Gun Dog Forum

My Brittany July has developed into an excellent puppy. He went from hating basically everything as I mentioned in a previous thread to becoming very social, sweet, and a happy pup. I'm so glad. Now we're inseparable.

...Maybe too inseparable. He did not cry at all and took to his crate well when we brought him home because he wanted nothing to do with anyone. I'd get up twice during the night to allow him to eliminate, and he would go right back to sleep. During that time, I was with him a lot because I was basically trying to get him to like me. I was worried we would never bond. Now, he loves me, but he has to know where I am. We'd take naps together on the couch, and then I would crate him when we woke up to get some things done around the house. The naps contributed to the problem, I think.

Recently, at 13 weeks old, he's been acting upset around bedtime when he knows that I get to sleep in my bed with my other dog while he is in the crate. Nothing's changed, and it's so sudden. When I turn out the light, flick on his night light, and settle in, he begins to bellow, whine, and bark. I tried the ignore it until it vanishes technique for a few nights, but the we all have to get up in the morning and work. And we live very close to our neighbors. He would eventually give up and fall asleep, but at 3AM, he would wake, notice his dilemma and scream his head off. I actually got a complaint from an angry neighbor, so the ignore it technique can't happen.

Then, my roommate was like, "just put him in bed with you." I retaliated with all of this nonsense about how it could create problems in the future, how I want to be the alpha, and such I read on the internet. And she asked me to explain the issues it could cause, and I didn't really have an answer.

I wanted to wait until he was around 8 to 10 months before I'd let him in my bed so that the rules of the house and his status are firmly established. Then, I wondered, is that really necessary? In order to keep him quiet, I've been waiting until a pause in his screaming at 2 in the morning to pet him and get him to go back to sleep. It's the only way I can keep him quiet without getting the neighbor's angry and trying to get a third party involved.

So, where do your dogs sleep? If they sleep in your bed, when did you start letting them in your bed, and if you did when they were puppies, has it caused any problems? Should I just let him in my bed? What would you do? I can't imagine when my dog would ever need to not sleep in my bed. He's with me for life.

I have three. One sleeps in a crate and the other two sleep on dog beds. Absolutely no dog sleeps with me. I have a wife that eats up most of the bed, and I will not share anymore room with a dog. They are dogs not kids, not a wife. They need to know there place.

M2C,

Joe

I can feel you on the roommate front. When I bought my pup one of their demands was that the pup sleeps in my bedroom. They didn't want to deal with him whining and crying all night. Does the pup sleep in the crate in your room? If not I'd try that. If it's already sleeping in your room. Sleep on the floor with your head right at the crate door for one night. Then sleep in your bed so your head is closest to the crate. Then you can sleep normally in bed. That's how I got my pup comfortable sleeping in the crate. Only took one night on the floor and one night sleeping backwards and he was fine.

jcbuttry8 wrote:I have three. One sleeps in a crate and the other two sleep on dog beds. Absolutely no dog sleeps with me. I have a wife that eats up most of the bed, and I will not share anymore room with a dog. They are dogs not kids, not a wife. They need to know there place.

M2C,

Joe

Exactly. Well said.

Slim (who I'm looking after) sleeps right up against my side, Moxy sleeps on top of me and Cinna sleeps at my head.

I'd consider putting his crate on a little stand next to the bed. I mean RIGHT next to the bed. Do this until he's quiet for awhile then slowly start moving him away. I rescued a Setter once and he refused to be house trained and refused to be quiet. So, I just found an old night stand, put his crate on it and put it right next to the bed. The first couple nights I even had to put my fingers in the door. If he did get all excited I could just reach over, open the crate and let him know that wasn't okay. To be honest, it didn't bother me having him right there so I left him, but if I would have wanted the crate in a designated area I would have just slowly moved the crate a little farther away every night until he was in his spot.

cptn wrote: So, where do your dogs sleep? If they sleep in your bed, when did you start letting them in your bed, and if you did when they were puppies, has it caused any problems? Should I just let him in my bed? What would you do? I can't imagine when my dog would ever need to not sleep in my bed. He's with me for life.

My two shorthairs do sleep on the bed. Both started in a crate in the bedroom, until they were somewhere around 8 months old. Then I started letting them in bed for just an hour or two, after their 4-5 AM potty break. But not because of whining about separation, and not all the time. One is now 3 and the other 5. The crate is still left up in the bedroom and both will kennel in it on command and have no trouble sleeping in it, while I'm gone, have company, etc. Sometimes even when I'm home, I'll find one snoozing in the crate, since I leave the door open.

I would not let a young pup in my bed, without having properly crate trained them first, to be quiet and independant to separation. Much like you said, "so that the rules of the house and his status are firmly established." Letting the pup in the bed without learning coping skills and manners may be setting it up to work you in other ways as well. You are definitely in a tight spot with neighbor complaints. I'm guessing the pups acting out on jealousy, so I would be putting the older dog on the floor as well, either with another crate or tie him to the pup's crate.

