# Stress about sleeping arrangements for brand new 8-week puppy



## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

Hi all! This is my very first post. I'm so excited to be picking up my first golden (Trudy) in almost 1 week. I've been diligently researching everything from food to positive reinforcement training methods to potty training, etc. One thing that's stressing me out a bit, though, is thinking about sleeping arrangements for our pup.

Many things I've read have suggested that it's best to have a new pup in the bedroom with you to decrease her initial stress and for potty training purposes. However, we plan to crate train her in our kitchen (first floor), which is where we spend a lot of time, and is right near the back door to take her out. Our bedroom is on the second floor and just isn't big enough for a crate. We don't really spend a lot of time in there (with the exception of sleeping at night). 

The way I see it, there are two options:
1) get a small, temporary crate that will fit her for the next month or so, then get her used to sleeping in the kitchen.
2) start her out in the kitchen.

Either way, based on things I've read, we plan to ease into the sleep and potty training by 1) having some white noise (I need it to sleep anyways, and we have a speaker in both rooms), 2) taking her out every two hours (and gradually increasing time between outs), 3) providing her with a "Snuggle Puppy" in her crate that we will rub on her mom and litter mates for scent as well as a nylabone for chewing.

So, down to the question: if I'm doing all of these things in both rooms, how necessary do you think it is to have Trudy in our bedroom at night? Has anyone had success with sleep and potty training when a new pup isn't in your bedroom? 

Also, I'm including the most recent pic I have of her (at 6 weeks). I'm pretty sure she's the cutest thing ever.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

There are plenty of people who have done fine potty training a puppy who slept in a crate in the kitchen at night and hopefully some will see this thread and chime in. I also spend all my time in the kitchen area and I baby gate my kitchen, take up the throw rugs and voila - this is where we live for the first couple months until the puppy is reliably potty trained. 

However, I let my dogs sleep in my room and even as adults they sleep in crates in my bedroom. That way if they're sick and need out in the middle of the night I know it and don't ever wake up to messes in the livingroom or on my bedroom carpet) If your puppy is 8 weeks old he should be able to go several hours overnight no problem. You'll need to be sure he's finished with dinner on the early side (a good 5 hours before you go to bed) and take up the water a good 3 hours before you go to bed. It works well if you and your spouse can double team (one person go to bed super early and take the 5 a.m. shift and the other person stay up till closer till midnight and sleep in ) That way you know the puppy should be just fine for less than 6 hours and you can ignore his crying. The key with this as any part of raising a dog or children is consistency. Do not cave in. And be prepared, he will cry for a couple nights when left alone in the kitchen. Purchase some earplugs and a noisemachine. He is accustomed to the warmth and security of sleeping with his littermates and transitioning cold turkey to alone in the kitchen will take a little tough love on your part. It is possible if you have no alternatives. 

I am a big believer in sucking it up and having multiple crates. If you don't spend much time in your bedroom anyway, get a 36" crate off craig's list and let him sleep in your room.


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## B and G Mom (Oct 29, 2014)

Yes, we have successfully crate/potty trained a puppy that didn't sleep in our room. 

When we got our first golden Bailey (now at the bridge) we had an 11 year old GSD mix (Fred) who physically could no longer take the stairs to our bedroom. Bailey preferred to be able to be near Fred at night than with us. He wasn't the type of puppy who could ever be an only dog. We rescued him at 14 weeks and I think he preferred sleeping near other dogs than us because of that reason. 

So we kept him crated in the kitchen near Fred's bed with our bedroom on the second floor. It worked well and the key was I would set an alarm for the middle of the night and take him out for potty on a leash (we have a fenced back yard, but the purpose of this trip was potty), have a potty party outside, then right back in the crate. He would sometimes cry and whine and want to play, but as mentioned, you must stand firm on potty and "back to bed". We use "back to bed" like a command - we use it for all our dogs when something gets everyone up in the middle of the night. My other suggestion in addition to the white noise and the snuggle puppy, is something with your scent on it and a night light. You don't want to plunge the pup into total darkness - especially if they aren't used to it, but you want to signal that it's "nite nite" time. 

Congratulations and good luck!!! She's adorable - all these puppies I'm getting puppy fever!


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## Wicky (Aug 27, 2015)

Yes I did this. I don't think one way or the other is wrong but I think it depends on where you want your puppy to sleep when it's fully grown. My Puppy was crated in kitchen on first floor and my bedroom is on second floor. I left the door to kitchen and bedroom open so I could hear her. I was lucky, she woke once at about 2am the first night but after that slept through to 5 or 6 am. If she got unsettled in crate at bedtime I stood against the crate with my back to her. As she quitened I gradually stepped away. They are all different but Sona was not too difficult. I also fed her in the crate so it was a happy place etc. Good luck you will have lots of fun


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## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

Something with our scent on it in the crate, too, is a really great idea. Thank you!


