Resetting the internal clock
We've tried playing fast as furious for that hour or so before bedtime, for which we've also shifted around. I've lengthened their walks in an effort to wear her out. We've tried moving her evening meal time around and nothing seem to have any consistent success. I really think that part of the problem was that when Zoey would wake up for whatever reason during that time prior to Caitlyn waking up, she would always stand up and shake her head making her collar and tags on it make a loud racket. This past Saturday I gave them both a bath and intentionally left Zoey's collar off. Yet Caitlyn is still waking up early, whether Zoey stirs or not. Any ideas? Vance |
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Does she actually have to use the bathroom or does she just want to play? If it's the latter, I think you just have to let her cry it out (which is harder for you since it'll keep you up for awhile) until she starts to adjust to what normal waking up time should be. You can slowly increase the time so you don't just get 4 straight hours of whining but I've found tough love to work well. All three of my dogs sleep until we wake up-- anywhere from 6:45 during the week to noon on weekends. They've learned to roll.  |
| That's a good point that i failed to mention. Most of the time, she'll just go outside, go to the edge of the deck and give the yard a once over and then just lay down on the deck. I can't blame her too much as it's getting cooler now and it must feel pretty nice out there at that time. Sometimes she'll go an do her bidness, but often not. The couple times I tried to put her back in after waking up that early, the crying and carrying on went on for almost an hour before I gave up and left her back out. We even tried bringing her into our bed once, but she saw this as a new playtime and no one got any sleep. Vance |
She has you VERY well trained.  In fact now she knows crying for an hour works....  Get tough, or get used to getting up before 4am  |
got sheep wrote: She has you VERY well trained. In fact now she knows crying for an hour works.... Get tough, or get used to getting up before 4am You said it, Dawn! If the whining and crying is that bad, get some earplugs for the short term. She'll give up when she finally realizes it doesn't work any more.  |
| So what I'm hearing here is to let her go and whine it out. While I'm cool with that, Jen is a pushover and may not stand for this whole tough-love thing. My only concern is me learning when she really needs to go out compared to when she just wants to lounge on 'her' swing. I swear I've never seen any animal take to a single piece of furniture like she has with the swing. Vance |
Is this every night, or infrequently? Oscar used to do that every so often (still does from time to time), and it took me a few months to figure out that it was happening during the full moon.  Yes, my little boy is a lunatic.  If it's happening every night, then it is definitely a training issue. She has trained you. Oscar is also an early riser. I made the mistake of feeding him the minute we got up when he was a puppy, so now he stares me awake every morning to get fed. I usually get up at 5 a.m., but he will start staring about 4 a.m. If he sees that I am awake before 5, he will try to get me up, but I wave him off with a special sign, and he just goes and lays down, until I motion to him that I am ready to get out of bed. He NEVER bothers my hubby. EVER.  Bottom line. I have not slept in since we had Quincy Bear, which was over 7 years ago. And Oscar likes to go to bed at 10 p.m. Early to bed, early to rise! Laurie and Oscar, who always gets the worm |
| Wondering if this is a sudden urge that she has to go out super early, could she have a UTI which is making her urinate more? Just a thought...UTI are unfortunately common in our females... |
| Ashley, I don't think it's a UTI as she really only goes off the deck to pee about 6-70% of the times we let her out this early. Mostly, she'll just walk to the edge of the deck, survey the yard and then lay down. Laurie, this is every day in the last several weeks. From what has been posted, this is a training issue. Jen and I have already decided that the tough-love starts TONIGHT! When and she will wake up early, I'm taking out in the yard on her lead, do the old squat and squirt, (she actually knows that command!) and then straight back to the crate with all the praise I can muster at 3:30AM. She's gonna learn that we uprights need our sleep too. Vance |
| Hahahaha you can be suckers like us and just wake up at 4am..... |
| I trained Izzie to the alarm clock while housebreaking her. At this stage if will be different but you could try setting and alarm and you only get up when that goes off. If izzie indicated wanting to get up before the alarm I would just say "not yet.". As a pup She quickly learned that the alarm meant time to get up whether at 2am, 4am or 9am. |
| Follow the tough love suggestions. Another thing to try....if she continues to cry when you put her back into the crate try covering the crate with something lightweight like a table cloth or a sheet. And another thing to try....place a box fan in front of her crate & turn it on low. That trick worked for Pippin when he stayed overnight here. |
ChSheepdogs wrote: Follow the tough love suggestions. Another thing to try....if she continues to cry when you put her back into the crate try covering the crate with something lightweight like a table cloth or a sheet. And another thing to try....place a box fan in front of her crate & turn it on low. That trick worked for Pippin when he stayed overnight here. The fan worked great for Owen, too. As long as the fan was on, he'd sleep. |
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