Puppy crying all night

[daisypup]

As thread title suggests he cries ALL NIGHT. He is now 5 months old and I don't know if we can keep him as it's disturbing the neighbours and our children.

When we first got him he cried all night in his crate (10-6) without stopping. He did this for almost a week and then started sleeping through the night. He started again about a month ago, and went on for a week until we decided to give up the crate and give him the run of the dining room at night.

He has started doing it again since yesterday and I don't know why.

He is downstairs, and doesn't seem to like being left on his own at night. Having him upstairs with us is not an option, due to our house being a terrace but also personal preference.

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I don't know anyone who has had a dog cry for this long without stopping, and for so many nights.

I love him dearly and don't want to give him up but this really isn't manageable for anyone. I'm on anxiety medication because of the impact. My children are waking and upset at school because he's keeping them up.

We've never had dogs upstairs either op, so totally understand. That said they've been quiet after only a couple of unsettled nights. It must be torture to have a racket at 5mths.

Have you tried the bed in the hallway? He might feel more enclosed and cosy. He's used to having folk in the living areas so that might be why he cries? Tbh I'd disregard the walking limitations, needs must and if a longer walk wears him out then do it.

If that doesn't work you do have 2 choices camp in the living room until he grows up a bit or rehome. Sorry not much help and while I am a dog lover people and their wellbeing must always come first.

You say that you're up and down at night because of your daughter. He'll be hearing that and perhaps thinking it's morning. Which isn't great for any of you.

Very good point.

Is it worth looking at the issue using the ABC model?

Antecedents (there may be more - these are a few I’ve picked up from your posts and they might not all be completely correct). They might not all be issues either but they might give you a starting point

• Pup nervous of dark (doesn’t like being walked in dark)
• pup stressed at bedtime
• pup getting overtired due to distress during night
• pup struggling to settle in one place
• pup not coping with being alone
• pup easily woken from sleep (doesn’t sleep while you potter around the house)
• pup wants to be with you - not secure or confident without you

Behaviour - crying throughout the night

Consequences

• disrupted sleep for you and pup
• increased stress for you and pup
• practicing unwanted behaviours
• pup not developing confidence and independence skills
• pup in a high state of stress / trigger stacked frequently

Is there a local behaviourist / trainer that uses positive training methods that you could ask to help you?

Building value in their bed / crate (Susan Garratts crate games for example) May help

Do you do regular but short training sessions with pup? If so, do you tend to lure or do you train by getting them to work it out more for themselves? Getting them to use their brain is a great way of getting young dogs to sleep better, as well as appropriate physical exercise. Look at using shaping and capture training methods rather than luring.

Are you clicker training? This marks the exact behaviour you want / want to reward so can help build confidence in pup.

Sleep is an essential part of enrichment so if pup isn’t sleeping at night he’s going to really struggle as he’s starting the next day already with his stress ‘cup/bucket’ partly full.

What’s his diet like? Does he have opportunities for chewing and licking - especially with natural chews and treats? Most mainstream treats are full of junk (sugars, cereals, additives etc) which can negatively affect sleep and general function.

Have you tried something like a night light if he’s not keen on the dark? Have you tried a toy with a heartbeat or some sort of boring background noise? Our pup has the BBC parliament channel on for an hour when he’s left (I set the tv timer). Our pup (now 9 months) still wakes frequently some nights for the toilet, and I have spent quite a lot of time on the sofa since we got him at 4 months but he’s getting more confident and although it feels like progress is slow sometimes, we are making progress.

Hope some of this might be useful xxx

TheSecretaryBird,,a brilliant post. So many people imagine you get a puppy,house train and that's it! An original post about having to get up to a diabetic child,is also a pointer of course. I've got a cystocele,so have to get up in the night, said pup is in hall, just outside our room,(bigger crate now doesn't fit on our room)there's a kids plug in night light, just enough for me to see the bathroom, I don't put lights on, make any unnecessary noise,or interact at all.

Neither of my dogs have ever slept upstairs either OP, im also in a terrace with paper thin walls so I totally understand why you wouldn't want a barking/crying dog up there.

My first pup never ever cried through the night, but my second one did, even though my other dog was with him! I slept downstairs with him for a while and eventually once he seemed settled in our house he became ok with staying downstairs without me, I have one that sleeps in our laundry room and one that sleeps under the kitchen table, they just seemed to eventually find a spot they felt comfortable sleeping and now that's where they always go.

My second dog still whines a lot but not through the night, he's just a pretty anxious dog in general

Getting advice from Mumsnet on puppies isn’t ideal. So many posters confuse the care of human babies with puppies. For example, bring them home and sleep with them? 😂

We’ve had dogs in our family for years. My parents and their parents had dogs. They would be genuinely astonished to hear this sort of advice. Yet, all our dogs were loved and cared for and very much part of our families.

I know it surprises me how some treat their pets like children. Ours is loved, gets lots of attention etc but then it's off to the kennels for her whenever needed. There is such a surge in people aking their pets everywhere with them, cafes or when visiting pals. No one wants a dog visiting! Stick it in its bed with a nice chew and walk it when you return.