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  1. #1
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    4 1/2 month old not sleeping as well in the crate at night?

    I have a female 4 1/2 month old that was getting in a good routine sleeping in her crate at night until recently. She would start to settle down around 9pm, by laying around the living room dozing off. Then we'll put her in her crate when we go to bed around 10 or 11pm. She would then sleep like clockwork until between 5:00-5:30am, then we'd take her out, feed her breakfast, and put her back in the crate. This would give us another hour or so until she would start whimpering again around 6:30/7:00.

    She's never really barks while in the crate at night, or in the morning. When she wakes up and wants out, she just whimpers until we take her out.

    For the last week, she has been waking up and whimpering around 3:30/4:00 and will continue until we take her out. She'll then still wake up at the 5:00-5:30 time as well as 6:45. The extra 3:30-4:00 wake up is rough so I wanted to ask for advice on getting her to sleep better in her crate.

    I should also mention, that when she does go out, it doesn't seem like she really needs to go to the bathroom (badly anyway). When I take her out of the crate, I'll open it and take her straight outside (no talking, no playing). She'll sniff around a bit before finally going to the bathroom. She doesn't immediately go as soon as she gets outside like she will do when she really needs to go.

    She sleeps in her create that is in our bedroom. Should I move it to another location and only take her out at scheduled times like 5:30 and 7:00? I'd be worried that if she really needs to go out, we wouldn't here her. Or worse, she'd learn that the only way we will hear her is if she barks. I'd rather not start that habit of barking in her crate.


    Any suggestions?


    Thanks in advance!
    Last edited by Fish; 08-24-2015 at 12:23 PM.

  2. #2
    Senior Dog zd262's Avatar
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    When she wakes up at 3:30/4 does she have to go the bathroom? If she has to go to the bathroom then you don't have much choice but to take her out. Make sure it is a no-nonsense outing though, potty and back in without praise or treats.

    If she just seems to be upset and doesn't need to go potty, then you can ignore her. My puppy was sleeping through the night well before 4.5 months old, but of course all dogs are different.

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

  4. #3
    Senior Dog Snowshoe's Avatar
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    Is she teething? That can cause some peculiar behaviours. I wonder if some wetted, wrung out, frozen washcloths would be soothing to her sore gums? But you'd have to watch she didn't swallow bits of them.

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

  6. #4
    Senior Dog smartrock's Avatar
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    I know you've been having diarrhea issues and have been trying some food switches, but does she get a bedtime snack at all? Just wondering if she's waking up because she's a little hungry. I don't know how much she's eating but, if there weren't the diarrhea issue, I'm wondering if this would be a signal to increase her intake a little. Just a thought.

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

  8. #5
    Senior Dog CraftHer's Avatar
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    I think the crate in the bedroom is a good idea and I wouldn't move it. Also, the no play no talking when you take her out is good. When Mocha woke up during the night, I gave him a small amount of peanut butter in a kong when he went back to bed. About the time I was wondering how to break him of this, he started sleeping through the night. I feel like I got lucky on that one not becoming a habit.

    Maybe keep her up a bit later. Walk her about 10:00 and then put her in the crate for the night.

    If she doesn't get a bedtime snack, I agree with Smartrock. We started feeding Mocha a couple of tablespoons of plain yogurt at bedtime right after we brought him home. Our vet said it wouldn't "activate his digestive system" and it will give him that full feeling a little longer. We've been giving it to him every since.

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

  10. #6
    Senior Dog
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    I'm wondering if something like a fox, raccoon, or coyote has started wandering past your area around that time...making just enough noise to get her awake and interested in sniffing around. Nocturnal animals get my two going like clockwork.

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

  12. #7
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    What I do when Murphy goes in his crate at night is fill his kong with maybe 1/4 - 1/2 handful of kibble. This keeps him occupied long enough that he'll eventually settle down and drift off. I also take him out the second before he goes to bed (even if he had gone out 10-20min prior). This tells him that it's his last chance to potty before sleeping. Sometimes he goes, sometimes he doesn't. I also put a few of his toys in his crate (rope, stuffed alligator, plastic bone) so he has something to chew if he feels the need to.

    Like others have said, maybe there's a noise around that time that she wants to go and "chase"? Murphy sleeps in the laundry room, which has a wall right next to the driveway. We have an air filter in there anyway (to catch dander, etc.) that makes a slight "wooosh" sound during the night. Maybe you could try having white noise on or something like a radio, iPod with quiet music, etc?

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    Fish (08-31-2015)

 



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