Bedtime battle!

[minkersmum]

My 7 yr old labx used to sleep in my bedroom on his bed on the floor. As he settled in (we have had him 3 yrs) he became a permanent feature on the sofa and often at night he was so sound asleep id leave him there til morning. However if awake he would always try to come through with me to bed. He is stuck to me like glue but fine bring left if i insist.

Since having new puppy who sleeps in lounge in crate I have closed labx in lounge too as felt was only fair. More and more labx is desperate to sneak through when I go off to bed. Tonight I had to practically peel him off my leg!

Part of me feels sorry for him. He has been pretty pissed off at this new 'bold' puppy since he arrived and in hindsight i do think he maybe would prefer to be an only dog.

Should i make him sleep in lounge?
Tbh when he sleeps in my room he often gets up in middle of night and takes himself off to the lounge which wakes me Grr.... and niw it would also disturb puppy who sleeps through without a peep.

I guess I am feeling sorry for ddog1 as his life as he knew it has changed so much. :-

What really got me about your post was when you said ' I have closed lab in the lounge too as felt was only fair' - fair on who ,TBH it sounds like this dog is just having to accommodate the pup . Put pup in the lounge and take the big dog to bed and then shut the lounge door ,if he gets up in the night he will either come back to bed or lay somewhere else . If he is not keen on the pup anyway I doubt making him spend the night with him is helping .

Thanks Floral. Tbh it wasn't just my decision. Dh doesn't like ddog1 sleeping in the bedroom as he spends a lot of time licking himself and dh hates the noise Also think it probably annoys him a bit that ddog1 is so stuck to me and I give the dog far more attention!! I can't help it ddog1 is such a big honey!!

I said 'fair' because I thought it was a shame for puppy to be on his own in lounge while myself, dh, the dc and ddog1 all go through to the bedrooms. We took turns on couch for first week but he now sleeps quietly through the night.

I am probably over thinking it. Such a worry wart. Hoped puppy would be a lovely companion for ddog1. Maybe it will come in time.

If you want dog1 to like puppy, you can't change his routines for the worse. Dogs are not children and I don't believe they have to be treated equally as long as you are kind and loving to all and give them a secure home with a nice warm bed, good food and water, exercise and some stimulation.

Ddog1 never slept on beds and was never allowed on furniture. He's a sheltie - very long hair - and had a lot of digestion problems at the start, meaning that his undertail was not one you'd want where you sit!

Ddog2 came along as a tiny puppy when dog1 was 7. She was so lost and tiny I let her sleep on our bed just at first - which of course is where she still is! She freely sits on furniture and ddog1 has never questioned this or even attempted to do so himself.

We have just taken on dog3. She's an ex breeding rescue bitch, very damaged and very scared. She has her own little crate and is shut in there at night. She is a big escape risk right now and we need her secure if 18 year old DD1 rolls in drunk at 1am!

All 3 have different treatment but all three are loved and treated well. Ddog2 definitely gets the most preferential treatment in terms of what she is allowed to do, but all the dogs seem happy with the status quo.

If you want puppy downstairs, put him downstairs, but dont change the life your dog1 has had for years.

Hi musicposy thanks for your post. Its helpful to hear how you do things.

Our house is a tiny cottage all on one level so no going upstairs. One of the reasons we decided to shut ddog1 in lounge was his getting up and pawing open my bedroom door which would occasionally wake my youngest dc who would then end up in my bed (a habit we are trying to break)

Now if he paws door he wont only disturb dd2 he will disturb puppy. So my choice is either shut in lounge or shut in bedroom but not allow him to paw open the door and leave in the middle of the night.

Interesting too what you say about your ddog2 being allowed on couch but not the others. Ddog1 is allowed on couch because after years of my old incontinent G Dane i was so pleased to have this clean cuddly young dog. However he is huge and takes up so much room I don't need another dog on there too. Puppy is not allowed on sofa and db and I often have words about this. He thinks you can't allow one but not the other! But I'm with you on this!

dh not db