# Sleepless nights...



## Rosavizsla (Dec 3, 2015)

Hello, i'm turning to this forum for some much needed help and advice.

We have a 15 week old Hungarian Vizsla puppy which we have had now for 1 month. 
Every book and website we read before getting our lovely Rosa told us that Vizslas cry and you just have to let them cry.

The problem is we live in a Victorian terrace and we have neighbors either side with rather thin walls. The first week Rosa would go to sleep around 10pm and wouldn't wake up till 6am which was fine as we both get up for about 6:45 for work. However, now every night is different. I see at least every 2 hours and we let her cry for about 10 minutes before going down stairs to her.

My routine - i dont turn the lights on, i dont talk to Rosa. I just let her out of the crate, out the back door for a wee and then back to her crate. Sometimes we have a little cuddle on the sofa to settle her down again but shes always good at going back in. Its just the 1hour or 2 hours later when shes crying again.
My husband however will go down and repeat most steps but she wont settle when he leaves her and then he has to go back and sleep with her on the sofa.

Last night was the final straw of not waking up to my husband, to find him on the sofa again with her and where he went at 3am. Rosa slept right through before I woke them both up at 7am and she didn't wake up once for a wee or to cry. She just wants company and I knew that Vizslas were that type of dog before we bought her, but 1 month of distributed sleep is taking its toll on our work and our marriage.

Please, what do you suggest, all feedback, ideas, scenarios are welcome. Do we carry on as we are and hope that its just the 'puppy' stage and she will grow out of it or do we need to do something drastic. 
I suggested to my husband that we let our neighbors know for 2 nights in a row we are going to let Rosa cry through and hope that will nip it in the bud going forward but its going to be 2 very rough, long nights and I can feel the tension already as my husband thinks its a stupid idea. Please help...


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## Bob Engelhardt (Feb 14, 2012)

Bring her crate into your room.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

I feel for you, because my husband always thought it was a stupid idea too.
But that's because he wanted the pup in bed snuggling with him.
We came to a agreement. After the pup was crate trained, it could then sometimes sleep in bed with us.

These pups just sleep sounder, if they have someone to sleep with.
I think that's why so many of us give into letting them sleep in the bed.
We can get up multiple times a night, or sleep through with the puppy.

I believe a crate trained dog is well worth the 2 am howling most experience.
Move the crate to your bedroom, and don't let your husband share the in the after bedtime potty trips. Its clear Rosa has him wrapped around her paw, and she knows it.


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## MCD (May 4, 2013)

I can't say very much because one night I got sick and my husband let her sleep in the bed with us. NOW THERE IS NO GOING BACK! :  I wish I had stood my ground and stuck to the crate because now we don't get a good nights sleep or any privacy with her in between us......


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## gingerling (Jun 20, 2015)

I'm always of two minds with this: Part of me says put the crate in the bedroom with you, and part of me says let her in the bed. Typically, the advice I offer in these situations...and they come up a lot....is to split the difference for a while and put the crate in your bedroom and see what happens.

Look at it from your baby's perspective: Dogs are naturally pack animals, they are wired to be together. Her experiences up to 8 weeks have been with other puppies and mom, she's never been alone and she's always been in familiar surroundings.

Then you come along.

You take her away from the comforts and familairites of her home and her litter mates and her mom, and take her to a new place with new smells and new sights and new people. Then, you put her in a dark room in a small enclosed space she's never experienced before and leave her all alone. What would you do?

See?

Of course she's frightened and upset and can't settle. So to help her with all those adjustments, you make some accommodations based on some understanding of things from her perspective. Take the crate into your bedroom so at least she feels some sense of closeness with the rest of the pack. And use the crate through out the day for fun stuff like feeding and special crate toys so you're working with the other instinct they have to like a special, safe, cave like dwelling. And, if she cries, at least it's during the day when you're less likely to cause major problems with the neighbors. Tolerating a bit of stress is a good thing for them to learn now, she needs to learn to self soothe anyways. But, the stress should be in small doses. Her being in another part of the house is, from her perspective, overwhelming and catastrophic.

The other part of me says let her into bed.

It's not giving in to a baby when you acknowledge their needs..or better yet, just anticipate them. There are other opportunities to demonstrate strength and resolve that also don't involve sleeplessness, problems with the neighbors, and ultimately, problems with bonding to the puppy. Aside from the fact that sleeping with a Vizsla puppy is simply delicious...all of you will sleep better and it's a great bonding experience, especially for her. You work with whatever negatives...I've never had them, btw...as you would any other issues you need to modify with training.

Start with moving the crate into the bed room and also re evaluate how you're using the crate during the other times of the day and keep us posted.


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

Rosavizsla said:


> I suggested to my husband that we let our neighbors know for 2 nights in a row we are going to let Rosa cry through and hope that will nip it in the bud going forward but its going to be 2 very rough, long nights and I can feel the tension already as my husband thinks its a stupid idea.


That's exactly what I did. Only my husband was working nights so the lucky duck didn't have to listen to any of it! And it was more like a week or so of howling... but that was with a much younger pup.



TexasRed said:


> I feel for you, because my husband always thought it was a stupid idea too.
> But that's because he wanted the pup in bed snuggling with him.
> 
> I believe a crate trained dog is well worth the 2 am howling most experience.


I completely agree. I'd let your neighbors know the situation and bring them a nice bottle of wine or a potted plant and apologize in advance.



Gingerling said:


> Tolerating a bit of stress is a good thing for them to learn now, she needs to learn to self soothe anyways.


So true!

Like others said, try moving her crate into your bedroom. You can always gradually move it back out once she's in a better routine. Otherwise, be prepared to sacrifice some sleep for a few days.


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## nushearman (Dec 28, 2015)

I hope you're getting on okay, We had the same with our 8 week old but I'd get up and let him out for a wee and then settle him down again.... He started doing it again recently and we've had problems but that was sorted out by bringing his fabric travel crate into the house and making it really snuggly for him... he's always slept with a hot water bottle wrapped in one of our jumpers so he's not completely alone and that really seems to have helped. 

When we first had him he did sleep in his bed in our room for a couple of nights but it was just impossible... I've found that ours doesn't like metal crates but loves his fabric one... He definitely gets up with the sun though.


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