[Sylcarr67]

Hi, My name is Elaine and I my baby's name is Eliot. He is almost 6 months old. We would first like to say hello! Second I am a first time dog owner and I am feeling overwhelmed. I have tried everything at night to get Eliot to sleep with no luck. He will not sleep in a kennel or exercise pen. I tried he barked non stop for 8 days. He likes to roam free in 2 rooms of my house. I have puppy safed most everything. We have a baby gate in front of our bedroom because it is carpeted and he thinks it is one big pee pad. So he sleeps on his down pillow in the family room. My problem is when we get ready for bed I can not get him to go nite nite. I either stay until he lays down or have to leave him to wander. He eventually tires out and goes to sleep but I feel bad leaving him up. What is your advice to getting him to understand it is time for bed? Thank you.

 

[wkomorow]

You want to make sure the vet has checked him. Health problems like tummy issue can cause them not to settle. If that is not it, it probably means he want to be with you. I know it will not wirk for everyone, but all my dogs have slept in my bed since day one. Can you figure out a way to carve a space in the bedroom with peepads so he is close to you?

 

[Sylcarr67]

You want to make sure the vet has checked him. Health problems like tummy issue can cause them not to settle. If that is not it, it probably means he want to be with you. I know it will not wirk for everyone, but all my dogs have slept in my bed since day one. Can you figure out a way to carve a space in the bedroom with peepads so he is close to you?

Thank you for the advice. I tried all that. Sleeping with me is hard. He is so small. 4.6 lbs. My bed is really high. I do not sleep well worrying he may fall off. Sleeping on the floor did not work with pee pads on the carpet. He just used anywhere in there but the pad. Lol.. If we had hard wood in there it would be easy. Our bedroom is right next to the family room. He just does not want to settle down. And yes he has been checked at the Vet. No problem there. I am just at a loss of ideas. Thank you anyway.

 

[Coster]

Hi, Walter is so Right! When I got my Cody when he was a baby I bought a playpen put it next to my bed. Well in the morning I woke up to him snuggled in my arms! So with that said he found his nighttime space with me and he slept with me on my bed ever since. If you don’t want him in your bed, buy a real round faux bed so he can dig with his little paws and nest next to your bed and put your hand down so he knows your there also you can put on dog music piano soft soothing music with the river’s raindrops etc.. that does help. Also tip: maybe feed him alittle snack before bedtime. Once Cody eats and his tummy is full Out to Snoring he goes. That might help. He obviously is a cutie pie to want to be with you all the time. Remember he’s still a baby at this age.

 

[Sylcarr67]

Thank you so much. I have 2 round furry beds. Just the carpet in our bedroom is a problem. I also tried a portable pen in there but he wanted to climb and would not settle down. So I am still searching for an answer. I appreciate the advice. If I could train him to stay in his space for nite nite would be great! When I leave to go to bed and he is not settled he eventually does lay down. I just feel bad leaving him up roaming. Thanks again.

 

[Coster]

Also if your nervous he may fall off. My Cody is 15 and blind and I was worried he fall off my bed. I bought a Regalo Bed Rail . That may help.

 

[Sylcarr67]

Also if your nervous he may fall off. My Cody is 15 and blind and I was worried he fall off my bed. I bought a Regalo Bed Rail . That may help. That is a good idea. I may try that. If he does not wander toward the end of the bed. Lol.. Thank you.

 

[Coster]

FYI- if he goes on the bed , put his puppy beds next to your bed so in case he falls he’ll have some cushion so he doesn’t get hurt. Sorry I didn’t mention that earlier. Also when it’s time to sleep get one of your soft sweaters and kinda wrap him in it not entirely around him but if he’s resting in his bed , place it on top of him and tuck it under his sides just a bit he’ll feel snug like your still holding him. I still do that with Cody sometimes.

 

[Lark]

At the beginning, I put an Iris plastic pen in my bedroom across from my bed. In it was a bed, toys, pad etc. For the first few days, Romeo slept there and got used to his space across from mine. Then I left the pen open... he would return to his bed. Finally, he began to sleep in my bed. I added stairs to the edge of the bed so he could jump up and down freely. He doesn't use his own bed anymore. Somehow, with all my Maltese in the past (who all ended up sleeping in my bed), I never hurt any of them by rolling on them at night. They seem to wake up when there is any movement and readjust.

