puppys won't sleep all night

[tnavarro39]

hello everyone, i need some help on how to get my 6 week old puppys 2 of them to sleep longer at night. they sleep maybe 3-1/2 hrs and then they wake up and whine and they don't want to go back to sleep. we as in my wife and i would take them out before we go to bed and let them go potty and play with our older dog black lab/border collie 1yr10mons old
when they come in they go and lay on there blanket and sleep but then 3 and 1/2 hours later they get up. now some people say put both of them in a crate carrying case, but to me i feel thats cruel and feel like there in jail. others told me that there missing there security of there mother so i have told my wife we need to go see the owner of the mother and take an old towel and rub it all over her body and then bring it home and let them have it and hope they sleep longer. our lab when we got him they gave us a piece of the sheet his siblings were laying on and his mom and we let him sleep with that and i want to say 2 days later he slept alonger and didn't whine untill he was old enough to turn loose in the house and let him sleep whereever he wanted. can anybody tll me what to do cuz its hard when you go to bed late and get up when they whine and then when they get calm you try to go back to sleep but its hard and we both have to get up at 545 a.m. and its hard to do. so please somebody give me some advise to calm these babys down. thank you tommy

[MandyPug]

At 6 weeks old you're really kidding yourself if you expect them to sleep all night. They will need to go outside to pee every 2 hours or so. Crating puppies is not cruel at all, in fact it teaches the puppy that it's crate is it's den and happy calm place. If they go out, but still whine; do not go to them. Whining is their way of getting attention and if you give in then you just lost the battle. Take them out every 2 hours to go potty regardless of whether they're asleep or not, it'll help you keep track of potty whines and attention whines.

[special]

Hello and welcome to petlovers!

Poor little babies, I wonder why they are away from their mother so young?

Puppies that young are infants, and no infant in the world sleeps through the night. You will have to resign yourself to a few more months of interrupted sleep.

I used to think, like you, that crate training was cruel, but I have learned that this is not so.

You of course don't want to keep a dog crated up all the time, and of course the crate has to be big enough for the dog to stand and change position, but all dogs that I know who are crate trained love their crates, it is their safe place.

Anyway those infants NEED the security of something surrounding them, and they need a lot of warmth.

One thing I know of that will comfort motherless puppies or kittens is to put a wind up travel alarm clock wrapped in a warm blankie of some sort into their crate or bed. the ticking is comforting because it sounds a little like their mama's heart beat.

Those puppies need to be in an enclosed protected warm place at night, and yes, will need regular pottying and feeding. I really don't think a puppy so young can go more than a few hours without food.

But what they really need is to be with their mama for a few more weeks.

[tnavarro39]

hello i want to thank the 2 responds and i like the clock and as for the crate i understand i really don't like it but i understand and i am going to try it. also i have been corrected the puppy's are going to be 8 weeks old tomorrow 12/13/08 the second reply mention about feeding them, how many times would you say to feed them. we fed our black lab 2 times aday ever since he was a puppy like them and really didn't have a problem. is it hurting them not to eat all day long or feeding them 2 to 3 times aday is ok. see i am use to having a lab dog my first dog is a golden lab but we gave him to my in-laws and we did same thing fed him 2 times aday. he's 10 yrs old and a big moose lol:) but never the less we all still love him. these puppy's are first one is huskey mixed golden lab, his face shows huskey and his paws but his body shows lab. second puppy lab, huskey and wolf mutt, trust me i don't know what is ment by that but thats what owners vet said and he does look like a wolf he has a crazy color coat and even looks like a wolf the way he stands and just stares down and even climbs already, this puppy is going to be my trouble maker. lol i really do appreciate the help and any advice is well taken thank you tommy

[That_girl]

I would say feed your puppies 3-4 times a day until they are 6-8 months old. Puppies have small stomachs and active personalities. Make sure you do your last feeding early-ish in the night. That will help with over night accidents.

Once your pups are older, 2 times a day is great.

[pebo]

I didn't read through everything properly so please excuse me if I am repeating anything. Puppies are like babies they need to eat often and they only sleep in short bursts and don't sleep through the night yet. I also don't think crating is cruel unless you keep them in there all day long. If it's only for during the night then that is fine. I actually think crating is better for them, because having a whole house to explore might just be too much "stimulation" for little pups anyway. While they are adapting and learning they need security, so routine and consistency is important and a crate where they know their boundaries is great.

Remember...to help make potty training easier, you must take them out 20min after each meal, straight after they wake up and just before they go sleep. Also throughout the day, take them outside, go with them and praise them when they get it right. Try not to reprimand them when they make an accident, it is just an accident and they still need to learn what's right and wrong. If you catch them in the act then you can say "no" sternly and pick them up (they'll stop weeing) and take them where it is okay and praise them when they finish.

Good luck! And enjoy! Would love to see pics of them!

[dlaura]

Hi and welcome to Petlovers. I moved your thread to a more active forum where you may get more answers and help. You've gotten great advice so far and I can think of nothing else to add.

[PeanutsMommy]

Hello Tommy,

I remember these days. I got Peanut when he was barely six weeks early, now I know that was too early. We got Peanut a pack and play with a pet bed in it, food and water and a puppy pad. He didn't sleep at all...I remember just watching the clock constantly every night. I used to think crate training was mean and yeah...looking at their fluffy little faces through the gate, but I wish I would have done it earlier. Peanut now sleeps in the bed with us but crate training is really helping with the little housebreaking challenge. Yes...puppies are a challenge...but hey being as I'm young those first few months put me in mental birth control! Cause I am not ready for crying all night again! Lol. Best of luck to you!

-Tin

[Macawpower58]

Two puppies? lol....you're in for tons of 'fun'!

Everyone has given you good advice. 6 weeks is young and it'll be awhile before they can go all night without potty breaks. If you try feeding the last meal, and giving the last drink slightly earlier, they may do better.

I'd not allow them to play with your other dog during these midnight potty periods, you don't want them to learn its 'play time'. Allow them to do their business, then straight back to bed.

I also think crates are one of the best finds in dog training/house breaking. My boys all love them. Never think of them as a cage, or as punishment. They are more like pups personnal cubby hole

If after they've pottyed, they still wine, ignore them. Pups cry for attention, don't allow them to start training you at this young age.

What kind of pups are they? I'd also love to see photos.

[casino]

i didn't say you just snatched him up, i'm just telling you it causes problems. and it doesn't matter if they are weaned or not. puppies learn from their mother and siblings how to be dogs and how to function, it's not just a food source, ya know? no need to be defensive, you asked for advice. i foster animals that don't have mothers because of some reason or another. i have a 2 week old kitten, and 3, 4 week old rottie puppies at my house right now. a warm water bottle, like a heating pad type thing, just don't use anything electrical, no heating pads. and try some white noise, like a fan or a ticking clock.umm, Im not being cruel to him. Its not like I said he was a pain in the ass or annoying. I just like any other person need sleep. And I am worried that he may be mixing up his days and nights and I worry that he is not getting enough sleep himself.