how do i stop a 13 month old dog getting everyone up at 4.50 every morning, we have only had him 8 weeks, but i have got a very fed up family , we have tried having him in the room with us, still screams the place down at this time in the morning, have tried placing him with the other dogs, but still does this every morning, this morning i got up and just took him outside and let him go out by himself as soon as he went to the toilet brought him back in put him  back in his crate and went back to bed  should i keep doing this till he gets the message,
his last walk is about 10.30 at night,i don't mind getting up now and again at this time but every day of the week, and then i can't get back to sleep either,
we are starting our camping show scene in the middle of april, and i really do not want him waking the whole of the caravan site up at weekends with this  noise etc, any ideas on how to cure it .
thank you in advance
carolann

When you say he screams - is he dreaming, is he hearing foxes, or asking to be let out or something else? as to work on the problem you really need to know the cause of the noise. Is he a rescue? What is his personality like and what breed or mix is he?

If he is asking to go out, he may not be able to hold his bladder and might need a vet check...:)

Lindsay
x

What time does your central heating go on?  Sometimes the sound of the boiler starting up wakes only the dog

he is a spitz and he is absoultly delitful apaprt from this, it is not the central heating, as it does not come on ,
we have tried him in different parts of the house to no avail,
when i take him out in the morning because i think he needs the toilet , he does not want to go he is just wanting up and to play,
i know he is ok in his crate, as he was trained from a puppy to be crated as he is a breed show dog, i can have him with me at a show and he does not create a noise at all, i can leave his cover off him and he is quite happy to watch the world go bye,
i could understand if he was worried he was by himself, but tried him in our bedroom and he is still, howling,barking,high pitch screaming, at the same time, he has been put in with my other dogs and he is still doing it, he has been put in an area by himself to see if anyone was disturbing him and come that time of the morning he will  kick off,
i have to admit on wednesday morning it was 4.30am and i was so annoyed at him , i just banged like hell on the kitchen door and said NO and walked away, 10 mins later he was at it again , this went on till about 5.30 when my husband came down stairs and threatened to shut him up, we really can't go on like this i have children in the house and it is starting to effect how they get on at school being woken up so early every morning everyone apart from me that is sleep till about 9 or even 10am on saturday and sunday mornings as they are trying to catch up on sleep. i have tried leaving him out of his crate at night he does not make any mess or chew etc, but he still will kick off in the morning, any ideas thanks

Have you tried a DAP plug in?  I've known several dogs which are much more settled with one of these plugged in at night.

Debs

pluged one in three weeks ago nothing, have tried rescue remedy also nothing
carolann

Has anything changed Judgedredd, I thought of you this morning, I set my alarm for 6.30am this morning to get up for the boys, and I must have knocked the alarm hand somehow as it went off at 4.30am instead, well I got up saying to hub, it doesn't feel like 6.30am, let my girl out and realised it wasn't.

It was still dark!! So I don't think that is your boys problem is it?

Nethertheless did you try the crate with a blanket over to see if it made any difference. This is a strange problem so keep us updated with what you are trying and whether a behaviourist has any ideas, and I guess we shall all continue to think of ways to deal with it too.

Thinking of you.

Jenna.

Whoops! This post is out of sync, should be at the bottom.:rolleyes:

Yes, I agree with Lindsay, you need to find the cause.

Some suggestions.......... Is he waking with the day? (I have not been waking up until after 7.30am lately due to school hols, so have not noticed when sunrise is occuring) but this may be a factor, I know in the Summer my girl is up much earlier than in the Winter, so perhaps this may be a factor.

If this is the reason then it is easily solved by putting him in a room with window/blackout blinds which completely block out the day and keep the room in darkness, that way he will have no idea what the time is and his body clock will not know any different.

Maybe, he is being awakened by bird song, perhaps next door gets up and goes to the loo at that time and it wakes him, who knows what else it could be.

I would probably be inclined to get up and let him out the minute he starts, if he then settles back so be it.

He may even create such a comotion as he may have been badly punished for toileting indoors, so makes sure that he wakes you up to go out?  It is hard taking on an older dog and not knowing what makes them tick, I think most of us have phases where we are up to let our dogs out from 4am onwards, it is something that settles with time. :-)

You say his last walk is 10.30pm, is that the last time he is let out too, it may be worth staying up for another 30-60 mins or so to also let him out for a garden wee.

If it isn't the day rising that is waking him up to be honest, there really isn't much to do other than what you have already tried at least I can personally think of nothing else, not much other than get up to let him out. As long as he settles again afterwards it will have to be that way for a while and hope that his behaviour will change with age.

All I can suggest for you, is to try to relax yourself after you have let him out so that you can fall back to sleep again, if you are stressed you will not sleep.  I'm sure he will settle with age and fall into a routine with your family, just give it time.

I do sympathies the only consolation is, at least he is not doing it at 2am.:rolleyes:

Silly me, just re-read your post he isn't just waking up to toilet is he? But to get you up and play.

Ok, the darkened room is still a good idea for this, or a crate with a heavy (lets no light through) sheet, blanket to also make it still dark, he is going to need to be tricked into believing it is earlier than it really is.

Wishing you luck, poor, poor you.

Just popping in for a very quick suggestion, consider trying a reputable trainer or behaviourist - try www.apdt.co.uk or www.apbc.org.uk as they may be able to work out the problem with you...

