First time dog owner (to be)

[MKD1]

Hi All, so I'm still in the research phase (been researching for over a year now) and I have a couple of questions/concerns.

If/when we get a puppy, I'm concerned that our house gets really cold during the night. So ideally I'd like the dog to sleep downstairs. At first I thought I could make a nice cosy area in the kitchen (we have a big kitchen) but then it dawned on me that it gets cold! How can I ensure the dog doesn't get too cold during the night?

For those who don't have their dogs in their rooms where do they sleep? I want to get everything planned/sorted before we start looking for an actual dog. Hope this makes sense.

I know I said i had a couple of questions but only actually asked one...I'm sure I will have more in the future.

Depends on the dog, some will just snuggle down in blankets and be fine. My dogs feel the cold at night so have a fleece jumper, and for my foster pups I use a pet bed heater

I’m not a fan of crates, but you could cover one with a blanket and make a den.
My dog sleeps on my bed, but when it was really cold I still put a jumper on at night.

Thank you, Toy or miniature Poodle is so far best suitable for us.

Thank you I didn't think of fleece jumper/pet bed heater. I was about to panick but glad there's actually options. I read that their beds should be raised as well, is that the same as them being in a crate?

I have a cot that we no longer use. I'm hoping to make it into a bed for the dog once the dog is all trained and old enough etc.

When our dog gets too cold he comes in the bedroom and barks until I cuddle him

Our last dog slept in a crate (her choice) in the bedroom next door to ours. Our pup sleeps crated with us. Knowing how unsettled she can be at night I can’t imagine her sleeping anywhere else at the moment but long term she’ll probably sleep where she likes - crate in the bedroom next door or downstairs.

With puppies you are best to sleep near them. Vet fleece is a nice warm layer that isn’t easy to shred.

The vast majority of puppies will need to sleep with or near their owners - for comfort as well as practical reasons like nighttime toilet trips.

So while your goal long-term may be the kitchen, I would think about where you'll set up their crate on day one - either in the bedroom with you, or downstairs where you can sleep nearby.

Ohhh I just got a miniature poodle 😁

We used a crate for the first year with our dog. It was wonderful for toilet training as we used a training schedule (easily found in Google). He loved his little sanctuary and happily went to bed in there each evening or took himself to rest in there in the day, we had vet bad and cushions on the base and covered with a throw at night. Though he now sleeps in our bed as seems to be inevitable 😂

Dog sleeping in your room gets you all more sleep. And it’s much easier for nighttime toilet trips to the garden if pup is in a crate in your room, then you’ll wake when it whimpers and be able to leg it out to the garden. Do this consistently and it doesn’t take long for them to be dry at night. At that point you can lose the crate and they don’t necessarily want to sleep on your bed. My Velcro dog sleeps happily in his basket on my bedroom floor all night.

Thank you all, yes I think the question was more for the long term goal rather than when the dog Is a puppy. I think I may be sleeping downstairs during the puppy stages 😳 or in our room
Not decided about that as that won't be an issue.

Thank you for everyone's input. I feel better now.

Oh really??? How's it going? How old is the dog? Ahh I'm so broody (for a dog)

My Chihuahua sleeps on my bed. Since day one. Not a problem. He's bathed regularly and doesn't roll in shit.

At the very least I'd allow it in its own bed in my room, not down in the f-ing kitchen. There are numerous warm beds and even a soft plush hut available online, that would keep it warmer in cooler temps. I'd rather provide a warm bed than have it wearing a sweater or fleece all night.

Why do you want to make a social animal sleep so far away from everyone else in the family?

Brilliant choice of breed. We have a standard poodle and he is a dream.

Ours wears a hotter dog fleece to bed in the winter, shortly after he has been groomed only.

He slept in his crate at night for the fist year, roughly and now the sofa is his bed of choice. I was on the sofa downstairs in the early days.

He does sleep on the bed with me sometimes, when husband is away but will often just take himself back downstairs.

I have Jack Russell doggies. I have had them in bed with me from when they were puppies. They never soiled or weed on the bed because dogs don’t want to soil their own immediate environment ..not an ideal solution for some but works for me .

Thank you all for your advise/insight. Still a lot to learn/consider.

It's not about having the dog far away from family because we dont want him near us at night. It's more for the dog not getting disturbed as we have a 4 year old who still isn't a great sleeper and is up numerous times in the night. So thinking about everyone. Not sure if dogs are light or deep sleepers etc. As I said I've still got a lot to learn/research.

Saying that we do have a spare room/guest room which could potentially be the dogs room. All dependant on the dogs preference as well ofcourse.

Thanks again all.

And again, it's more for when the dog is out of the puppy stage. Not straight away.

I have a mini poodle too. We were first time dog owners. He is absolutely amazing and so loved. Lucky you! I can't advise though as he sleeps up with us (yay!)

Ah amazing, how are you finding having a dog for the first time? I'm nervous but also excited. I didn't even do this much research on my dissertation when I was in Uni many moons ago 🤣

One helpful thing I was advised: If you leave the house routinely for work, and he will be alone, reserve part of his dry food at breakfast and scatter it on the kitchen floor as you leave. Mine were so excited to race around and pick up that extra bit of food that they looked forward to me departing, rather than get separation anxiety.

That's such a great idea, thank you! I am concerned about separation anxiety, more so because both me and DH work mainly from home. I'm either a day a week out and about and he's once every 2 weeks.

So do want to dog to be OK alone for a few hours if needed. A friend of mine takes her dog to a doggy day care once a week. Not sure if that's a good thing? It works for her.