we're having some issues w/ dublin and nighttime and i thought i would post here, in case anyone reading this has any kind of advice for us.
i posted my issue on several pug message boards (on myspace and other
areas on the net) and this is someone's reply and my reply back about
my current situation w/ the crate training. i would appreciate any
suggestions...
me:
I guess we hadn't seriously considered penning her instead of crating
her, only because our first pug had no problem w/ the crate, so we
just assumed that this was the way to make our pug feel safe (based on
what I've read in the books). However, after reading your posted at
1am, while Dublin was screaming in her cage for the 2nd hour
(attempted the "tough love" theory that many suggested), I realized
that maybe she didn't feel safe in the crate at all. So we switched to
plan B...the kitchen is already closed off by two baby gates and
Dublin eats in there and spends time in there when her and her sister
need a break from the playing, so we pulled her out of her cage, sat
w/ her in the kitchen until she passed out (only about 5 minutes
because she was exhausted from carrying on in the cage) and then went
to bed, leaving a small light on for her. However, as soon as I left
the kitchen, the screaming started and didn't stop for about 30
minutes, until I couldn't handle it anymore. She was so upset, her
eyes were bloodshot and my husband and I were getting no sleep, for
the second night in a row (w/ many nights before that w/ interrupted
sleep every 1-2 hrs). So, after many tears and deliberation, my
husband decided to pull a mattress into the kitchen (his back couldn't
handle sleeping on the floor again w/o it) and curled up w/ the pug.
Now, I know that you are all thinking that we are reinforcing bad
habits of cry=attention, but I don't know what else to do...crying for
2 1/2 hours straight is too much.
I'm planning on penning her when I leave for work today (because I
know that she'll be able to use the litterbox and maybe feel more safe
this way), but I'm nervous that she'll carry on like she did last
night. I have no idea if she settles down when I leave (I assume that
she does because I never noticed the red eyes when coming home from
work like I did last night), but I really hope this works out for the
daytime.
Any suggestion on what to do about nighttime? We can't keep sleeping
in the kitchen w/ her, but I also can't continue to sacrifice sleep
for both Dublin and my husband and I (not to mention Guinness, who
doesn't know what to do when she's carrying on). I thought about
giving in and letting her sleep w/ us, but she's a player and I'm
afraid she won't leave her sister alone in bed before passing out.
I appreciate everyone's suggestions more than you know, so if you have
a thought on this, I'd love to hear it. Thanks - Jennifer
(Please note - the above was written in response to the comment below)
[quote=DantePugs]If Dublin is litter trained, why use the crate? Viral is absolutely correct about expecting too much, no question about that... The crate crying is pretty common stuff and not likely tied to any health issues. She was quiet and calm in the crate initially, because she hadn't developed a sense of security in her new home. All dogs need some time to develop that. So Dublin was using the crate as a den, as they're supposed to. Now however, she's been in the house a few weeks, is feeling good and secure and wants out of the crate. So she'll cry and whine and whatever until you take her out of the crate...And if you keep taking her out of the crate when she cries, you'll negatively train her to do this and she'll do it every time she wants out. You can follow whatever housetraining method seems manageable for you based on your schedule and such, but you need to pick one method and use it...allowing for ample time, and being patient and consistant. Having said that, I'm going back to my first sentence here....if she'll use a litter box, then why not try penning her in a room to sleep, with the litter box and approach this as if you were paper training...ie; moving the litter box closer and closer to the door gradually, until she's ready to make the transition from inside to outside? For my money, if Dublin is already using a litter box, you'd be well served to pick up on that success and work with it, rather than taking a successful step toward housetraining you've already achieved, throwing it out, and complicating matters with a crate. Finally, please consider that at 10 weeks of age, Dublin is spending an awful lot of time crated....More time, around 6 hours during the day, plus time at night, than she should be crated. She's spending hours in the crate, when as a puppy she needs to expend energy..You may be seeing a negative side effect of being over crated in her late night/early morning frenetic behavior....You, your husband and Dublin would probably be better off with Dublin being penned in a room like the kitchen (provided its puppy proofed), with a litter box, an open crate, some toys to expend energy, and of course water.[/quote]
We love our new puppy so much, and just want to do what's right for her. She's completely different than Guinness was, so we're kind of at a loss. Any suggestions regarding this matter that you might have are really really appreciated. Thanks in advance.
