Puppy will bark all night - help!

[fortheloveofdogs]

My puppy is almost 10 weeks old, we have had him for two weeks he is a lovely dog and is doing well the only problem he's having is dealing with being left alone, he doesn't even like you going out of the room When I leave him to go to work (this is only for 2-4 hours as my partner gets home at 10.30-11ish) he will be barking/crying/howling and when my partner gets home he is still doing it, he can hear him from outside. I'm trying to get him used to it by closing doors behind me etc but it doesn't seem to be helping. Also he is having problems at night we have been sleeping downstairs with him and tried slowly moving the crate but as soon as we got him to the next room (he could still see us) he went mad again. So last night I though I'd try just leaving him alone, well with my other dog (who won't actually stay in the same room as him if he's being noisy) and he just barked all night with maybe an hours break where he must have fallen asleep. I didn't know what to do as everything you read tells you never go to them when they are doing this or they will learn it gets them attention so I just stayed awake all night in bed feeling awful for him and the neighbours, tonight I'm thinking about just bringing his crate upstairs in my room so I can get some sleep but will this be making more problems? I don't know what to do for the best 😔

[Firefries]

We put ours in the crate in our room because if this too. It brought the reassurance that our puppy needed. We then moved her out when she was a bit older (I can't remember but maybe 4 months old?) and she adjusted fine elsewhere in the house in her crate. I hope that helps.

[GwenCooper81]

Have you tried a blanket or a t-shirt/jumper that smells if you? Snuggled down with your pup?.
10weeks is still very young so they need comfort.
I've heard of people using teddies.with a heart beat in if that would help?

[fortheloveofdogs]

Yes that's helpful to know that your dog would eventually be ok out of your room, I feel like if we take him in there he's never going to want to sleep elsewhere and I have allergies so like my bedroom to be mostly a dog free zone! I'm a bit worried that he's going to be scarred for like from being left to bark all night and also the barking in the day but there's nothing I can do, I have to go to work. My other dog was fine being left from day 2 so I wasn't expecting this but I guess they are all different just like us!

[fortheloveofdogs]

Yes he has a blanked that smells of me he still has the one the breeder gave me too that smells of his mum, I don't think he's bothered about these he just wants me in the room and minimum of arms length away at all times! 😂

[fortheloveofdogs]

*blanket

[DinosaursArentMakeBelieve]

Our pup had separation anxiety whenever we left the room. We used a plug in called adaptil (sp?) which is basically like aromatherapy for dogs. We plugged it in right next to her crate and also put a blanket over one side of her crate whenever we were going to bed. (Just one side so she can tell the difference between night time and a 5 min stint) She would get a treat and her favourite toy in her crate when she went to bed and now she runs into her crate whenever someone says bed!

She did cry a little but settled really quickly and I do think the plug in helped. We're actually getting it again as we have a baby due any day and to help keep her settled.

Also, Now we know that if she cries in the night it's for a reason, ie a few weeks ago she started howling at about 3am, went down to check on her and she ran right to the door and rung her bell to get outside - turns out she had a really bad tummy bug.

Another thing we did was bring a soft toy when we collected her which we let her mum cuddle in to etc so that it had her scent. This because her favourite toy. If that's not possible I'd suggest maybe sleeping with a new toy for a few nights then giving it to her to sleep with (careful it doesn't have anything she can choke on - no stuffing etc)

Hope this helps x

[Noitsnotteatimeyet]

Have a look at the crate training and separation anxiety files on the Dog Training Support and Advice FB page .., can either of you take some holiday/work from home while you get your pup happier to be on their own? It's well worth putting in the effort to sort this early on

[DinosaursArentMakeBelieve]

Also, just to mention that 2-4 hours might be a bit long to leave a puppy to begin with. I was told 1 hour max for every full month of their life and never over 4 hours until it's 1.

Might vary by breed but you can imagine that even 2 hours is an eternity for a puppy so it might need to be built up to that?

If you aren't able to take time off, Could you get a puppy walker / friend/ family member to stop buy and check up half way through?

[Wolfiefan]

You can't leave a 10 week old pup for 4 hours. An adult dog fine. No wonder puppy is anxious and barking.

[Hoppinggreen]

We did " controlled crying" with our pup and I slept next to his crate for a couple of nights. Took about a week for him to settle but I was awful and like having a baby again!!
Some people take the crate upstairs but we were determined not to as we wanted him to stay downstairs all the time.

[Hoppinggreen]

Also as other people have said it's a bit long to be leaving a pup. At that age we only left ours for an hour or so, any longer and a dog walker came in to give him a cuddle and let him out for a wee.

[BiteyShark]

For the night time are you using a crate? Are you going to him every couple of hours for toileting?

For the day time I was at home with our pup for 1 month gradually building up the time he was on his own and even now he is only left for around 3 hours and can toilet outside if he needs to during that time.

Does he settle after you have left him in the day then howl later (could you set up a web cam to see). If so you are pushing the time you can leave him at that age. Look at dog walkers who can do puppy visits whilst you are working.

For night make sure he has a den or crate where he can feel secure and let him out every 1-2 hours at his age for toileting so he isn't howling because he wants to pee or poo.

[DinosaursArentMakeBelieve]

I think the 4 hour rule is partly because of their ability to control their toileting as much as anything else? This can add to the anxiety?
Dogs which are crate trained from the beginning tend to naturally want to avoid "going" in their crate.

Plus they are social animals, and one day to us is like 7 days to them! For a puppy, It needs a routine and to know that it will be cuddled and let out to go toilet etc...

[BiteyShark]

I think the four hour rule is to make people think about how long to leave a dog. A puppy would be bloody miserable being left all day with no company but an older dog who got the attention and exercise it needed might be ok. However what people forget is that it is unfair on any dog to expect to not go for a wee or a poo for over 8 hours but could hold it for 4 (assuming not a puppy). I know I certainly would be howling if someone prevented me from going to the toilet.

[TrionicLettuce]

You simply cannot leave a puppy to bark all night and when you're out during the day. He's still a baby and he's barking because he's distressed at being alone. If you carry on leaving him in such a distressed state then you're running a very real risk of this turning into full blown separation anxiety which can be extremely difficult with, even with professional help.

This is an excellent guide to crate training and getting a puppy used to being left alone without distress on their part. It sounds very long winded but in reality pups learn very quickly and it doesn't necessarily take that long. I've used this method with all my pups and they've very quickly become completely happy with being left, no distress at all on their part. Obviously if you've had your pup in a crate and they've been learning that the crate is a distressing place to be it will take longer or you may need to do away with the crate altogether.

As far as night time goes have a read of this. Having the puppy with you initially does not mean you'll never be able to have them sleep elsewhere. It helps you get them into a good night time routine and when they're settled and more confident you can then move them to where you want them to sleep long term.

I'd also have a read of this article about separation anxiety. There's lots of good articles linked to at the end as well.

Sorting this now is really the best option, before it potentially becomes a much bigger problem.