I need help :(
At night he is very restless. When he sleeps in the bedroom with my hubby and I he is up and down all night, pacing around. He used to be crated at night because he would pace, then he started whining and shaking the metal crate at night and keep us up. So then he was gated in a room with his bed. He used to be fine there but now he's whining and pacing all night again! He's been to the vet and gotten a clean bill of health, and he's been started on anxiety meds to see if that helps. Here's the thing though: last night he was very restless so I came out and slept on the couch. He slept all night and is still comfy on his bed! If he was in the bedroom he would have been up and down all night. I don't know how to remedy the situation but I'd like to sleep with my husband. I love my dog but I'm not going to sleep on the couch every night to please him. Advice? Anybody want another sheepie?  |
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| is his bed NEXT to your side of your bed when you're trying to get him to sleep in your bedroom? We had to do this with our Cocker years ago. He did the same thing but with me. We moved his bed to my side of the bed and I'd pet him until he laid down and the night was quiet. Vance |
| Ah, very good point. Its at the foot of the bed, it doesn't fit next to my side of the bed in our new house. Now that I think of it, he did end up sleeping half under my side of the bed on the hardwood floor last time we tried to keep him in there. |
| Ok- another angle- what if dog cannot sleep in the bedroom because husband says the licking/nails clicking on the hardwood floor while running in a dream keep him up at night? I'm trying to figure out a way that we can all live happily, because right now nobody is happy. |
Dog on the bed, husband on the floor This coming from someone who's dog is in the bed with a hubby who snores like a chainsaw  I know that not everyone agrees with dogs in the bed and dh didn't like the idea at first. Dh now cuddles with Bella in the morning and actually invites her to creep up from the foot of the bed to lay right next to him. Amazing the power of the Sheepie  |
| Yeah I don't do dog in the bed :-p I love my dog, but- he's a dog and in my house people come first. |
Ear plugs for your hubby?????? I am being serious. My husband is a light sleeper, goes to bed earlier than me ~~~ and with 3 dogs bedding down for the night, it can get a little noisy. Pearl, my 16 year old cannot just lay down on one of the tuffets and sleep...She has a 'ritual' in which she digs and circles her bed quite a few times before she settles down.  And Coz is beginning to do the same thing, Heart is the only pup to cuddle by hubby's side of the bed and she out for the count!!!!!!  |
| Your dog is 16??? Oh God help me. |
I've actually tried earplugs and I can still hear him with them in. He never used to snore and it has gotten worse as he has gotten older. He is not overweight and has a good sized nose which I actually made him go see and ENT to make sure it wasn't a structural issue. Unfortunately he got the green light and was told everything was A OK. Maybe I should try a nose plug I have him roll on his side and that lasts only 5 min before the chainsaw starts back up  |
sheepiegail wrote: I've actually tried earplugs and I can still hear him with them in. He never used to snore and it has gotten worse as he has gotten older. He is not overweight and has a good sized nose which I actually made him go see and ENT to make sure it wasn't a structural issue. Unfortunately he got the green light and was told everything was A OK. Maybe I should try a nose plug I have him roll on his side and that lasts only 5 min before the chainsaw starts back up I went thru the same thing, one night I was so frustrated I slugged him but that didn't solve the problem. It kept getting worse and worse so I finally got him to go for a sleep apnea test, he had it bad. Now that he wears the mask it's much better. Don't know if that would help your husband or not. |
| One on my two used to circle and pace at night. She's on Prozac for something different, and one happy side effect is that she did stop the circling and pacing. So maybe your anti-anxiety meds need more time? Here's an option; does your dog know the command Place? Some nights if my two are just too restless; I'll send them to place (their dog beds) and tell them to stay. They get the message that its time for bed and they chill out. YOu can pick the "place for your dog to follow the command to; and maybe in this instance it could be the dog bed, or a throw rug where you want them to settle down for the night? |
...and on a last night, if your Sheepie really wants you to sleep alone, I say there's no reason for you to have to stay on the couch. Make your husband do it.  |
| I'm not going to kick my husband out of bed! I'm looking for a solution that we can all sleep in harmony. It's just very frustrating that the kids finally sleep through most nights and now the dog wakes us up! Hopefully the meds will kick in soon and help him chill out. |
| Is he getting enough day-time physical and mental exercise? How old is your dog? |
| He's 10. He's probably not getting enough exercise lately because it's too cold to take the kids outside. We're downstairs running around now and he was playing chase for a little bit but he keeps laying down. |
| What do you all recommend as a reasonable amount of daily exercise for a dog his age? |
| He should be getting a few short walks a day if he doesn't have a chance to run around. I would also recommend some mental stimulus.... do you ever use and fill Kong's? It sounds like he may have some boredom? |
| I found something similar to Kongs but with a smaller opening. On really cold days (I live in Ottawa Canada, so some days are COLD) I fill that with kibble, but not her regular kibble, it is a kibble I keep for special occasions. Mady keeps herself busy trying to get the kibble to fall out of this squirrel thing. She is usually pooped after she is done. |
| We use good ol fashioned water or soda plastic bottles. We put kibble or treats in different sized water or soda bottles and Dahlia kicks those around while it lets a piece of food out here and there. She loves it and it keeps her busy and entertained. It is very impt to keep your dog's mind busy or they can get bored just like people. |
| I guess I just don't see why he'd be having a problem with boredom now, when I worked 10 hours a day he slept fine at night! Now I'm home all the time. Maybe he's bored with us  |