Lindsay
x

Sunrise is around 7.00 a.m.at this time of year so it probably isn't anything to do with light coming in :)

I can only suggest a thick cover that does not let the light in, that completely encloses the cage. My rescue terrier was an early riser, although she was an hour later at 6.30 & that was bad enough at the weekends. I love my dogs, but a lie in until 8 am is nice when you haven't got to get up. Luckily she grew out of it at about 2 years of age & I did away with the cage. She is still a live wire, but likes a lie in & doesn't even get out of her basket now when we get up! You will need some patience!

Have you tried not crating him at night and having him in the same room as you?
K

Hi Carolann
I read the mag "My Dog" and a similar problem was in. This was the reply from the dog trainer:

The problem is your dog has worked out when he makes a noise someone will respond. Go downstairs when he starts crying but do not talk, look at or touch him. Leave him in his crate.This will stop the noise but he will not be rewarded by your attention. Make a cup of tea and look at a paper etc but don't forget to totally ignore your dog. Unfortunately it may take up to three nights.

PS  If it doesn't work please don't shoot the messenger ie me!!!!!
Deb

a couple of months ago my dog started barking most nights at 3.45, really annoying, i am pretty sure it was a fox on the prowl but are they that acurate!!! anyway after assuming he wanted a wee i would let him out, he would have a bark, squeeze a wee out for my benefit then go back to sleep.  after about i week i got suspicious and knowing he has a cast iron bladder i told him to shut up and ignored him and it stopped after a few nights of refusing to let him out.
not saying thats anyhelp particularly, just sympathising!

Can't help but wonder if his previous family had someone who perhaps worked shifts, or for some reason, their normal behaviour was to get up at this time? He may well be used to this, and expects to be let out and a fuss at this time. Hard as it is, this could simply be a habit that needs to be broken. Perhaps you could try ignoring the noise, if there is no attention he may give up, or doing it in time, as in setting the alarm before he kicks off, and going down and letting him out, no fuss or attention, then gradually stretching the time until it becomes a more acceptable time for you. Just a thought, because years ago when I worked with horses my pup was used to me getting up at 5.30am, so even on my day off he expected this. He was about 6 or 7 when I changed career, yet still woke me at this time until he became used to my new hours.

my 8 month old pup wakes approx 7 am every morning without fail, i have to get up come down stairs and let him out of his crate. before i have even left the living room he is upstairs on my bed trying to get under the quilt, we then have a fight to see who gets the warm spot where i was laying until he got me up.
        Although this is quite funny it is slighty annoying as like some of you have said it would be nice to have a slight lay in ALONE.
I have tried ignoring him whining and yapping for up to half an hour but he does not settle until i let him out. Having said this we do get to lay in once we get back into bed together, and he doesnt go out for a wee until he feels like it as he has a dog flap.

It sounds like you need a stairgate to keep him downstairs. :)

Red Deb has the right idea, says me who's up with a sick puppy at 4.30 am this morning.  Even though my boy is under the weather I simply let him out make sure he is clean and comfortable then get on with something else and ignore him.  As he is in a room with another pup and two juveniles I cant allow any early wakening to escalate and touch wood the others haven't made a peep, although I had to let them out as well.  They are all asleep again, except poorly pup, who is lying in his basket giving himself a good wash and no one is trying to get my attention.

It is something I do naturally now with very early risers, may just be that I am getting thick skinned or just tired, but I just get on with what ever needs doing and pay them no attention whatever.  It does work although if a routine of early waking is established it may take a week or more to break.

Hope your cure comes sooner rather than later.

When our dog was a pup and woke us up early I used to take him out for a wee without saying a word to him apart from praising him when he performed. I then brought him back in and put him in his bed still without saying anything and go back to bed.

Nowadays I am up early so feed him and let him out and when I go off to work he goes back to bed and is quiet until someone else gets up so he seems to have learnt the routine quite well.

Hope you have success with your dog soon :)

UPDATE, i have been going downstairs and letting him out in the garden and then not looking at him, talking anything at all, he has been going out in the garden by himself in the morning , and when he comes back in i pop him straight back into his cage, pull the cover down and go  and let the others out and have a cuppa and just lounge on the sofa till about 7pm then get him out of his cage, into the garden by himself and then he can come in and play with the pack, i have done this since i last came on the board and today and only today he kicked off at 5.45am, i know it is not much but i am hoping it was not just a fluke and he will be back to his normal time tomorrow,
carolann

i know it is not much

Oh but it is :) It's the beginning of better times :) And even if today he was making a fuss at 5.45am this is later than it has been so again an improvement :)

Persevere and remain consistant and I am sure he will get there. :)

Hi,
Had the same problem with our girl, started
setting alarm earlier than she woke, so we
went in an got her up instead of letting
her wake us. Didnt take many mornings and
now she will sleep till whatever time.
  Good luck!

i woke him up this morning i woke up at 6.15 and got him out of his cage garden without the others and then put him back in it , he is still there now not a squeak from him, think he was shocked when i walked in as he looked drowsy,
carolann

Might be worth leaving a radio or something on.  I'm up at 5 each morning for work and needless to say my pup wakes up by 5.30 at weekends. 

You would be surprised by the goings on at that time of the morning.  could be that the dog is hearing a car going past.