Does Anyones Elses Puppy Rise When The Sun Does?

[aussielover]

Mindy has gone from waking at 7.30 when we first got her, to 6.30 and in the last few weeks 5.30am :D.

I couldn't figure it out at first but now I realise she wakes as soon as it startes to get light.

I really don't want her to persist with this because 5.30am is just way too early for me, I am NOT a morning person and I work/study until quite late at night so currently have been surviving on 5hrs sleep ;)

The trouble once she is up she really needs to have a run around and toilet and by then we are both too awake to go back to sleep. I also find it hard to sleep once I am woken, especially if it is light.

I have tried crating her after her toilet break which is fine, but then I just lie in bed for an hour or so awake, which is pointless.

So ideally I would like her to wake at 6.30 am (about the same time I get up) so we can make it in time for her 6.45am playdate with friends at the park (she has a better social life than me!)

I am considering leaving her downstairs to sleep at night and leaving the back door open as we did for our old dog. As I have said before, the house is open plan, so this would give her access to pretty much all the rooms. She is currently sleeping in my room just on the floor (on my crumpled up clothes ) and can wander around my room which is reasonably large. She doesn't actually wander at night though and stays sleeping till 5.30am. There have been no accidents after about a month of this, which i was intially worried about. But if she has access to a larger area, do you think she will just go where she feels like it? I am also worried she will destroy things during the night, though she hasn't done that in my room (and believe me, there is plenty of potential there-messy room )

The only other thing I can think of would be to put her in the laundary as it has no windows so is dark all the time, but as some of you may recall, that didn't work out when she was a young puppy. Now she is older she may accept it more easily though? This happened with her travel crate, so maybe possible?

Also, she starts falling asleep at around7/8pm in the family room on her (well actually it's our old dog Clover's) trampoline bed and blanky, it is quite hard to get her to go outside to toilet and move upstairs into my room even, so I am guessing she will not like being shoved in the laundary!

What do reckon I should do?

Has anyone ever transitioned their pup/dog from sleeping in a crate/small space to having free run of the house at night?

[Nekhbet]

you need to set her a proper routine. Get her into a covered crate and make sure she has a last late pee.

[aussielover]

Well, the crate is leaving us in a month.

Its almost too small for her anyway. Its really too small to have her in for more than an hour or so

I'm not buying another crate because she will be returning for training in a year.

They are going to give us another dog bed instead.

We did ask what happens when the crate goes back, they said most people have just one room the dog can stay in.

[Nahla + Teddy's Mum]

Were up at 5:30am anyway and usually have to wake the puppies if they still dont hear our alarm!

But on the weekends when they do wake up we take them out to the toilet then bring them back in and if they havent settled back into their beds we pop them outside with their breakfast! We love a sleep in due to our early rises during the week! We dont hear a peep out of them and can usually have our breakfast in peace before they realise were up and want to come back in! We make sure all of their toys that they bring in each night are also back in the backyard so they have plenty to do!

[wuffles]

Ava's always been an early bird. When she was crated, she'd wake up and whinge her butt off at 5:30am. Now that she has free run of the house, she is still up early, but we have more of a chance of sleeping through, as she just wanders around the house rather than whinging. Some weekends I've been annoyed by her wandering at 5:30am, so I've put her into her crate and she's been quiet. I think all dogs are different so you might have to try different things!

[Genabee]

Yes..... Who needs an alarm clock when you have a puppy?

She was worse when I had her in the laundry by herself, she sleeps in a bit later now that she is on the bed with me. She sleeps soundly all night, so I can usually feel her trying to snuggle in closer to me for a little while, so I know she is restless and any minute will be licking my face , which is code for 'Mummy, get up, NOW!'.

I have taken to getting up and letting her out. Put some kibble in her tucker ball and leave her to it while I go back to bed. She usually scratches at my door about an hour later... I then migrate to the lounge, where she will happily snuggle with me and often goes back to sleep as I do.

I'm hoping that when daylight savings kicks in, I will get an extra hour out of her.

