Hi guys, Our Larry is 13weeks old, goes to bed in his crate around 10:30pm. He wakes up between 5-6 barking and so we let him into the garden for a massive wee. He clearly wants his day to start here and wants his breakfast, is it good/bad to put him back into his crate until we are ready to get up or is it a bad habit to let him tell us when it's time to get up?! When we put him back in his crate, he cries, barks and howls for about ten mins then goes back to sleep. He's doing great in all other areas for a puppy of this age, just these early mornings are wearing us all out!
Hi @Andie Turnock , I myself think you are doing the right thing. How great though, that he asks to go out for his wee. I think you will find that as he grows up he sleeps longer in the morning as his bladder matures. When my Cassie was small I resisted the temptation to feed her early, I found it hard to do but it has paid dividends as she doesn't now expect it at any set time. He sounds a great little chap.
I think it’s fine either way, start the day or go back to bed But, whichever you do, make sure you keep to the same breakfast time. The pup will soon start to sleep later if you do that as his bladder matures. My rule is ‘start the day if it’s 6am+ but back to bed if it’s earlier, breakfast at 7am whatever happens’ Breakfast moves to 7:30am once the pup is on three meals a day. It’s worked for all six pups- by six months old I am waking them up, not the other way round. Keir, 6 months old, is funny - he takes lots of yawning a stretching before he gets out of bed these days! .
Hmm....I would be tempted to get to him before he starts barking to get up for a wee. 13 weeks is still a little young to have complete bladder control. If you set your alarm before he is waking you up, take him out for a wee then straight back to bed he may lie in for a bit later
I’m with Beanwood. We preempted barking to avoid the issues of having to deal with it later. We kept the regular feeding times regardless, but always got Dugan out for a wee. You can move a feed ahead a few minutes a day to coincide with what’s best for everyone involved if need be. Just move it ahead a few minutes each day. Once they realize you got their back they bark less and eventually not at all. It’s not their chosen method of communication.