| I'm thinking it may be an age related problem. Perhaps he is having senior issues, which do include night time restlessness in many dogs. (Humans too - I am an RN and worked night shifts for over 10 years - many old people do NOT sleep well at night )Also he may have some arthritis or similar health issues setting in now. It often makes staying in one position painful, so they need to get up and move frequently, trying to get comfortable. |
| Mady's mum- Do you know what the name is of that thing you have that is sort of like a Kong? I have a Kong but the hole is so big all the food just falls right out when he rolls it over, not very stimulating If you can tell me what that is called maybe I can find one online somewhere. |
| Play mind games with him. That can tire a dog as much as a human. Last night we played 'hide the hot dog'. Jen cut up a couple hot dogs and hid the bits all over the house. I then turned the dogs loose to find the bits and we had a blast watching them run around like crazy for a good twenty minutes finding all the bits. That wore them out pretty good. Vance |
| Ha! Vance! Loved the mental image of my 1 year old racing him to the hotdogs I was thinking I don't think my "kong" thing is an actual kong, I think it is a cheap imitation from walmart, so maybe the real kong's have smaller holes? I wish I could tell by the pics on amazon! |
got sheep wrote: I'm thinking it may be an age related problem. That was also my guess as well, Dawn. Having had a senior pup for a long time, I know what it is like. When my old pup started to get ....well, old.... we started to feed her dinner earlier, like 4pm. She had breakfast and then dinner. (2 smaller meals, instead of 1 big meal) This gave her ample time to get walked, digest, and go to bed. Relestness can also be a sign of pain or discomfort. I know you said he had a clean bill of health, but, maybe there is some arthritis or something building? I also noticed that my senior dog had started to have issues with the dark when she age-progressed. We had to keep nightlights on for her. |
| It is from Premier. My vet carries alot of their toys, but you can get it online (see the link below). They have different products, but it is the squirrel dude that we use. It is strong rubber, like a Kong, and has so far been indestructible. You can trim the little thingies in the hole to make it bigger, depending on what you put in there. I use kibble, as I don't want to over treat Mady (I am trying hard to make sure she never gets overweight). As for the sleeping issue, it really is tough. Sleep is so important. We have 3 dogs now and one of them wants to sleep in our bed (which my husband is in favour of, while I am not). I actually considered, briefly, one of those co-sleeper thingies that attach to your bed, like the kids use! But instead I just used my evil glare on David and said no, no dogs sleeping in the bed! So this morning, what did I find in my bed? Miss Virginia, who cannot jump up on the bed, so that means someone popped her in there some time during the night. Forget dog training techniques, I need husband training techniques! http://www.premier.com/View.aspx?page=d ... escription |
| Thank you so much for the link! I have the opposite husband problem my hubby does not like dogs at all and prefers to pretend that my dog doesn't exist.I'm not sure why he married me when he knew I had the dog for years before we got married! Thank you all for your input and advice. I'm thinking it's a combination of old age restlessness and arthritis. The cold weather could be aggravating the arthritis, plus he's getting a lot less activity during the day. He's such a bum though! He just follows me from room to room and lays down. Even when he was a puppy and I'd try obedience training him he would just lay down. |
| Wondering if there could be an age related thing going on. Sundowners maybe? This is of course something to ask the vet about before trying but what about a low dose of melatonin at night in place of the anti-anxiety med if the anxiety med is because of what's going on at night only? http://www.petplace.com/drug-library/me ... page1.aspx Quote: Melatonin has been used to help induce sleep in pets that are hyperactive at night and to treat elderly pets suffering from an impairment in their biological clock (resulting in so-called "sundowner syndrome.") Socks on the dog (only if he's not a sock eater) or a rug under the dog to prevent the nail clicking. A white noise maker close to hubby to help him get a better night's sleep. |
| Thank you Jaci, I've never heard of sundowner's before. Definitely something to look into. |
| Ok I have rearranged the bedroom so his bed is right next to my side of the bed. And he's going to wear socks with tread on them Wish us luck! |
| Well that lasted all of one hour Then he was up pacing with his socks off! Both my husband and I are about ready to lose our minds. I don't know what else to do. |
| If your dog is 10.... Didn't Val post recently that her 16 year old Pearl had begun pacing quite a lot, and that its possibly related to old age? Sort of a failing memory type thing? you can read through the responses here: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=35666&p=481131&hilit=pearl#p481131 |
| Where do you live? |
| Yeah I'm pretty sure after all the responses that it's a combination of old age and lack of exercise. I live in Ohio. |
| His sleep disturbance is causing the same in you. Ask your vet about the melatonin (or other medication options you might try). Ask whether you could give it just before you go to bed. I've used it and for me anyway it acts quickly. There is a good article from a doctor at Tufts University about a Border Collie that has canine cognitive dysfunction which includes pacing. http://www.thepetdocs.com/articles/marty.html Melatonin was part of his early treatment anyway. Maybe something else in the article will help too. Best wishes... I don't do well with sleep deprivation either. |
| Thank you Jaci. I will look at that article. If he doesn't straighten out at night soon I'm going to ask the vet about melatonin. Last night it took him a while to settle down but once he did he slept all night. We were also out playing in the snow a lot yesterday. I just feel so bad for him. I feel like he was so much happier before we had the kids and he had me all to himself. Yesterday morning I was getting my older son's breakfast ready and my toddler followed him into the other room and sat on him and he snapped at him. I know it's not his fault, I'd snap if someone sat on me too! I just feel so bad that I didn't recognize that he wanted to be alone and I didn't notice that my toddler was pestering him. I'm going to have to be more vigilant about supervising them at all times. |
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