 

[mimoom]

Oh my goodness, he is SO adorable!!! 💘

It could be a combo of: he isn't tired out and he wants to be touching you. There is a quote "A tired puppy is a happy puppy" (or rather... a tired puppy is a quiet puppy ).
My 5 month old puppy sleeps in her crate right beside my bed (I have hardwood floor, no carpet, and my bed is really high off the ground, asking for disaster if she sleeps with me, and she isn't thoroughly potty and house trained to NOT crate her in). There were a few times where she would scratch at her crate wanting out during her bed time (10pm), and it was because:

• in the beginning of crate training when she wasn't used to it (i just ignore it and soothe her by laying next to her crate with my fingers poking through)
• She wasn't tired out enough (I was too busy to adequately tire her out)
• I let her nap too close to bed time (again b/c I was too busy to notice she was snoozing too close to bed time)

At around 7 or 8PM I make it my mission (motivated by the freedom from her at 10pm) to tire her out: walking, play chase, nose work, or just keep her awake). Then comes 9pm and it's time to wash her face, my face, and get ready for bed so it's quiet time. Then into her crate she goes at around 10pm and I'M FREE!

I don't know if crate training is right for you, the downfall of crate training is that you have to let them out to pee during the night, or if they can hold in their pee overnight, you'd have to wake up pretty early to ensure they aren't exploding by morning (which for me is 5am or 6am depending on when she peed last). I'm not sure if this is what you do already. I had to wake up once in middle of night for a few weeks to let her pee until i realized... my girl can hold in her pee over night (small pups mature faster??)

If you don't like crate training and prefer play pen with potty station, then I'd recommend what others have recommended (iris pen, i have three SETS of these, i love these so much). And if he is a climber, I also got this: iris playpen top cover mesh (it will also make it easier to drape a cover over it). And because of your carpet, buy like a plastic tarp to lay on the ground. And then buy like a flat bed sheet to cover the play pen to create a more "den like" experience. Don't cover the front panel though, need air circulation.

I would put this setup next to your bed, and for the first few days if you can: sleep on the ground right next to it so he can see you (I practically planted my face right next to the opening of crate), and poke your fingers in through the bars so he can sniff and cuddle next to it if he wants to. Then move to your bed, and poke your fingers in for a few days or a week depending on how much he whines. And then eventually you can remove your fingers once he settles in. Then after a few weeks, you can just have him enter his "den" at bed time, and leave him to sleep. I never "place" her in her crate, I lure her in with a treat so she goes in willingly. I am hoping that eventually she'll just go in when I say "go to bed", but at the moment I still have to lure her in. This is the method (not exact) I used to train my pup to sleep in her crate when I first got her (this play pen creation, is just a BIGGER crate). Keep in mind that lights have to be out or dimmed to help them sleep.

I also had this in her crate as well: snuggle puppy. I don't really know if the heart beat works, i never tried it. I also used the heat pad for a few days but stopped using (b/c it was too warm anyways). I might use it in coming winter though. I thoroughly saturated this snuggle puppy with my scent by sleeping with it for a few weeks before she came to me. I think rubbing it on your not too fresh out of shower skin or few days old clothes will work too

Not sure if this method will work for you, but good luck!

 

[Sylcarr67]

Oh thank you so much for the advice! I have tried most of that. Eliot hates to be closed in. He barks continuously! He is great at holding his bladder. He has never had an accident. He just thinks the carpet is a pee pad. I bought a pop up travel pen and take it to my Dad's when we go. He got anxious for a while then settled down in it and went to sleep. I attributed it to not looking like a jail! Lol..He is so smart. But in it he stands up and chews on the zipper to the top. Well I just purchased a pack n play. I am going to put it next to my bed tonight with his furry bed in it or his down pillow and see if he will sleep there. Not sure but we will find out. Prayers please! Thank you again!

 

[Snowball Pie's Mommi]

Hi, Elaine! Welcome to Spoiled Maltese! Eliot is adorable!

Other Spoiled Maltese members have already given you great tips for your precious little one. You said that Eliot thinks the carpet is one big pee pad. Are you cleaning the carpet immediately after Eliot pees on it? If not, then I am guessing he Is marking the carpet ... and, thus, could think of the carpet as one of his territories to pee. Nature’s Miracle, by the way, is a wonderful product to clean up accidents when furbabies miss the mark of using pee pads, etc.

 

[Sylcarr67]

Hi, Thank you! He is a mess! Lol. Yes, he has only peed a few times on it. I cleaned it right after really good. It is new carpet and we put a baby gate at the door because we do not want him to do it anymore! So our room for now is off limits to this little guy! Except if I take him to lay down for a nap with me on the bed. We are still trying new things. Hopefully something works! Thank you again!

