# Barking at night issue



## robrymond (Sep 7, 2014)

We have a 5 month old puppy and aside from initial issues with peeing everywhere, for the last few months, things have been pretty good on the training front.

However, we have had some major issues the past few weeks with him not sleeping at night. He is in a crate and has never kicked up much fuss aside from the odd occasion.

I get home at 7am and walk him straight away. We've been on some really large, 2 mile hikes and he is off-lead running around. Then around 10am, I go to bed and he goes in his crate. Around 3pm each afternoon, I let him wee and drink and then back to sleep until 6ish.

My partner then arrives home and plays with him, and then he gets walked again, but not as far as morning. He just won't settle at night though now and the neighbours have been round to complain.

We changed his food a few weeks back gradually introducing Skinners Puppy which has more meat in it and less rubbish compared to Wagg which he was fed before. I'm worried this change has given him too much energy or we ain't exercising him enough but we only have so many hours in a day to do it!

It has got to the point where we don't know what to do. Now the neighbours have complained it is serious. My partner has had to sleep downstairs for the last two nights to try and keep him quiet.


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## EmilyB (Mar 29, 2009)

I would bring the crate into your bedroom, he will probably be much happier.


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## robrymond (Sep 7, 2014)

EmilyB said:


> I would bring the crate into your bedroom, he will probably be much happier.


Great idea BUT we have a cat and they don't get on. At the moment, the cats 'space' is upstairs. I don't want him to feel threatened, plus the fact the dog gets a sniff/hears the cat outside the lounge door and he barks.

That is our other major problem, the cat and dog. He get swiped occasionally and his bark becomes very agressive. I've trained time and time again and they can both eat treats close up fine, but as soon as the cat moves away, he barks.


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## EmilyB (Mar 29, 2009)

So the cat decides then....lol.

Put in a gate with a cat hole, they make them. Dog is happy, cat can get away, and everyone gets some sleep.

Good luck.

http://www.petfrenzy.com/dog-gates-with-cat-doors.html


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## robrymond (Sep 7, 2014)

EmilyB said:


> So the cat decides then....lol.
> 
> Put in a gate with a cat hole, they make them. Dog is happy, cat can get away, and everyone gets some sleep.
> 
> ...


The gate is on the stairs at the moment. I guess we could move the gate to one of the spare rooms. It is a little tight upstairs, so not sure entirely where he could go. I would leave him loose downstairs but there are too many wires which I don't want to leave unattended. He doesn't chew things as much now (apart from my arms) but if he gets chance to grab a remote, he will!


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

A tired dog is a happy and quiet dog. Sounds like you've got a bored dog. How much mental stimulation is he getting? Sounds like you and your partner need to increase the amount of time you're spending with him out of his crate! Are you taking him to training classes? You need to work his mind as well as his body. And perhaps you could spend some of the walk time playing fetch or something that's more physically strenuous than just walking? 

Does he get on with other dogs? Are there friendly dogs nearby that he could play with a couple times a week?


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## Wolfenstein (Feb 26, 2009)

robrymond said:


> My partner then arrives home and plays with him, and then he gets walked again, but not as far as morning. He just won't settle at night though now and the neighbours have been round to complain.


Could he maybe try pushing the walk time back so your dog gets crated shortly after returning home? He might be more tired out, then. If your partner is walking him earlier on, but then they're just hanging around the house for a few hours before bed, he might have rested up just in time to get to bed. It sounds like when YOU crate him, it's closer to being exercised, but this is all just guessing on my part.

The other thing to think about is how you're handling it when he's barking, and what sort of barking it is. Is it "I'm bored!" or "I'm anxious!" or "I'm frustrated!" or a million other things? Types of barks all differ greatly, and depending on your actions, you can end up making it better or inadvertently making it worse. The whole thing is likely just a phase that will pass (I'm going through a similar phase with my 3 year old human child! :laugh but you just want to be aware of your own actions so you don't end up accidentally encouraging it. Basically, if he's anxious, work on making him feel more at ease. If he's reacting to something in his environment, try to work on minimizing contact at night and desensitizing him to it during the day. If he's completely clear headed and just using the bark for attention, make sure not to give it to him! This is all really simplified, but figuring out the "why" will go a long way to helping your cause.

Good luck, let us know how it goes!


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## robrymond (Sep 7, 2014)

After a few sleepless nights last week for my partner, we came to the decision that perhaps the crate is the cause of the problem.

So on Sunday we trailled him sleeping loose downstairs. This seemed to go well, so all week he has been able to roam around and the results are better.

There is still an issue for my partner whom cannot get to bed upstairs and has had to use the sofa whilst he sleeps, however myself I have had no issues getting upstairs to bed. Infact yesterday I was ill and I missed his morning eat/walk and he was fine.

He seems more settled though I put this down to him being naughty and sleeping on the sofa, but he seems less hyper. He is a fidgety puppy and moves a lot when sleeping. The barking now is less, though its not completely eradicated, partly when the cat shuffles around.

I agree he probably needs a bit more stimulation during the week but we try our best. Every spare moment other than cooking goes into stimulating the dog. That includes walks, rope tug, learning tricks.

I did have an issue last night with major hyperactivity with him biting loads and running around like a mad-man and I did get angry with him, resulting in a tap on the nose as our command to stop him wasn't working. I think the tap made it worse though! I think he thinks I'm playing.

Of course the only issue with removing the crate was a slight issue with toilet accidents by the back door in the night, but I think he has already figured out this. He has a large memory foam bed and the sofa he seems to have a likening too. We didn't want him on the sofa as a bad habit but he does seem very relaxed on it and of course he can be fussed, though when he is bigger he'll struggled to get on!


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

No more taps on the nose. As you found, it is counter productive. You probably need to find something else for cat safety so that your partner can sleep upstairs with the dog.


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## Wolfenstein (Feb 26, 2009)

robrymond said:


> He seems more settled though I put this down to him being naughty and sleeping on the sofa, but he seems less hyper. He is a fidgety puppy and moves a lot when sleeping. The barking now is less, though its not completely eradicated, partly when the cat shuffles around.


Do you think that he just likes the freedom to move around, or do you think he's on edge because he's alone? It's weird at night, it's dark and quiet. It can be unsettling, and as your pup is growing up, he could be showing signs that he's getting nervous rather than just wanting to be out. If a dog is on edge, it's going to have more of a hair trigger bark because every little noise is going to warrant a reaction in his head. Think of it as the equivalent of a person walking through a haunted house. You get jumpy, so every little thing, even things that normally wouldn't phase you would give you a little startled, "Ah!" Dogs can't go "Ah!" so they bark.  haha

What I'm getting at is if it's nerves rather than being crated you're going to have to really think about your approach. Leaving him loose will only fix it temporarily if he's still up patrolling/pacing all night. You're going to have to figure out ways to make him feel more at ease so he learns that while night time is weird, it isn't scary. Do you think leaving a little light on somewhere would be an option? Or leaving a radio or TV on really quiet downstairs? Dogs don't have an easy time seeing in the dark the way cats do, and a little white noise might go a long way to distracting him from the silence.

Of course, these suggestions are given under the assumption that your dog is still nervous at night, not just bored.


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