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The doghouse

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Original poster

Partner woke dog up 😡😡

17 replies

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 02:33

So, I appreciate that I'm probably being unreasonable but....

Sprout can be difficult to settle at night, she will suddenly think she has heard a noise and then start barking for ages.

We are working on this but not quite got there yet.

Partner has to be up early for work tomorrow so we agreed that I would look after the girls, including sorting Sprout out if she started woofing.

At about midnight Sprout was sleeping and settled with me and suddenly my partner goes downstairs because I've left the lights on....I hadn't gone to bed at that point and my light was on and radio playing (we sleep in separate rooms during the week).

This of course wakes up Sprout who has now being barking / being unsettled for last hour and I am trying to get her back to sleep.

Why, oh why, did he have to go downstairs??!! What is the issue with the lights being on? Surely that is a small price to pay for a settled pup? I was up and he could easily have just checked with me! Argh!

OP posts:

Wigtopia · 02/07/2024 03:00

How old is sprout? Have you tried leaving her downstairs to sleep on her own? We have a 7month old pup and for the first month of her living with her we slept close to her and actually she sleeps much better and through the night after we relocated back to our bedroom once she had gotten used to her new surroundings. It might be she is on higher alert as she is trying to keep you safe.

but yes YABU if no one switched off the lights downstairs before all going up to bed 😃.

edited as I incorrectly said you’re NOT being unreasonable. You are being unreasonable!

MissBattleaxe · 02/07/2024 03:01

Why did you have your radio on? Is your husband not allowed downstairs after bedtime? I think Sprout is getting more priority than humans.

Wigtopia · 02/07/2024 03:04

Have I misunderstood about sprout sleeping with you? Apologies if that’s the case, I assumed that was why you were sleeping separately.

3kids3dogs · 02/07/2024 06:37

Sorry but you should be able to walk around your own house whenever you want without fear of waking a dog. I couldn’t live like that!

Why do you need to get a dog to sleep? I’ve had 20 odd dogs and never had to do this? How old is the dog?

Ereyraa · 02/07/2024 06:51

You train the dog to fit in, not the human.

fieldsofbutterflies · 02/07/2024 07:05

Your partner should be able to go downstairs without having to stress out about the dog - what if he was unwell or needed a drink?

How old is Sprout? Maybe it's time to re-think her sleeping arrangements if you can't even go downstairs without disturbing her for hours on end.

Original poster

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 16:51

You are all absolutely right!! We really need to sort this out with Sprout instead of creeping around the house in fear of waking her up. Sprout is 9 months now, mixed breed and is just coming to the end of her first season.

On the suggestion of our dog trainer we are putting stick-on screens on the windows as she will be asleep for a couple of hours and then suddenly wake up and start going to the window and barking. Once at the window she is definitely on 'look out' and we immediately remove her. There isn't actually anything happening outside (that I can see) but once that starts it takes at least an hour or two before she will settle back to sleep.

Even when she can't get to the window she will then be on alert - she is much worse / unsettled at night than during the day.

We are also working on teaching her to settle which is definitely helping but if anyone has any other ideas they would be appreciated!

OP posts:

Original poster

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 16:53

Reading my post back now, I guess the first step is not letting her get to the window initially even if she does hear something!

OP posts:

fieldsofbutterflies · 02/07/2024 16:56

Have you tried white noise?

Aquamarine1029 · 02/07/2024 16:57

This is just bonkers. A human should be able to move freely around the house, not a dog ruling the roost. Your neighbours must feel like they're in hell dealing with this.

Original poster

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 17:11

fieldsofbutterflies · 02/07/2024 16:56

Have you tried white noise?

No, that's a good idea!

OP posts:

Original poster

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 17:14

Aquamarine1029 · 02/07/2024 16:57

This is just bonkers. A human should be able to move freely around the house, not a dog ruling the roost. Your neighbours must feel like they're in hell dealing with this.

You're right - it is bonkers and we are working on it!

We have asked our neighbours regularly if we are disturbing them and they say they can't hear anything. But, we do need to crack this - it got worse as she started coming into season.

Any tips or ideas you have would be appreciated 😊

OP posts:

fieldsofbutterflies · 02/07/2024 17:18

BellaAndSprout · 02/07/2024 17:11

No, that's a good idea!

Show quote history

Try it alongside the privacy screens - you can play it via YouTube or you could try running a fan, or putting the radio on low - it really helps block out any unexpected sounds. If you also play it while she's "settling" she should associate the sound with being nice and calm too.

There was a recent episode of It's Me or the Dog with Victoria Stilwell where she was training an anxious dog to settle using music. It should be on Discovery+ if you have it, or on Really.

Original poster

BellaAndSprout · 03/07/2024 14:28

So last night we put Sprouts bed in the hallway and gave her a peanut butter lick and she settled relatively quickly.

We could hear little grumbles and woofs but could tell she was still in her bed - it reminded me of a grizzly baby just about to fall asleep. She then slept through the night.

Fingers crossed it works tonight as well!

OP posts:

fieldsofbutterflies · 03/07/2024 14:33

That's fab news - hopefully it continues!

Wigtopia · 03/07/2024 15:04

BellaAndSprout · 03/07/2024 14:28

So last night we put Sprouts bed in the hallway and gave her a peanut butter lick and she settled relatively quickly.

We could hear little grumbles and woofs but could tell she was still in her bed - it reminded me of a grizzly baby just about to fall asleep. She then slept through the night.

Fingers crossed it works tonight as well!

Good girl, Sprout! I love the grizzly bear noises 😄 Baby Bear is one nickname we use for our pup because of the noises she makes when eating/getting belly rubs 😍😍

Newpeep · 03/07/2024 16:47

Just be aware that at 9 months and ending her first season she will be all over the place. Our pup was very reactive to outside noises on and off until she had gone through adolescence and now she is absolutely sound. My neighbour has her daughter's dog staying at the moment who is a large foreign hunting breed (very very loud!) who barks every time one of us breathes and she has been absolutely fine with it.

So support her when she needs it. Some pups can be barky but with the right support she'll grow out of it. Ours did.

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