1 sleeps my oldest daughter the other 2 with my youngest daughter inless my male sneak in my room. All 3 in somebodys bed

In a dog house out in the kennel.

I'm going through the same thing right now, once she is in the kennel, without fail she screams barks howls, anything to make noise for about 30-45 minutes, than shell finally quiet down for about an hour than wake up and go through it all over again. So far I have just been playing the "ignore her" game and put her in the room furthest away from us, but after a week, there hasn't been any progress, in fact, last night I think she barked and whined more than any other night... I try not to let myself get discouraged and think she'll never get it, but it can be hard sometimes I'll admit..

rinker wrote:In a dog house out in the kennel.

+1

Dogs, the associated messes, smells and the hair in the house is not something either of us want.

RayG

In the mud/laundry room on a nylon Kuranda bed. Not allowed upstairs.

No dogs in the bed.

The only time I break the rule is when it is storming and the Vizsla freaks out. I then get more sleep with him in the bed than do I with him crying to get in our bed room.

Greg J.

We have 7. 6 sleep in crates. The old man (12 yrs old) has a twin bed in the dog room to sleep on. He DID sleep on my bed for years, but my husband didn't want to sleep with the dog...imagine that!

9 y/o GSP sleeps in the bed... 6 y/o GSP & 5mo DD in crates next to the bed

Squirt and Bodie have slep in bed with me since the day I brought them home, they are 5 yrs now. Getting a Red Setter pup next spring, it'll be in bed too!

We have two GSP's and they both sleep in bed with us. Cleo is 2 1/2 and she slept in her crate till she was 7 months old and then ended up in our bed. The puppy who is 17 weeks old ended up in our bed at 12 weeks old. I don't mind that they are there at all.

Lucy sleeps in bed with me about once a week. Sometimes more, but usually less.

In the mud room on dog beds. They get a fair amount of interaction with the family there, and stay warm / cool depending on the season, but are never allowed any further in. Too much shedding to be in the house, much less our bed, as we'd have white pointer hair all over everything.

where ever I do.

my dogs sleeps in bed with me and my dogs are my kid lol ;cc

Crate in bedroom.

I love my dog, but theres no way i could get any sleep with that turd sprawled out on the bed.

Our dogs sleep any where they like. Even the 6 month old pup. Bull has such good manners he is never a problem.

ckirsch wrote:In the mud room on dog beds. They get a fair amount of interaction with the family there, and stay warm / cool depending on the season, but are never allowed any further in. Too much shedding to be in the house, much less our bed, as we'd have white pointer hair all over everything.

Thats why you get white sheets Craig Most of mine sleep littered around the bed like little vagrants, pep usually at my feet in the bed.

MIne have all been on the bed. They don't complain about me rolling around in the bed like my ex and I sleep better.........

I would raise a rukus too if someone switched on a nite lite when I am ready for bed.

Ezzy

dakotashooter2 wrote:MIne have all been on the bed. They don't complain about me rolling around in the bed like my ex and I sleep better.........

LOL Well I have to recind what I said. My husband is away for 2 weeks, so all 3 are sleeping with me for security reasons.

My cocker sleeps with me in the bed. She was a kennel dog for the first two years of her life, but the rest will be spent with me. My wife moved into the other bedroom a few years ago due to "our" snoring so the dog and I share the be now.

both my dogs have slept in their kennels every night since they have been home, the only exception to this rule is hunting trips they get to sleep where ever their heads land.

Wow I must be a hard azz. Put dog in crate. If they excessively whine you go correct. It sucks at first but repeat until they get it. A smart dog will get it. Don't make the visit pleasant when you go tell them quiet. Otherwie they think you are coming for fun and not correction.

It worked for all my dogs. They all sleep in crates. In their room. Not ours unless they are injured or I am drunk.

My dogs are part of the family but the only time they get up on the bed is when I'm watching TV. When it's time for bed then they get down so I can go to sleep. I would never get any sleep if they were sprawled out on the bed with me. When they were puppies they went to bed in a crate. Now I leave the crate door open and most of the time they go in their on their own and that's were I'll find them when I get up in the morning.

I made a deal with my dogs a long time ago that I wouldn't sleep in their bed and eat their food if they showed me the same courtesy. They are In a crate until house broke and then to the kennel. I would say you people are crazy but my wife's rat "bleep" cat sleeps on the bed, but not very long if he comes over to my side.

I have kennel dogs and house dogs and they do both. My dogs I teach place so I can send them to their bed and leave and they will be their untill they are called off of it. My next house is going to have a Man room with tile floors and a door going to a airing yard and it will be for dogs and me and dead animals on the wall. A dog learns nothing in the kennel or crate pups need to be out and about but also crate trained. I have more dogs than the average person but I still make time for them to be part of the family my dogs client dogs and even my girlfriends rat dog. Sometimes the hardest thing for some folks that have dogs or want a dog is really if they have the time or space for a dog.