 

[elenacoul]

Hi, My name is Elaine and I my baby's name is Eliot. He is almost 6 months old. We would first like to say hello! Second I am a first time dog owner and I am feeling overwhelmed. I have tried everything at night to get Eliot to sleep with no luck. He will not sleep in a kennel or exercise pen. I tried he barked non stop for 8 days. He likes to roam free in 2 rooms of my house. I have puppy safed most everything. We have a baby gate in front of our bedroom because it is carpeted and he thinks it is one big pee pad. So he sleeps on his down pillow in the family room. My problem is when we get ready for bed I can not get him to go nite nite. I either stay until he lays down or have to leave him to wander. He eventually tires out and goes to sleep but I feel bad leaving him up. What is your advice to getting him to understand it is time for bed? Thank you.

Hello and welcome! I assume that it’s the beggining of your journey and the puppy is over excited. As he is getting used to you and the house the puppy will start to become bored more easily and falling asleep more frequently since it will have less stimuli to throughout the day. At least that’s what happened with mine xx

 

[Sylcarr67]

Hello and welcome! I assume that it’s the beggining of your journey and the puppy is over excited. As he is getting used to you and the house the puppy will start to become bored more easily and falling asleep more frequently since it will have less stimuli to throughout the day. At least that’s what happened with mine xx

Thank you!

 

[skythefurball]

Hi Elaine and Eliot!☺ My name is Faye and also a first time furmom to Sky (currently at 13 weeks) I would just like to share what I experienced and what works for us, and hopefully it would help you, too!
Sky used to cry when we put him in his bed time crate so some of the things we tried (that worked) were:
-having a bed time routine that we stick to every night so he will know it’s almost time for sleeping (brushing teeth, washing/wiping his face and feet, brushing his fur)
-putting a bed time “buddy” inside his crate to fill up some of the empty space (a puppy plushie worked wonders!)
-elevating his crate by putting it on top of a low side table so he can easily see us while we are on the bed (he sleeps inside his own crate in our bedroom so he still has his own “space”)
We started with the crate directly beside our bed so we can soothe him when he cries, and then gradually moved it farther, week by week, until he is used to being in his crate on his own, knowing we are in the same room!😊

He used to wake us up in the middle of the night to pee but now on 13 weeks he sleeps through the night (8 straight hours!) and we are so amazed! Hopefully I was able to help by sharing our experience.. I know being a first time fur parent can be overwhelming at times because I am experiencing the same. We can do this!😊

 

[Sylcarr67]

Hi Elaine and Eliot!☺ My name is Faye and also a first time furmom to Sky (currently at 13 weeks) I would just like to share what I experienced and what works for us, and hopefully it would help you, too!
Sky used to cry when we put him in his bed time crate so some of the things we tried (that worked) were:
-having a bed time routine that we stick to every night so he will know it’s almost time for sleeping (brushing teeth, washing/wiping his face and feet, brushing his fur)
-putting a bed time “buddy” inside his crate to fill up some of the empty space (a puppy plushie worked wonders!)
-elevating his crate by putting it on top of a low side table so he can easily see us while we are on the bed (he sleeps inside his own crate in our bedroom so he still has his own “space”)
We started with the crate directly beside our bed so we can soothe him when he cries, and then gradually moved it farther, week by week, until he is used to being in his crate on his own, knowing we are in the same room!😊

He used to wake us up in the middle of the night to pee but now on 13 weeks he sleeps through the night (8 straight hours!) and we are so amazed! Hopefully I was able to help by sharing our experience.. I know being a first time fur parent can be overwhelming at times because I am experiencing the same. We can do this!😊

Awe! Thank you so much! We tried the crate for 8 days straight and he barked the whole time. Started out in the crate beside our bed. But could not leave him there because my husband had to get his sleep for work. I bought him a exercise pen. He still barked. He barked so much his little face was wet. I tried laying beside the crate with my hand near him, that worked until I moved. Right now he sleeps on a down pillow (His favorite) in the family room next to our room. We have to have the baby gate between the rooms because of the carpet in our room. Other wise we would put his bed beside our bed. He does good on his own in there, except getting him to wind down. I want to train him when we say nite nite, to go to his bed. We are working on it now. Thank you for the advice. Yes it has been challenging to say the least. It makes me feel good knowing I am not alone.