo and after checking her for giardia (neg) the vet started her on Science i/d.  We have been transitioning her to Wellness Choice no grain this week and adding pumpkin 1x a day and she seems to be doing well with it.  But we are only giving her about 3 cups a day and she weighs almost 25 lbs..She eats in less than a minute, no inhales it, and is usually looking at us like "Is that all"?  With her #2 issues, I hesitate to give her more in chance of overfeeding her.

[Lindsay n Archie]

Lorrie, kind of sounds like our situation.... Archie wakes up at about 5:15 with my boyfriend (well today 4:30 and was up for good), I get up when my boyfriend leaves for work at about 615, feed him take him out play etc until I leave for work about 815. He goes up to bed at night at about 10, he woke up last night at 2 to potty and went back to sleep until 430. We get home about 4pm and hes out of his crate. (i also come home at lunch to let him out walk him, etc).....  He HATES the crate though. Yesterday I came home from work and his crate was moved accross the entire room.  On the hardwood. So i am thinking since we removed the divider, he went from the back end and charged the front end to move it. =( i dont know. Hes only 12 weeks so we really cant leave him out.