Moving from crate to floor at night

[jbiel]

We are looking to transition our guys from staying in their crates at night to staying on the floor and eventually staying in the kitchen when we are gone.

Right now, they both last all night in their cages without waking up, but if we let Zeus sleep on the floor (Apollo still at vet for the next week) he will sleep for an hour or so and then wants to get up to moan.

Usually he just moans to moan, but sometimes he has to use the restroom.

Why is it only effecting him when outside of the crate and not when in?

I am guessing it is some sort of security feeling when he is in the crate? He knows he can't get out.

 

[Escher_fan]

I've been trying to get Mya to sleep outside the crate too, but it hasn't been going too well.

I started to leave the crate door cracked a little, but when she stretches in the middle of the night she realizes she's got freedom and runs and jumps on the bed :(

I've woken up quite a few times with her licking my face :P

 

[maggiesmum]

I am interested in some advice on this topic also. I can't remember at what age we transitioned our first boxer to sleeping outside of his crate all night. I want to say he was probably 6-8 months old at least. Maggie is 5 months and very well crate-trained, no accidents ever and she gets right in her cage all night. She never barks or cries in her crate but I am afraid that if I leave her out she will cry or have an accident.

 

[MacAttack]

I realize that our situation is a little different because we didn't get Macintosh until he was 18 months. However, he has been sleeping at the foot of our bed for 5 to 6 months now. We got him in December and at the time were staying with some family so his crate was beside our bed. When we would got to bed he would go in his crate to go to bed with us. Since Kate's sister had 2 dogs also Macintosh would not get crated during the day. So this was our way to get him used to his crate and to let him know that when we got to bed it's time for him to go to bed. When February came around and we got our house we did not want him to be in his crate at night since he would be crated during the day. So we put his doggy bed at the foot of the bed and would tell him "bedtime" and call him to the doggy bed. He basically got the idea right away but we also close our bedroom door so he can't run around the house and get in trouble. Of course this doesn't mean that he is an angel every night because he will try and sneak into bed with us every once in a while.

Good luck and I hope this was helpful.

 

[rwteam]

I am interested in this topic too!! I realize Rommel is only three months old, but when you said that you are trying it at 5 or 6 months, that's not too far away!!
Could they still be crated during the day and then sleep on the floor at night?

 

[MomofMillie]

He basically got the idea right away but we also close our bedroom door so he can't run around the house and get in trouble. Of course this doesn't mean that he is an angel every night because he will try and sneak into bed with us every once in a while.

Haha it's the same with Millie. She is almost 7 months old and sleeps fine in her crate, but b/c she is there during the day I wanted to have her sleep in our room at night. We put a doggy bed at the foot of the bed and she will sleep on it for awhile, but rarely stays there all night. She got a bit spoiled from the occassions she gets to sleep IN the bed (i.e. last night hehe). It just takes consistency.

 

[kurlz72]

A Little Trick

So this is what we had to do. the only way i could get them to do this without sleeping in my bed during the night was to go to bed a little early and let them fall asleep with me and then after about 20 min i tell them to go to bed and i have dog beds on the one side of my bed that they lay on.
at first when Maggie was still pretty little i had to place her on the dog bed and then i had the side of my bed blocked off with a laundry basket. so i would hear her if she got up.
now 6 months later. they sleep on the floor and sometime wander to the couch. then usually i do wake up with them in my bed. but only for a little while before i wake up which i like. we get a little cuddling in before we start the day.

worked great for us.

 

[taryndanae]

I am interested in this topic too!! I realize Rommel is only three months old, but when you said that you are trying it at 5 or 6 months, that's not too far away!!
Could they still be crated during the day and then sleep on the floor at night?

Me too. I am in the same boat. Cassius is 11 weeks old, but soon will have to spend more time in the crate during the day and therefore I want him to be able to sleep on a doggiebed at night

 

[simmons]

Both of ours were in the crate during the day and at night when we slept. (We had Crash for about a year before we got Bosco) I felt horrible b/c it seemed like they were in thier crates too much. So we bought a comfy bed, laid it next to ours and put a yummy filled kong to keep him busy. He was maybe 4 months old when he no longer slept in his crate at nights.

Every time he would try to jump on our bed, we would just say "no" and walk over to his bed and show him this is where he sleeps. Of course, it's not an overnight adjustment, it takes lots of time , patients and persistents (sp?)

However, he never had an accident during the night but always let us know when he had to potty. Or if I would hear him walking back and fourth, I would take him potty and he got lots of praise when he did!!!!

BTW, he is almost 3 years old now and always sleeps in our bed with us. There are still times when him or Bosco will still have to get up and go potty at night.

Good Luck!!!

 

[LngShtSofia]

investing in a child gate

What I've done is have my sofia sleep beside my bed im fortunate enough that I can actually barricade her in like she is in a crate...However it has no top to it ....I place a child gate in the opening...At night she goes to bed with me ..Eventually im going to expand the child gate(move it further away from where she sleeps now) too the bedroom door...around 6am she wakes me up...Not a peep out of her unless something is wrong..She is 13 1/2 weeks now...During the day we do put her in the kennel for a bit...Because when school starts back up she will be in there while I work and when hubby is working...Its worked for us so far....good luck all