Is it too early to sleep on a doggie bed?

[sharona1973]

Okay, we got Mocha almost 4 weeks ago and he has done somewhat well. His main problems are constantly whining when he is in the crate...especially if we're still in the house and especially at night. We resorted to putting his crate in the far corner of the house so we couldn't hear him. About a week ago we started to let him sleep in a doggie bed at the end of the bed on a leash to restrict his movements. He does okay, but he seems to not really sleep through the night. I'm assuming that's because he is sleeping during the day when we're at work and right now we have some company in town and the last few days his schedule has changed. We used to go for walks in the evening or spend time playing with him and the last few days that has been severely restricted.
Last night he didn't sleep at all and just stayed up most of the night on his doggie bed and getting into things around the bed.

Should I still be crating him at night? I was doing that before, but I felt guilty for having him in the crate all day while at work and then putting him in it while I go visit my friends and then come home to only let him out to only put him back in. The company is only here for another week and the poor puppy is suffering....am I giving him a complex? I do feel very guilty! And I'll take advice about the whining too. I definitely don't encourage it and don't really let him out, but he doesn't stop whining hardly. I do have to let him out when I get home and he almost always is whining because he hears me walk in the door!

[Kelly]

During the day, is it possible to get a petsitter or bring him to doggie daycare?


I'd just stick with your normal crating routine, changing it is probably confusing him more.

[linnie]

Does he do naughty things while on his bed? is he toilet trained?
Isabella sleeps in her bed in our room and I found she took a few nights to work out what the rules were but she is great.
I have never tried crate training so cant advise lol

[Kade]

I don't know if I'd let a dog sleep on a leash, especially if he's not sleeping -- it could present a strangulation hazard.

I'd keep him in the crate. Maybe get him some more stimulating toys for during the day so he sleeps less then? So you did try having him in your room? I know that Winston really seems to settle right down at bedtime -- he kind of gets that the "pack" is going to bed.

What kind of pup? How big is he? Could you get a pen to put around his crate?

[Kelly]

I agree, sleeping on a leash isn't the best idea. My dogs sleep in a bed now, with our door closed. But until they were old enough they slept in their crate every night.

[sharona1973]

Mocha is about 4 months old (we think....adopted him 3rd hand). Initially he slept in the crate in the bedroom but that stopped quickly because he would whine all night and it was very loud and we couldn't sleep at all. We finally moved the crate into the far reaches of the house so we couldn't hear him. I guess I attribute that to his personality.....he wants to be with people all the time.

I did start putting him in a bathroom yesterday, with a baby gate at the door and his crate was in there too...hoping that he would have more room to run.

He does have a lot of toys...I guess what is considered a stimulating toy? He has several soft toys (a couple squeak, but it's hard to get them to do it if you're a puppy and one that has a rattle in it) and a rope toy and I do give him a chew toy too...although I'm stopping the rawhide, I hear it's not so good for dogs? he also has a couple of tennis balls.

I guess I could try him in the crate again in the bedroom.

He is potty trained...about 80%. I wouldn't trust him at night running around. I guess it's only safe to let him sleep in the doggie bed when he is fully trained and I trust him at night.

[chazzysmybaby]

What I do becasue my dog isn't crate trained, is that I close the bedroom door so he can't get out. You wake up, take him outside for potty, voila. Chazzy the first couple days peed in my room, but now doesn't at all. He just whines and scratches at the door and waits for me to take him out.

[capersuasion02]

I agree with the dog bed in your room but make sure you close your door. My grandma uses a cage with a soft blanket and pillow for her babies to sleep, she leaves the door of the cage open and her babies stay in it all night until potty time. her youngest pup is 5 months and he isn't 100% potty trained either but getting better. If he likes to be around people crating him at the other end of the house probably makes him even more stressed. I just suggest trying the doggie bed thing but absolutely no leash. if you aren't happy with that then go back to crate training. How long has he been in the doggie bed because you will have to pick one or the other in order for him to have a routine and not get totally confused.

[sharona1973]

Unfortunately I can't close the bedroom door because I also have two cats and the male cat will claw at the door all night to get out even if he doesn't have to!

Also, the reason I had to put the crate in the other room at night because he would cry all night and there was no way we could sleep through it. I hate to do it but I was ready to give him up at that point because of the whining.

He has been sleeping on the doggie bed for about 10 days.

[vadersmom]

We kept our bullmastiff on a leash at the end of our bed for years due to my old cat who couldn't stand the door closed(like you). He always did well with that. I will do the same for my 2 puppies now but they are not ready to leave the crate yet.

[sharona1973]

Hi Vadersmom,
Mocha is doing much better with sleeping. It was really the change in his schedule. Crating him in the bedroom definitely didn't work. He started whining almost immediately. He still whines in the morning, but is catching on that the humans want to sleep beyond the alarm clock going off! I will take him off the leash eventually, but he is way too young for that....I just don't trust him running around all night...although this weekend we were just tired out and fell asleep during the day and napped for two hours and Mocha was free to roam and behaved....no mess and was on the other doggie bed (the one the older dog sleeps on) when we woke up!