10 month old pup waking at 3.30am-this is how they end up in your bed isn’t it!

[Betty638]

I feel like we’ve never quite cracked nighttime. He’ll sleep well for a few weeks (10-6) and then he’ll either start making a fuss before bed or waking for the toilet in the middle or the night or he wakes super early.

His current routine is last food at 5.30pm, water up at 6.30pm. Final walk to the green around 8.30. He then snoozes in the living room while we watch tv. Out for a wee at 10 then we put him to sleep in the spare bedroom.

The last 3 nights he’s woken at 3.30. He scratches the bedroom door. DH has been putting him outside for a wee but he then won’t settle back in his bedroom. We don’t want to wake the neighbours or DC so he’s been then taking him into the living room where the dog sleeps in his dog bed and DH sleeps on the sofa.

We can’t keep doing this though! Do we ignore the scratching and risk waking up to a puddle? Do we let him out for a wee and listen to him howl until morning? I really don’t want him on our bed!!

Yep.
Terrible. Well depending on dog size I guess 😂

( he knows he sleeps on top of the duvet though - this was just before I picked him up and put him back on top 😂)

I didn't want our dog on our bed and resisted for 2 years. Now I wish I had let him from the beginning as it's so nice having a dog snuggled up to you for cuddles

I imagine he’ll start messing about though and if he’s asleep on the sofa with his he’s always on alert (eg will bark at the door bell) whereas when he’s in the kitchen during the day he sleeps soundly.

We’re going on a cottage holiday in a few weeks so I reckon that’ll be the start of it!

He may well be thirsty.

From 6.30pm to 6am is a very long time without a drink, assuming he has a drink bang-on 6.30pm and not just after he's eaten at 5.30pm.

If he's eating dry food there's no way he should be going that long. Especially when it's hot and he'll be panting.

They should have access to water at all times . Does he have a fan in his bedroom as it could be that he’s too hot and that’s what’s waking him up , or noise from outside , it’s about 3 /4 that the birds start twittering

He’s not thirsty, he doesn’t drink until later in the morning even when he doesn’t wake up early and his room is nice and cool-is doesn’t get any sun past mid day.

He woke at 6 this morning 🙌🏻

@Betty638

Resist! But take him out once a night! Set an alarm before he asks to go out! Then put him back to sleep and ignore any crying!

My 10 month old did the same for a few nights waking me up earlier in the mornings - I would lie in my bed grinding my teeth thinking of my neighbors (who turned out would not hear him at all :) ).

It is a teenager stage and they are going through changes, so might want to wee more often. It passed now, however I have started to take him out at 11 p.m. as well (normally last wee would be 10 p.m.) and then at 6.30 a.m.

I would take the water away 2 hours before bed, not 3.5 especially if you take him for a walk at 8.30 (he will need some water after that surely)?

Water available at all times is something all animals should have , it doesn’t matter whether they drink it or not , they have a right to have access to it .

Don't take the water up.

In this heat particularly I can't believe you would deny a dog water for such a long time.
Dogs are like humans in that their bodies 'shut down' when asleep at night and a hormone is released to stop the need to pee. So even if your dog had a drink at 10pm then went to sleep for the night, it wouldn't matter.
And if you 'know' he's not thirsty and doesn't therefore need a drink, you putting a bowl down, just in case he might when it's 30 degrees , wouldnt matter because he wouldn't drink it anyway. But at least he has the option.

Ok I’ll leave the water down at night.