Last night, Ted and I had a slumber party, and it was not as fun as it sounds.
We put him to bed in his crate after 10pm, and he started barking at semi-regular intervals. He paused for a few minutes — just enough time for us to think it was over — and started up again with a vengeance. The previous night, JG was determined to let him “bark it out,” and Ted eventually stopped. So, last night, we thought, “Hey, let’s just do that again. We can last twenty minutes or however long it took.”
Incorrect.
By 11:30, Ted had not given up. He scratched at his crate, whined, and barked, and the time was ticking ever closer to JG’s 5:45 wake-up call. Just before midnight, I gathered my glasses, book, and Slanket, and trudged to Ted’s crate to let him out. Experience has shown that if one of us was out in the house, Ted would be quiet, and we had a fighting chance to get some sleep. After Ted wandered around for a while, he settled himself on the couch at my feet. Two hours later, he was asleep in my arms, and I debated walking him down to his crate. If he started barking anew, though, JG would wake up again, and he wouldn’t necessarily go back to sleep. I shook my head and resigned myself to a night on the couch through no fault of my own.
This nocturnal interruption is a relatively recent development, but nothing has changed in our schedule, so we are at a loss as to what to do. The time of the barking fits varies: sometimes it’s late at night, sometimes in the wee hours of morning, and sometimes just before JG gets up. A common thread is that it is always loud, and I’m concerned that we are becoming That Barking Dog House in the neighborhood. Ted doesn’t need to go out, and he isn’t hungry; he just seems … mad at us. As if being in the crate is an indignity he should not suffer.
I know, it’s stupid, but that’s how it feels. Of course, we ask, what would Cesar say? He would tell us not to let the dog dictate our schedule. He would say that Ted needs to know who the pack leaders are and when we want to get up or go to sleep is when the followers should, too. That’s all well and good, but what do we do? Truth be told, it is very hard to resist plopping Ted on our bed to pacify him.
Ideally, Ted would be calm and quiet in his crate overnight until someone lets him out in the morning. We do not want him to grow accustomed to sleeping in our room. Even though Ted almost has free rein in our house, it’s helpful for him to be crate-trained for when he stays somewhere new. JG and I can not figure out what is going wrong, especially recently. Is he unused to the crate from being out of it during the day? Should we bring the crate up to our main living space so he can learn to go in voluntarily? Should I leave Ted in the crate during the day occasionally? Does he need a longer walk? Is he too stimulated at night? These are all questions we have asked, and there are no clear answers. Even worse, with Christmas travel approaching, we are in no position to set up a new routine until after the New Year, and the very thought is exhausting.
We are tired already, and we just want our dog to shut up and go to sleep. Heck, he doesn’t even have to go to sleep.
9 comments
This is very strange. I’ve never heard of a dog doing this before. I mean, in my very limited dog experience. Do you crate Ted when the two of you leave the house? Maybe that would be a good way to force him to get used to the crate without having to listen to him bark. Crate him, and go run errands or something. Maybe he’ll bark until he learns that barking doesn’t help, and then he’ll stop. Also, where is his crate in your house? Montana sleeps in a crate but the crate is in our room, so maybe that’s part of why she’s so quiet all night, because she knows that we’re right there next to her? Maybe Ted is mad that you aren’t nearby?
If nothing works, maybe call your vet and see what they think?
Good luck!
The crate is not in our room, but in a tucked-away room at the end of a hall. That’s why I’m wondering if we bring it up to the living room, if Ted might learn to go in on his own, which he doesn’t currently. And, yes, we do crate Ted when we leave the house, but only for longer periods of time, like more than six hours.
And now you’re ready for a baby.
Despite what Cesar says (I know, I know, he’s a guru) I am anti crating well trained dogs. He probably just misses you and is lonely. I don’t care if that’s anthropomorphizing him–animals have feelings, too! I would maybe try the crate in a more common area, leaving it open for him to “own his space” so to speak, or maybe moving it into your room? My true gut response is to have him sleep with you–Morris sleeps with us almost every night and 99% of the time I love it–but I’m not sure JG will speak to me if he were to find out I suggested it…
That really stinks! I let Delilah sleep with me most nights although sometimes she prefers her crate- but it’s at the foot of my bed (I live with a roommate in an apartment so it’s easier to keep her in my room). She is also crated during the day while I’m at work… not sure if that makes a difference or not. I don’t trust her to not eat something that would hurt her if she were left alone uncrated. When I get a house I have full intentions of giving her free range of at least part of the house while I’m gone at work. It will just have to be Delilah-proof. Wish I had a quick fix for you!
I have no advice, but I can offer my empathy. Henry the World’s Loudest Cat has been driving us insane with the howling. WHAT, CAT, WHAT DO YOU WANT? I would give him anything to just shut up (snuggles? pets? toys? food? a baby kitten to play with?), but nothing works… and on top of being annoying, it makes me feel like a terrible pet owner. Why is my cat so miserable? He’s miserable, right? Maybe?
We’ve also had no change in routine, except that we’re down one cat. But that was two months ago, and this is a fairly recent development. We’re stumped. And I’m pretty sure the neighbors are starting to get really annoyed (the walls are really thin).
If it’s in your mud/washer dryer room what can he see out the glass door? We used to have to throw rocks at deer at 2 am. (Hilary’s BETTER half)
Good question. Ted’s crate is in the Astroturf/storage room (have you seen that one?), and he can’t see outside at all.
I’ve never commented on your blog before, but I love reading it!
You should totally let Ted sleep on your bed. I had a dog who lived to 18 who was about the same size as Ted. After he was trained, we let him sleep on the bed. It’s great waking up next to a little furball!
Oh, gosh, I don’t know. I don’t own dogs so I can’t say. I have two cats who will occasionally wake us up because they a) want to knead or b) want a treat. Or, you know, it’s snowing and Kalli thinks we should be informed (she chatters at snow. It’s really cute but not at 3 in the morning).
I’d say try putting the crate in a more common area and let him get used to it?
Poor Ted. He can’t help that he needs to bark out his love for you every night!
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