Nighttime fussy behavior.If the puppy wakes up and vocalizes in the night, the responsible person gets up, removes the puppy from the crate, leashes them, and carries them to the potty area to void. 

For nighttime potty breaks no treats are used, puppy is not praised, spoken too, played with, at all. Puppies is NOT “in trouble” we just want to make sure the puppy learns the ONLY thing that happens if it vocalizes at night is being offered a chance to potty.   So keep these breaks calm and businesslike. 

We do NOT want to teach the puppy to wake us up for playtime, treats, and cuddles.

So, while we are not mad... we really do want the puppy to wake us up if it needs to relieve itself, we also do not want to teach the puppy to wake us up for any reason other than relieving itself.    Of course we also want to put a calm sleepy puppy back to bed, not an excited jazzed up puppy.

So even if the puppy wakes us up ten times, always the same routine.

•Remove puppy from crate.

•Leash the puppy.

•Take it to the potty area.

•Stand in one place and give the puppy two or three minutes to relieve itself.

•Then back inside the crate and lights out.

Repeat this every time the puppy vocalizes at night UNLESS the puppy has a litter box in the crate/playpen. Be patient, the puppy may not potty every time you take it out, and that’s Ok.  The puppy needs to learn these lessons and that learning only happens via repetition.

Tips for a good nights rest:

•DO be sure you put a tired, but exhausted, puppy to bed each night.

•DO give your puppy an interesting chew or pacifier to chew if it needs help self soothing.

•DO consider soothing music, a DAP diffuser, and keeping a predictable nighttime routine to help puppies sleep well.

•DO consider a big stuffy, or “Cuddle Buddy” for the young puppy to snuggle up with in the crate.

•DO remember the younger the puppy you bring home, the more nighttime fussy behavior you can expect, an 8 week old puppy is far less mature than a 10 week old puppy.  That’s to be expected, so have realistic expectations and be patient.

And while it’s normal for puppies to wake often and fuss during transition week try not to despair, most are sleeping through the night nicely by 11 to 12 weeks.

Morning Routine:   First thing in the morning, remove the puppy from it’s crate and take it immediately outside (you may want to carry the puppy) to void.  

Give the puppy a few minutes (5 at the very least) to potty using the regular potty routine NOT the nighttime potty routine. 

 
Then place the puppy into the x pen with a pacifier to give the responsible person time to clean up and get ready for the day.