Why won’t my husky sleep?

[Teacupinastorm]

We adopted a husky in the summer. We have another husky boy and have had him since he was a pup. Everything has been going well, they get on great and new husky is such a welcome and much loved addition to our family. However the last 6 weeks or so he has started to whine and cry when he is put to bed, or sometimes will randomly start in the early hours. They are both crated (in separate extra large crates) and in the same room with the door to the room open, but our first boy remains quite happy in his crate, whilst our new boy will cry and whine sometimes for hours on end. Other than taking him outside for a toilet trip if he starts in the middle of the night we don’t react to him. We have tried moving his crate so he can see outside the door, blankets that smell like us, his favourite teddy for comfort and nothing is working. It is now really having an impact on us (and I expect our poor neighbours) and we are at a loss of what to do, especially seen as he’s spent a few months with us happily going up to bed and now has started this. We got him from a husky rescue charity who took him from a family who were neglecting him. We think he was abused, and it has taken him a while to warm to humans but he is now the most loving and cuddly boy, very happy in the day but suddenly not so happy at night. I am thinking of speaking to a behaviourist but wondered did anybody have any ideas?

Can you connect the crates so they can bunk up together?

What's his routine like during the day?

Connecting the crates could be a possibility. Other thing I thought was getting rid of the crates altogether and giving them a bed each and putting a stair gate across the door - although he could easily jump that if he wanted!

Routine is normally up at 6/7. Hours walk in the morning. Then they have their breakfast and usually nap for a while. As long as it’s dry they go out in the garden in the afternoon - it’s a pretty big garden with room for them to really run about and let off some steam as their walks are always on a lead.
They have another walk in the evening but this could probably be longer. Or another thing I thought was make it later and then he would be more tired closer to bedtime with less chance to nap beforehand? As they will normally snooze all evening from 7ish before going up to bed around half 9/10.

Or switch feeding time? Mine has a snack before bed!

You can get a pheromone spray which might help to calm him, worth a try?

Sorry forgot to say dinner time is normally 7/8ish. Never later than 8. More often than not we have to wake them up for dinner!
Our first boy is 3 and we researched so much before getting him, then for another year before getting another! So really at a loss as to why he’s so unsettled at night. He seems so worked up and I’m worried he’s really stressed and we’re causing him harm somehow, desperate to figure out what it is and solve it!

Dinner is good and late then.
Can you film them to see what's happening?
Adaptil could help?

Filming could be interesting. Mainly he just whines but sometimes he will claw at the bottom of the crate, sounds like he’s trying to dig his way out!
Sprays would be worth a try, thanks.
Mainly our first boy just ignores him but sometimes even he gets fed up and let’s out a bark as if to tell him to shut up! One morning after a particularly bad night he even went into the other crate and looked around as if he was checking what the problem was.
The weird thing is some mornings it’s a real effort to get him up and out of the crate, which makes me think it’s not the fact that he’s in the crate otherwise he’d be desperate to come out?

It sounds to me as though he is lonely, maybe they could sleep snuggled together?

You could be right Mum2OneTeen he does idolise our older husky! And whilst he loves him too, he does like his own space, especially when he’s sleeping! I would just be worried he would get fed up and a bit agitated, which is why we thought the crates being opposite each other would work because he can clearly see that his mate is there and is quite happy and calm with his sleeping arrangements!
Definitely something to think about though. We can’t go on like this.

Could you have a room barrier so young one couldn't bother older one but could curl up closer if needed?

Do they need the crates? He might just fancy stretching his legs every so often. My dog never settled in a crate when we got him- his previous owners had kept him shut in it for 14 hours a day so no wonder really.