Hi everyone. It's currently 4.33 am and I am attempting to sleep on the sofa in the living room with our new pup in his puppy pen with an open crate attached. Going to bed was a dream..He went in I praised him he lay in his crate and slept from 10.30 till 1am. At 1 he made a fuss so I took him out to pee..all good so far but then when I put him back he cried the house down for 15 mins so I spoke to him but did not let him out this has happened again at 2.30 and now at 4 but he will not settle back to sleep and is crying alot. What do I Do? ...right now I am sitting by the crate hoping he will settle down but it is not looking like it will happen any time soon.
I’d take him out for a pee again. Make it matter of fact with no play or treats unless he pees. If there’s no pee within 5 mine take him back to the crate. If he pees act deleriously happy and give him a food treat. Then put him back in his crate.
It is heart rending when they cry. Been there. It’s awful! Tomorrow spend some time making the crate a fantastic place to be (hiding treats in there for him to find is good, as it giving him treats anytime he voluntarily goes into the crate. Have a small bowl of treats on top of the crate and now and then as you pass drop a treat into the crate (as long as he’s quiet ).
I survived and did not cave till 7 am which is when I let him out. The is issue is that he wimpers to pee which is great as we have had no accidents and I know it won' t last forever having to get up through the night. It' the crying after every pee, last night it was 4 times when he cried so much after every pee. His crate is open in his pen and it has a blanket teddy and he has no issue going to relax during the day ..last night it was when I closed the door the drama started even though I was on the sofa a few yards away. Tomorrow I am going to work only for a few hrs and I have someone coming to visit him but I am so worried he will be screaming the street down. We do live in a detached house and I have Kong' but I guess he will need to adjust...thanks for the advice already x
It’s very early days. Once he gets into a routine and sees your place as ‘home’ all will settle down. The fact that he want to bed so easily is a really good sign. They are all different. When one of us puppy walkers gets a new pup we always hope we get a settler - but we never know if they’ll be a settler or a cryer at night. The first question the next day is always ‘did s/he sleep?’ But all DO sleep through eventually, just like kids. Be sure that all your night time interactions are boring. One of my pups was up at 4am so I had her on my knee, both of us snoozing until morning. I cannot bear puppy cries but it does the pup no harm at all - just your ears and heart! Here is a great article - https://www.thelabradorsite.com/how-to-cope-with-a-crying-labrador-puppy/
Don't forget he is crying for his siblings, he is all alone for the first time in his little life. As @Boogie says, it does get better!
My girl was horrendous overnight. During the day she happily went into her crate, but at night she just wanted to be next to me. 2 weeks after we got her she ended upstairs with us and has stayed there ever since. What I'm trying to say is that every pup is different and the first week or so can be very unsettling as everything they have known has gone. It will get better.
Thank you so much for all your help..today was much calmer and hopefully tonight will be too. Tomorrow I leave him for 2 hrs to work..Kong's at the ready..
