Help! What do you do at bedtime?
 

Hey Everyone! I'm new to this forum but everyone seems to be helpful and responds quickly so I thought I should definitely ask opinions on what to do!

I recently acquired a year old 8lbs yorkiepoo, Zoey. An acquaintance could no longer keep her and I was on the search for a yorkie puppy so it was great timing. She's a little sweetheart!

Anyways, I am not really sure what I should do about "bedtime." She has been sleeping in bed with me although sometimes she gets a second wind and doesn't want to fall asleep. I do have a crate or a mudroom (she stays in while I am at work) I could put her in to sleep, what do you guys think about that?

Also, she is very good about telling me when she needs to go outside. Usually I take her out about 11:30pm then go to sleep and I wake up at 7am to use the bathroom myself so I take her out then. The last couple nights though, she has been waking up around 3-4am and whining having to go to the bathroom. I'm afraid if I put her in a crate she might have accidents although if she whined, I'm a light sleeper so I would wake up and take her out. We do have a nice mudroom that is her little area while I am at work, she could go in there but I would never be able to hear her if she had to go out.. I'd feel bad! Although, I would like her to get back on the routine of "holding it" all night until 7am.

My boyfriend is moving in with us and although he stays over and Zoey sleeps with us, I think its best she has her own place. What I'm asking is what do you guys do? seperate room, crate, doggy bed? Is it normal for her to have to go out in the middle of the night then again in the early AM? Please give me all your advice!

also! about crating her at night... i'm worried she will whine then if i take her out to the bathroom, she will begin to trick me... like whine just to get out of the crate? is this an issue with anyone or should i not worry about it if i choose a crate?

advice please!!

My puppy is not quite 5 months old, but when he is wired at bedtime, I simply put him in his crate beside my bed and he sleeps there for the first half of the night. He gives the smallest whimper and I hear him and bring him into bed with us. He will tolerate sleeping all night in his kennel or in our bed, without having to get up to go potty, even when he gets a bedtime snack. I feel blessed. Even as a human, I was not able to go without getting up in the night to use the bathroom as a child! Everyone is different. I guess I would be asking myself how many times a day my dog was going potty and whether or not it was reasonable to expect them to go all night without getting up. Remember, she is still adjusting to your home, so that might also be an issue. I hope some of the more experienced Yorkie owners will respond. I feel so inadequate, but I do love my Kipper and I love to read about all the other dear little ones.

I definatly would not put her in the same place that she spends most of her time durring the day when you are not home. You only have a few hour a day with her and she may start to feel unwanted or left out. Most pets love to be around their family members as much as possible.

I would suggest training her to be in a cage in your room at night to eliminate accidents and having to get up with her during the night. You can also start taking her food and water up after a certion time each night. That really helps take care of night time trips out doors.

Here is my site with some tips on cage and other training that may be helpful:

Training Tips - Dawn's Yorkies Ohio

I know a lot of people here have their dogs in bed with them but of course there are those who use crates.

Gracie has slept with me since the first night I had her as a puppy. If your dog gets up after it is bed time it might not be getting enough exercise during the day. Just taking her out is not enough to tire her out. Also exercise gets the body functions moving and they will usually go more than once which helps them get through the night better.

It is your decision where you want your dog to sleep. If you keep her in the mud room all day while you are gone it seems a bit much to lock her back up while you are home. Maybe you could get her a dog bed to sleep in that is near you?

If you get up and give her a good walk before you leave in the morning and then another when you get home you will only need to walk her one more time before bed. Does that seem like too much? Well, think about how you would feel in a little mud room all day. You might think you needed to get out and see the world and stretch your legs a bit. You have a young dog and she needs lots of stimulation to keep her happy and healthy.

To clarify, I only work 3 days a week 7am-Noon... so she's not cooped up in there all day. But I like having her close to me so I don't really want her to sleep in the mudroom anyways.

Also, she gets plenty of exercise! I had a lab/boxer prior to Zoey. We went on walks, runs, or bike rides every day. My daily routine had to change a bit with my little girl but we definitely go for a long walk and usually do some swimming every day. It's adorable how much she loves the water! Haha but anyways, she definitely isn't deprived of any sort of stimulation!

If she gets wound up at night (like I said earlier, it's only every once in awhile but it's when I am ready to sleep), it's because of our cats. Zoey loooovess cats! Which is great that they love to play together and run around and get each other hyped up - but it's an inconvenience when it happens at bed time.

Thanks for your advice everybody! With my lab/boxer, he always slept on his dog bed in our living room so it was never really an issue. But that was part of his routine so I guess I just have to figure out what I want to do so we can work on zoey's bedtime routine. Thanks again and if any one has any suggestions of what they do, throw them out! thanks!

Last out is 11pm and first out is 7am. Mine are too tired at night to get up to go potty midnight. I have to wake them up from sound sleeps to go out at 11pm and at 7 am. Cozy and Lucy go back to bed til 10am. Roxy and Buddy are up and running around most of the day. They are not allowed naps or then find trouble very quickly:)

Ours sleep in bed. There's barely any room for us. They are however trained to sleep outside of the bed in a small pet tent.

IMO keep her in the crate. The whining will stop. I dont let dogs sleep in my bed for there safety. They will get flung off the tiny things. But I do keep the crate next to my bed. Good luck with what ever you decide.