Potty Training At Night (long, sorry)

[EKR16]

Since I got Romie - she has really rebelled against her crate. She bites it, climbs to the top & falls, poops EVERYWHERE, and just generally cries for hours on end. I feel guilty putting in there all day while I'm at work (I come home a few times a day to let her out) & then 5-6 hours later, putting her back in there for bed. So I got her a little box beside my bed so she can at least be close to me. Since I got her she has been getting up every 2-3 hours at night, whining to go out, but last night she woke me up every hour, on the hour, to go out. When I take her out, she will pee a tiny bit & then take off running up the steps & wait at the door to go back in. No matter how many times I bring her back to the yard (to see if she will poop too), she runs right back to the door. I stood there for 5 minutes just to see if she would come back to me & she never did. She just made her self comfortable on the welcome mat & looked at me like I was an idiot!

She ended up escaping her box at some point between 4 & 5 and pooped several times on the carpet. I took her back out at 5 and she wouldn't go at all. By that time I was completely at my wit's end & exhausted, so I went ahead and put her in her crate. She cried until I got up at 6:30 and by then she & her crate were covered in poop.

I realize she is young & she is going to have accidents, thats not the problem. My question is, should I not have her beside my bed? I think that because she realizes that if she wakes me up, I will pick her up & pet her & praise her for going potty. Am I creating a monster? I am completely exhausted & everyone knows your patience wears thin when you are tired. What should I do? When I put her on a collar & leash to go outside, she is too distracted by scratching at the collar to go at all? UGH!!!!!

This morning I ended up oversleeping & didn't have time to clean her crate out before work, so I went ahead and cleared everything out of the bathroom except her toys & some newspaper. She didn't seem to be whining too much when I left...Is putting her in there going to confuse her? Are there some dogs that just NEVER get used to their crates? Any advice would be welcomed...I'm so tired I'm about to fall over right here at work. Please Help!!! :(

Thanks Guys!

 

[Maxxsmom]

We have always kept Maxx right next to us at night. I had read on BW that it brings them a sense of security, and often just a touch or acknowledgement helps calm them. When Maxx first came home, and I knew he didn't "really" need to potty (usually within 30 minutes of the last time he went) I would say "night night Maxx" and he would stop crying and go back to sleep for awhile. The night time potty/sleeping thing only changed for us after about 12-14 weeks of age. Before that, Maxx would wake up 4+ times a night, and I was VERY exausted and grumpy. Sometimes persistance is key...keep grabbing her & taking her to her potty spot in the yard and asking her to go potty until it sinks in that you want her to go. I had a breaking point where I started just putting him in bed with me after around 5am because that's when he wanted to get up and play, and I needed sleep. Sure enough when I'd bring him to my bed he'd go back to sleep & sleep like a baby. But just like with skinkids, that's not the smartest thing to do because they begin to expect it. They do grow out of the night time breaks, but with her being a pup, she will basically potty constantly. I think I had read on BW that you can figure they only hold it for 1 hour per month of their age, so by 6 months they should be able to hold it for 6 hours. Kibble has an impact on the amount of potty breaks also. If your pup is on a good quality kibble, she should slowly start to poop less. Hang in there, you WILL get to sleep through the night again one day! I promise.

 

[Lots]

I agree with Maxxsmom, better kibble equals a lot less poo. Also if you will pick up her water dish after 8 or 9 at night that will help. I kept Sindee on her leash at night, that way when she needed to get up it would wake me up and I would take her outside to potty. You will not get very much sleep at first but it will get better. What worked for us was to have her on leash all night long with the leash on my arm while I slept. Sindee was on her bed on the floor beside me. When she would get up to go potty I would walk (or carry her) outside, only telling her go potty and good girl, then straight back to bed with no playing or other talking. Sindee is now six months old and sleeps from about ten at night until six thirty am.
Good luck and you will eventually get some sleep.
Tricia
and Sindee

 

[EKR16]

1/2 Day Success

I went home for lunch & to let Romie out. When I opened the bathroom door she was laying on her bed, with every one of her toys chewing away happily. She went potty right away outside & when I was ready to come back to work, she just jumped right back onto her bed & started playing again. Maybe this is going to be the key for her. She just hates the crate SO much. I put her food in there to kind of get her used to the idea of the crate as a good place & she will keep two legs on the floor & stretch out on her tummy till she can reach the bowl inside & pulls it to the door so she doesn't have to go in. Pretty crazy!

