It's my opinion that you should be crate training your pup at night when you're all in bed. It's best for a puppy to learn that bed time is down time. Dealing with xpen and washables should be an entirely different issue. Bedtime is when you go to sleep you put your pup in a small crate (no longer than the length of her body as she lies down and stretches out). This will ensure that she has no room to eliminate. You may not like this part but...(I feel it's like having a new born human as well), twice during the evening you'll need to put the pup out or to the pee pad (somewhere NOT IN THE SAME ROOM, hopefully near a patio door, garage or even deck). This is called potty training. If you leave the dog in an xpen all day and night it will feel like the same place to her and she'll have the same habits and behaviors. She needs to have a clean bed to sleep in and a cozy one at that. She might even cry for a few nights, but she'll get used to it. As long as she's in the same room as you and can see you she'll settle. I have my lil boy (2 1/2 pounds, 1 years old) in a crate on a chair that has arms that wrap all around it. He's eye level to me when I'm on my bed. He can see me very well and is very happy that he can. Just a suggestion... Our babies just want to be WITH US all the time especially at night time. If they can't be in our arms sleeping next to our warmth then the next best thing is a small hot water bottle with a wool sock around it and a good solid view of YOU. You can also try putting a ticking watching inside a toy (sew it up well) so he can hear "a heart beat". They were never meant to be solitary animals...they're PACKING animals. |