Hi, I'm looking for some advice and suggestions to help our 6 month old lab sleep through the night. Until recently we have been crating her. She would happily go in after the toilet at 10am but then wake in the early hours of the morning. She needs the toilet so we take her outside and don't talk to her at all. She goes back in her crate happily but then starts to bark. We have tried a kong which she ignores (loves them during the day) and she barks continuously. We've tried just letting her bark but after 3 hours we can't possibly leave her for any longer. As this wasn't working we are now trying a walk at 10pm before bedtime. Putting her in her crate but leaving the door open so that she has a bit more freedom to sleep elsewhere in the lounge if she wishes. But, we are getting exactly the same results. Waking up between 3.30 and 4am and not settling again. I'd be grateful to hear people's thoughts and ideas on how we can try to stop this and help her sleep. Thanks in advance.
Hi Catherine, Has your pup ever consistently slept through the night? It’s not clear from your message. Also, what prompted you to remove the crate? Last question I have is how much sleep do they get during the day? At this age ours still slept loads (17 hours a day roughly) but needed some physical and mental entertainment in the evening to allow us a peaceful settling puppy ready for bedtime. I’m not experienced enough to know whether there are any concerns for a pup not being able to hold their bladder overnight at this age, we were fortunate that’s ours slept through from 10 weeks but he has very good bladder control it seems. However it does seem unusual that they can’t hold it at 6 months of age, so I’m wondering whether it’s a matter of habit rather than necessity. Have you visited the vets recently to check all is normal? Jess
Hi Jess, Thanks for taking the time to post a reply. She used to sleep until between 5.30 and 6.30 so she definitely can. As you say i think it might have become a habit but we are uncertain about leaving her if she really does need to go (she goes to the toilet as soon as we let her outside). We thought we would try leaving the crate door open as other people said they had good success with this when their puppies didn't settle. She still goes to sleep in her crate but has the option to settle elsewhere if she wakes up. We are taking her out for a short walk before bed to tire her out and we do plenty of mental stimulation during the day but I am wondering, based on your comments, whether we should try some later in the evening as well to really tire her out. Thanks again for posting. Kate
It sounds like she is now used to this and it has become routine. Try setting your alarm for about 2.30/3 to take her out to toilet before she wakes up, then settle her back in the crate. This might help break the cycle of her waking up and wanting out thinking its morning.
Thanks for replying. I think you are right. Last night I got her up at 3am when she was still sleepy. Took her out to go to the toilet and sat downstairs (no interaction) until she went back to sleep. She then managed to sleep until 5.30 which is definitely progress! I'll keep going with this approach and hopefully we'll get somewhere. Thanks, Kate
Thanks for clarifying. I’m no expert but I’ll share my experiences/thoughts based on what you’ve put. I believe it’s common that Labs can have a regression with crate/sleep training as they get older. Ours did start waking really early suddenly, around 4am, for a week or so but this was as the clocks changed so it was very bright in the mornings in our lounge. After a week or so he got back to normal, we waited out the whimpers (he’s not a barker) when we realised he was fit and well and could hold his bladder still. This resolved itself really quickly and we actually let him out from the crate overnight around this time (6 months) too so that he could settle himself back down which helped fix it. Wilson will go for a wee outside the second we come down stairs too but I wouldn’t personally be too worried, that just means they’re in a good habit of going, there’s a difference between needing to go and not being able to hold (within reason; for a fit and healthy pup). It seems that your pup can hold their bladder and is well, so this noise could be for attention. To get them out of the habit I’d suggest you pick whether you want to persist with the crate or not and if you do, leave it closed and go back to the ‘wake them before they wake you’ method of sleep training to break the habit as suggested in the other comments. Incremental increases of the alarm times will get you back to waking at a normal hour. However One other thing to consider is it seems she isn’t settling elsewhere when waking and wants to be with you so makes noise until you appear. Does she have much time away from you generally? I’m wondering if she knows how to settle herself without you there at this age, she is still young. With regards to tiring her out, Wilson finds walks really exciting and stimulating so we don’t walk just before bed as it takes him ages to calm down again - but with this I’d say do whatever works for you and your dog, she might not be as excitable as ours. I would recommend a settling period (toys away, some gentle stroking and cuddling in a darkened room) before bedtime to slow your pup down. however this aside it seems the actual issue is her staying asleep and settling herself back down when she wakes up, rather than going to sleep in the first place. Hope this helps in some way, let us know what you try next/how you get on. Jess
I think personally an inexpensive soft fabric type bed, that can be machine washed, with some added blankets/fleeces is the best option, and really what we started with. After a while, consider upgrading to a beanbag style or more expensive memory foam perhaps. You can search petslifeguide.com to find more info