I guess I'm just going to have to try a few things before I find something that works for her. As for the sleeping part who knows - I think mainly she just wants to play & explore. I think I may try & get a baby gate & put it on the bathroom door (which is 3 feet away from my bed). I just have to get some sleep. I'm pretty encouraged though that other people have gone through the sleeplessness. I was starting to think that I just had a little devil on my hands.

I'd still like some advice about the collar & what other people do at night - thanks guys...I just might live through this! HAHA I'm such a drama queen!

 

[cody&duke]

My fiance had Cody trained before I met him and when we got Duke I decided that I was nuts for wanting a puppy!

We were up every two hours to take him out! It was very tiring and I also get very grumpy when I don't have enough sleep. We decided that when we first got him we were going to have him sleep in his crate at night. So I carried it into our room and put Duke in there and he screamed and cried so my fiance go up and let him in bed with us. After that we bought a king size bed so there was room for Jon and I and not just Cody and Duke During the days Duke does great with his crate but not at night. To get him in there I just put a treat or two in there or a kong with peanut butter.

If you do want her crated at night I would put it next to your bed so you can put your hand through it to comfort her and I would put a shirt with your scent in it. Now, this is only what I have read since I was not successful with crating at night! You could also set an alarm so when she hears it she will associate it with getting up and going outside. When Duke was potty training I would pick him up take him out, praise him and go straight back to bed. No lights on and no loud noises. If you do keep her in the bathroom during the day make sure there is nothing for her to get into! If she is bored she will destroy something! A gate might work now since she is younger and can't knock it over.

Duke still gets me up once in the middle of the month but I think it is just out of habit. He won't let Jon take him out in the middle of the night or in the morning, he just stands there staring at him and won't budge!

Good Luck, it will get better with time. Keep us posted. She is adorable!

 

[sgbtab]

I will tell you that with gracie she never adjusted to the crate. but is you keep it in your room that might work. right now the bathroom is working but there will come a time when romie gets bored in the bathroom and starts to eat it . so just keep an eye on her.

 

[EKR16]

Nearly A FULL Night's Sleep!

Last night I played & played & played some more with Romie. My brother's kids even came over for a while to play with her, so by bedtime, she was falling all over herself to get in her bed. She ran right into the bathroom & laid down. She didn't wake me up until 3 a.m. She had, had a tiny peeing accident at some point, but at least it was an easy clean-up! She went out, did her business & got right back into her bed without a complaint. At 5:30, I heard her whining, so I took her out & then put her at the foot of my bed. She stayed there until I was ready to go to work!! I feel SO refreshed-almost an entire night of sleep! HAHA Everyone cross their fingers that tonight will go just as well!!!

 

[Maxxsmom]

Congratulations. She seems to love being in "her" bathroom. If it works for her, then it's a win win for both of you! When I gave Maxx full run of my "puppyproof bedroom" he seemed much more at peace. He rested better & his potty training got easier. I hope things work just as good today.

 

[carebear8322]

Sounds like you have sleeping arrangements figured out, for now. What I do with my dogs is make sure they have their collars on when IK go to bed, so I can hear their tags jingle when they wake up to go potty. I'm a pretty light sleeper so that works for me. As far as the kennel, my dogs still don't "like their kennel, especially the youngest. Tyson, 10mos., recently gave up on fighting me when I put him in there. I tell him its time for the kennel and he drops his head and walks in. He now even walks in there and lays down once in a while. What I did to get him used to the kennel is: I put blankets in there to lay on, and I put toys on the back corners so he'd have to go all the way in to get it. I also put the kennel in the living room since that's where the family spneds most of our time. I placed the kennel in the sun, because he likes to sleep in the sun. I also put him in the crate for short periods of time when I was home through out the day so he would learn that it wasnt just for when I was leaving. maybe it'll work for you. It did take some time with Tyson. just be patient.