# Puppy thinks 4am is a fine time to commence barking



## LisaM (Mar 1, 2011)

I want to cry. Charlie is almost 4 months old. His crate is in my bedroom.

He is still fed 3X a day and his last feeding is around 8pm (not sure if that's relevant). I take him out for his "last call" around 10pm. Sometimes he has to go in the night, no big deal. I take him out, he does his thing, and I pop him back in his crate. I don't make it fun for him to get up in the night if he has to go, it's all strictly business, quiet praise when he does his thing, and back to bed.

Between 4 - 5 am he thinks it's time to get up. So he barks. And barks and barks and barks.

I don't yell, never have. I have been ignoring it. I can handle getting up at 5am for him, but no earlier. Ignoring his barking doesn't work, he just continues to bark.

Is there something proactive I can do to stop this? Some mornings, I really do want to cry.

Thanks so much in advance for any advice you can give me.


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## Cracker (May 25, 2009)

If he's waking up at 4-5 am that means he has to pee again or poo. Not necessarily because it's "time for him to get up" but because he is now AWAKE and as soon as awake happens, pee needs to happen. One more trip outside, back in his crate. This is not uncommon, my friends with their lab puppy were getting up at 430 every day for several weeks and then it was 445 and then 5 and then boom 630. 
I would also look carefully at moving his last meal to 6 or 630 pm instead...8 pm is a bit late for solid food and may be setting him up for a need to poo overnight or very early morning. (You dont' mention which you are getting up in the night for).


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## Labmom4 (Feb 1, 2011)

My current puppy had me up at 5am on the dot every morning for months. It gradually got later and now it's about 6:30, which I can live with. I found that if she, or I, woke up around 2 or 3 to go out, she'd sleep a bit later in the morning. 
Arent puppies fun?


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## lisak_87 (Mar 23, 2011)

5AM here too.

I take him out, feed him, re-kennel him, and sleep on the sofa. He gets the bedroom.......

hmmmmmmm


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## LisaM (Mar 1, 2011)

I do take him out to pee/poop, sorry I didn't mean to imply that I don't take him out at night or early morning to potty. I don't mind that at all. Sometimes he gets up at 2am and 4am to go pee/poop. Sometimes he only gets up once in the night, say 4:30am. I take him out and he does both pee and poop at the 4-ish time. This is no problem for me whatsoever.

The problem is that he barks after being put back in the crate at the 4-ish timeframe. I swear once he hears the birds, he wants OUT and FED and will bark bark bark.

Cracker, I will try your idea of feeding him his last meal earlier. Does anyone else have ideas about the barking? Getting up to potty is not an issue for me.

Thanks so much again.


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

If your sure he doesn't have to go, then ignore. If you have to go to a different bedroom or room to continue sleeping then do it, then feed him/ get him out at the normal time. Jo arrived over winter last yr & she had her evening feeding about 6pm or so then she was fed at about sixish in the morning, but not before she went out to use the restroom lol. Now she gets fed at about 9:30pm or so due to the fact that we are out working later due to daylight savings time, she gets up & goes out at first light every morning.


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## Squaw Valley Dogs (Jun 11, 2011)

My 4-month old is fed at about 5:30 AM, 1:30 PM, and 5:30 PM (I work from home). He is pottied A LOT in the evening time. I set an alarm for 1/2way through the night (usually 1:30 ish) and trudge him out. I put him back in and go back to sleep. Try a fan that provides white noise and helps you not hear him and him not hear outside distractions. Hang in there. Puppyhood will pass soon enough and his internal clock will adjust to your schedule.


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## Labmom4 (Feb 1, 2011)

It sounds like he's awake and ready to get up and get on with his day at 4 am. I'm sorry, but he should/will start sleeping later as he gets a bit older. When mine would do this, I'd get up, feed them, have some playtime, and they'd go back to sleep. If I was still tired, I'd crash on the couch for another hour or so, but after awhile, I just got used to getting up so early and went to bed earlier to make up for it.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Brainstorming suggestions, pick some that may work:
1. At 4 - 5 mos, a puppy begins getting in adult teeth and may be teething. A frozen Kong may help when he wakes in the morning. This may pass in about a month.
2. Not enough exercise and too much sleep during the day. Train him more for mental exercise, play with him, walk him for 10 min. more each time. Also, at 10pm walk him for 10 - 15 min. to burn off that last bit of energy.


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## LisaM (Mar 1, 2011)

Thanks all for the suggestions. He is teething, and I do the frozen kong. He loses interest in it quickly though. I hadn't thought about a late exercise, he's very active during the day between training sessions, playing with me, playing with my kids, playing with the other dog. He has always wound down at around 7pm which I have enjoyed  So last night and tonight I did a "last call" play session with both dogs out back. I'll keep that up and see what happens. 

I'm so glad I'm not alone with having a puppy that wants to be up-and-at-em too early LOL!! It's encouraging to hear that others have gone through it and the puppies have grown out of it. My older dog didn't do this at all when she was a pup, so this is all new to me!


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