[Evolving]

Mine thinks it is time to wake up just before 5 as that is when my alarm is set on my days off she thinks anything after 6 is to late. The othr day she grabbed a squeaky toy to make noise with and when that did not work pulled the doona off me.

[Joan of Arc]

If she is going to be staying with you for the next 12 months, and you think you might go through this process again then I would suggest it would be worth you investing in your own larger crate. They are not the expensive when you consider the peace they can offer you.

Then cover it with a sheet or blanket when she goes to bed last thing and she'll sleep later. Of course if she can learn to sleep outside, now that the weather is warming up perhaps a nice trampoline bed and a kong or morning bone would be ok.

[Nekhbet]

topbuy.com.au crates are cheap as dirt and you can always keep it for another dog if want or sell it off

[Sydoo]

Can you make your entire room darker?

Billie sleeps in later with our 'night shift' curtains drawn than our usual sheer curtains as it stays completely dark in the bedroom. She still wakes up before me most days but she will stay quiet until she hears my alarm...then she sits at the foot of the bed waiting for signs of life before coming up for a cuddle.

[Adza]

Tahli was an early riser few weeks ago, even 4am sometimes and wouldn't settle, then went to 5am then 5.30 (when I get up) now after I take her out in the morning she wants to go back to sleep till 6.30

I didn't really do anything so I hope she doesn't go back to the early times!

I find darkness helps though

[Nushie]

Jager used to be an early riser. As soon as the birds started outside at around 5am he was awake. I used to take him to the toilet, then return him to his crate. If he made a fuss i would grumble at him and give him a firm 'No'. He has always responded well to a good 'No'. Over time it got later and later until he was waking up at my alarm at 6am and then i couldnt hit snooze cause it would wake him up. Now i can snooze it 3 times before I have to get up and even then Jager struggles, he just goes back to sleep as soon as we are upstairs, i have a morning coffee while watching some morning tv and he sleeps on my lap.

On weekends we sleep in until around 8am when he wakes up. I then take him upstairs, give him his breakfast and a stuffed kong and then trundle back to bed. That keeps him entertained until i get up at 10am.

[mackenzie11]

i would love an answer to this question also,

i put a dark blanket over mollies crate, did not work,

i take her out for her last pee at 10pm she would wake at 6.30 so i thought i would take her out at 10.30, idea being take out 1/2 hour later she would wake 1/2 hour later, BUT NOOOOOOO, she woke at 5.30 instead!!!!!!!!!!!

little bugger, she now has last pee between 10 - 10.30 and wakes about 6.00 for a pee, and i just pop her on my bed and she goes back to sleep, with daylights saving kicking in soon hopefully she might learn to sleep in, fingers crossed

[aussielover]

i've resigned myself to getting up early now.

it is actually quite good now as i can get a lot more things done.

And my puppy is a good girl, she could have a lot worse problems than getting up early.

[mackenzie11]

i've resigned myself to getting up early now.

it is actually quite good now as i can get a lot more things done.

And my puppy is a good girl, she could have a lot worse problems than getting up early.

very true,

[Swizzlestick]

My guys have to be dragged out of bed each morning. On the weekend, if I'm not taking them somewhere, they'll still be in our bedroom on the bed at 10am (as am I sometimes too ) Once they're up they are rearing to go, but they do like to sleep in, no matter how light it is.

I do need to keep the curtains shut (although they dont block much light at all) so the dogs cannot see the kangaroos and ducks outside.

[sas]

Puppies are the best alarm clocks - end of story LOL

[ellz]

Are you kidding? My dogs wake the sparrows so they've got plenty of time to start farting!

[W Sibs]

Are you kidding? My dogs wake the sparrows so they've got plenty of time to start farting!

oh dear

Emmy is up with the sun... but she knows not to wake me or Charlie up. She will do her own thing till we wake up (but i'm usually up not long after her).

If the boyfriend is there.. she goes wakes him up. On weekends, she sleeps in with everyone.

Not sure how we trained her to do that it just happened.

[aussielover]

Mindy is up at6.30-7 now due to daylight saving yay!