Puppy naps

[Molly2008]

Hello

I’ve recently adopted a cavapoo all going well so far. Question is he seems to have an hour on hour off schedule during the day will this naturally extend itself to longer wake / sleep periods or should I be trying to keep him awake longer? To get longer nap times?

A puppy needs so much sleep. Up to about 20 hours a day before 6 months then it starts to gradually reduce but they still need much more sleep than an adult dog.
If already adult he may be enjoying some peace quiet and comfort. Adult dogs who are content with enough food and exercise will sleep a lot in the day.
The sleep needs to be protected e.g.quiet time away from children, a dog bed or area to retreat to.
Absolutely don’t try to keep him awake longer he needs his sleep.

Of course it’s natural - he’s just a baby! Overtired puppies are an overstimulated, bitey nightmare so encourage as much sleep as possible - it’s brilliant that he takes himself off to nap as many pups seem to fight sleep. We used to have enforced naps for our retriever puppy in her crate as otherwise she’d keep herself awake all day and become an absolute little monster

I am absolutely enforcing naps otherwise he goes hyper… just not sure he’s getting enough sleep as he wakes up after an hour and we start the wee, play routine again.

Wondering how to get him to sleep longer without coddling him… he will snooze forever next to me but obviously that’s not practical 🤣

My bulldog is 10 and she sleeps pretty much 24/7 🤣 always has done

Have you got a house lead so you could keep him next to you on the floor/his bed with a chew/stuffed kong? They really need to learn to just chill without being on your lap etc (when you say snooze next to you I assume you mean on the sofa?) Or you could use a puppy pen and pop him in there while you get on with things (if you keep leaving the room for short intervals that will help avoid separation anxiety too)

Yep he’s happy to nap in the pen but only for 1 hour whereas with me it’s up to 2 hours