dirty ethel rackham Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 I swear, everyone who told me that having a dog in the house was like having a toddler. Bear is very sweet and has been pretty mellow in this heat. However, at night, he is like a little boy who doesn't want to go to bed. All evening, he will lay on the floor near one of us (usually me.) When either I or my husband go to bed, we take him out to potty, give him a treat in the crate, turn off all the lights and shut the door. He is always eager to get the treat. Lately, however, when we leave the room, he barks. He hasn't done that since we first got him. Last night, he barked for 10 minutes. We couldn't take it anymore so dh got him out and just watched tv for an hour or so before trying again. This time he stayed in bed. He has been funny about bedtime since dd had her slumber party a few weeks ago. Since the girls were all sleeping in the family room where Bear's crate usually is, we moved the crate up to her bedroom. He really didn't know what to do with himself since he is normally not allowed upstairs. I ended up sleeping in dd's bed to help settle him. This past week, he has been pretty agitated between the thunderstorms, fireworks and backyard firecrackers. Also, he is not getting his normal exercise because it has been too hot (over 95 for several days - over 100 for the last2.) So, how can I get the dog to go to bed normally again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bee Happy Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 I wouldn't take him out of the crate when he barks, since he may think, "Hey! I'll try that tomorrow!" lol Maybe just give it a while for him to settle back down after all the excitement of summer changes? I definitely would keep the routine the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kebo Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 I would try the following: 1. Exercise before bedtime. A long walk or a rousing game of fetch, etc. A tired dog is a good dog :001_smile: 2. Cover the crate with a blanket 3. Leave some white noise in the room to block scary or rousing noises -- a fan or something similar. Nothing that would possibly resemble a noise he's scared of. 4. Leave him with a kong stuffed with peanut butter or equivalent. I don't recommend rawhides or things that he could choke on. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 Yeah, it just sounds like his usual routine was disturbed and it will take him a few nights to settle back down. We've always crated our dogs at night but have done a few different things over time. When one dog died, we had to move the second dog's crate to our bedroom because he didn't want to be downstairs alone. Once we got another dog, he happily returned to sleeping downstairs. So. . .maybe you need a second dog. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Yeah, if you're going to insist the crate not be in the bedrooms, I would probably get another dog too. Or just move the crate to one of the bedrooms permanently. My dog sleeps in a crate on my side of the bed. Occassionally he whimpers if we sleep in past 7am or leave a light on after 11pm at night, but he never wakes us up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted July 7, 2012 Author Share Posted July 7, 2012 Dd would love to have the dog in her room. Another dog is NOT going to happen. Love this one but can't imagine adding another one. The problem with having the dog in dd's room is that if we go away and have to leave him with a friend, he will be a problem. He went to bed fine for me a few minutes ago, but late nights are not the norm in our household. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I would try the following: 1. Exercise before bedtime. A long walk or a rousing game of fetch, etc. A tired dog is a good dog :001_smile: 2. Cover the crate with a blanket 3. Leave some white noise in the room to block scary or rousing noises -- a fan or something similar. Nothing that would possibly resemble a noise he's scared of. 4. Leave him with a kong stuffed with peanut butter or equivalent. I don't recommend rawhides or things that he could choke on. Good luck! Excellent suggestions! Especially number 1!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I'm no use to you at all. One of our dogs has not only worked her way upstairs, but sleeps in bed with us, under the covers ! The other one is happy in his own room, on his own couch, with a fan blowing on him. If you want to put your foot down with your dog....really, I'm useless ! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celticmom Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I'm no use to you at all. One of our dogs has not only worked her way upstairs, but sleeps in bed with us, under the covers ! The other one is happy in his own room, on his own couch, with a fan blowing on him. If you want to put your foot down with your dog....really, I'm useless ! :lol: Our little dogs sleep in the bed with us and our big dogs sleep on the floor in the room with us. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I'm no use to you at all. One of our dogs has not only worked her way upstairs, but sleeps in bed with us, under the covers ! The other one is happy in his own room, on his own couch, with a fan blowing on him. If you want to put your foot down with your dog....really, I'm useless ! :lol: :iagree: We had two big dogs. I quite often ended up sleeping on the couch or with one of the kids, because they crawled in to bed with DH (he went to bed earlier than me) and streeeeeeetched as far as they could to take up the whole king size bed. :D Now, just one of the two cats tries this, but I can lift and move her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Help. Our dog is driving us crazy. Take the keys away from him.:lol::lol::lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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