night time barking for attention

Question
Hi Marjorie,

I've read almost all of your past questions/answers and have found them very useful in raising Rawley, our 3-month old male bully - thanks for that! overall, our little guy is phenomenal - but we do have one concern that we hope you can help with.

We have been crate training since we got him about a month ago. He is OK in the crate in the daytime and when put to bed at night, but he'll wake up at about 3AM to potty, which is perfectly normal of course or a 3-month old. However, when put back in the crate at this time, he starts barking/crying and won't stop. If we take him out of the crate at this point (which we try not to unless absolutely necessary - we have nearby neighbors in apartments), all he wants to do is snuggle up on my lap and sleep there instead of in the crate. This is endearing and really cute, but obviously not something that we can continue with forever. Putting a towel or my t-shirt in the crate helps, i guess because it is softer than the bottom of the crate. however, when a towel or shirt is in there, he almost always pees on it. Normally he is not peeing in his crate when we don't give him a shirt or towel.

Should we give him a shirt or towel and hope that he will eventually learn not to pee on it? Should we just let him bark and cry until he wears himself out? Any other suggestions would be great.

Thanks for your help!

Mike

Answer
Well, he's well on his way to training you! Not to worry though, this is an easy fix.

You have to options. The first, which is always my choice, is let him cry it out and get over it. I don't have neighbors to worry about though and this could take a few nights to work through.

Secondarily, you might consider putting his crate next to your bed. So when he starts up you can comfort him without taking him out of his crate. Once he starts sleeping through the night, you can work on moving him out of your room.

As for the towel thing, I've never had a Bulldog that wouldn't pee on anything left in the crate, puppy or adult. I don't know what it is and I can't explain it. Mine all sleep in bare crates....poor things.

Whatever you decide to do, DO NOT take him out of the crate and cuddle him. This is exactly what he wants and he's already figured out how to get it.

Best of luck.