# Getting a full nights sleep



## Liza&Vic&Lucky (Sep 25, 2014)

Hi folks, all the best for the new year!

Funny thing has started going on with Lucky for the last couple of weeks, and I thought I should look for help here.

Lucky is approaching 6 months now. At night he sleeps in a cage and its lights out, lock the cage (cos he knows how to open it) and its off to bed for us as well.

He was doing fine until recently.

In the past he would sleep around midnight and sleep all the way till 6am - when he wakes up, barks and barks, gets us up and then we take him outside.

Recently his routine, and ours, has changed, and we don't know why, nor do we know how to bring it back.

Now its more like off to bed around midnight, then in about 2-4 hours he wakes up and wakes us up. Until I and open his cage and attempt to fall back asleep on the couch while everyone is still sleeping.

His place is on the main floor, safe and sound, and we sleep upstairs - just in case this has anything to do with it.
As you guys know, they are very attached to us, and don't like being alone too long.

What would u guys recommend? Let him bark until he gets the point, its too early (which doesn't seem to be the case (he can bark for over an hour)), or before bedtime, really have him play hard, so he really gets tired and pooped, so that he is out cold? or let him sleep upstairs in his cage, next to us? or Keep the same setup but don't lock him in his cage?

Not sure about this one.

thx


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## Furbabies mom (Jul 25, 2011)

Mine all sleep in a crate on the side of our bed. They have since I brought them home. He probably wants to be with you. I would put his crate where you can reach it. Let him know that you're right there. I think that he'll be happy to be in your room.


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## LovelyLily (Mar 26, 2013)

I think whatever you decide, for your peace of mind I'd recommend absolute consistency. 

At six months, if he has eaten much earlier in the evening and you take him outside to do his business so late at night before bedtime there should be no problem with him making it through the night (unless sick). If he cries and you let him out two hours later he will continue that pattern because you reinforced it. He will just think he has to cry longer if you don't respond right away.

There might be a few sleepless nights until he learns your new routine. But he is young and very adjustable yet.

Good luck.

Mine slept in a crate next to my bed until fully toilet trained, then switched to my bed. He may feel better being in the same room as you.


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## Pooh's mommy (Aug 31, 2014)

First choice would be to move the crate so that he can see you. Then be consistent with his potty times. I do not think that I would leave the crate unlocked (at 6 months) if he has already been trained to sleep with it locked. Unless you use the crate in a small area so that he does not have room to roam. Good Luck and hope you get some sleep


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## LovelyLily (Mar 26, 2013)

I just thought of something else. When my dog was little she would fuss in the crate early in the morning when she needed to go out to pee, typically about 5 or so in the morning. Of course I would immediately take her outside. Fine. Then we went through a spell when my dog realized she could bark earlier and earlier and I would let her out and she just wanted to socialize. 

I think it was recommended to me on this site back then to train her to wait for an alarm. The goal was to get her to wait in the morning until the alarm rang. Built up to it by first quickly having my cell alarm ring right after she started fussing to go out in the middle of the night and then would also have it set to go off at a consistent time early in the morning. After a bunch of nights stopped responding to her at all when she would fuss in the middle of the night. Eventually she got the idea of the pattern of having to wait until the alarm went off in the morning. It became routine. The fussing at night stopped.

Best wishes!


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