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## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

Thanks for all the advice so far! My bedroom is really quite small - there may be barely 2.5 feet between my bed and he wall on both sides, and there is basically just a walking path at the foot between bed and dresser. I'm open to Trudy sleeping in there once she's trained, but I think a full crate would be way too much to try to get around. 

Things I've read have said to try to have the pup near you at night for at least the first few nights, whether a small crate next to the bed (a fine, very short term solution) or sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor near the dog's more permanent location. I may try to stay close for the first few nights, then really be sure to tire her out before her first night more separate from us. So many things to think about. I hope I can do everything right!


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## FosterGolden (Mar 10, 2014)

When puppies could not sleep in my room, I slept on the sofa while they were in a crate next to me. I have also just had the puppy sleep just outside of the room where he can still see me if there are space issues. 

While sleeping in the kitchen is not impossible, there are plenty of puppies who will cry all night and the solution has been to let them sleep in a bedroom. It depends on the pup. It's also a lot of alone time for a little one and I'd personally feel terrible about it.


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

We didn't crate. But we did gate off a small area in the kitchen. Chloe was a good pup. She never woke up until four or five. Then after a few days she slept until around 6. She never wined. Matter of fact about 9 o'clock she would go to the kitchen and put herself to bed. What helped is having a blanket we took to the breeders. We rubbed it in her mom and siblings.

Af about four months she slept upstairs on the bed. But my mom says she would of done things a little different. She would of put her in their bathroom with a gate instead of in the kitchen. Because now she won't sleep on the floor and my mom gets no sleep. Lol. Do you have a small bathroom in your room or a close bathroom nearbye. You can always put a gate up and it could sleep in there. That way your pup is closer.


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

Sarah J said:


> Something with our scent on it in the crate, too, is a really great idea. Thank you!


Take a small blanket to the breeders when you pick your puppy up. Rub it on the mother and siblings. Chloe slept with that blanket for the longest time.


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## wellarmedglockgirl (Oct 6, 2016)

Get a toy from the breeder with mom and siblings scent on it. It really helps. Crate in your room next to you is the best. I would not make the pup sleep alone. He is already feeling lonely when taken from his "pack".


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## WI12345 (Dec 31, 2016)

We just picked up our puppy last Friday at a couple of days over 8 weeks old. He's come a long way in less than a week. The first night we put the crate in our bedroom and left a light on so he could see us. He hated it. Barked, cried, scratched, etc. My husband laid on the floor next to the crate and he fell asleep and slept for a couple of hours. This went on for a few nights. He hated going into the crate, and had to be coaxed to stay there. We had a blanket in there that was rubbed on his Mom, and I had slept with it for 2 weeks to have my scent on it. It really didn't help much. The other night we decided to turn off the light and keep the room dark, and turn on a loud fan. It worked like a charm! He slept peacefully for 7 hours. Last night we put him in and he didn't make a sound ... even at the beginning ... and slept for almost 8 hours!!!


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## Good as Gold (Nov 30, 2016)

Thought I'd share on this topic as I've just been through it, and had stressed about it before bringing the puppy home! My pup is now 4 months old. When he came home and through 3.5 months, he slept at night in a soft - sided crate next to our bed. I bought that crate just for his purpose (and hope to use it down the road for travel). The wire crate is in the kitchen for all other times. He did well in this soft crate in the bedroom from 8 weeks (when we got him) up through the third month, when he figured out how to lean on it and topple it over. But during those months, it was particularly easy to hear him right away when he woke up needing a potty break, and he seemed calm with us nearby. Sometimes I played Bradley Joseph's Music for Dogs albums on my iphone while we all slept.... he really did listen to this and calm down quickly at bedtime. (Amazon has two albums for free if you are a prime member). Once the soft crate became unsafe for him (since he could easily topple it), I put him in the kitchen in the wire crate. Since he was sleeping through the night by then, there weren't any wakings during the night, and he settles right down every night at bedtime without any issues. I usually wake up before him and get my shower and dressed for the day, so it is nice having him in the kitchen now so that I can get these things done (nearly impossible when he was sleeping upstairs). So I highly recommend the initial sleeping in the bedroom with a transition to the kitchen once your pup sleeps through the night. The change I would make next time is to skip the soft sided crate and just get a small wire one that would work until he was 4 months or so.


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## WI12345 (Dec 31, 2016)

Diana Mathews Adams said:


> Thought I'd share on this topic as I've just been through it, and had stressed about it before bringing the puppy home! My pup is now 4 months old. When he came home and through 3.5 months, he slept at night in a soft - sided crate next to our bed. I bought that crate just for his purpose (and hope to use it down the road for travel). The wire crate is in the kitchen for all other times. He did well in this soft crate in the bedroom from 8 weeks (when we got him) up through the third month, when he figured out how to lean on it and topple it over. But during those months, it was particularly easy to hear him right away when he woke up needing a potty break, and he seemed calm with us nearby. Sometimes I played Bradley Joseph's Music for Dogs albums on my iphone while we all slept.... he really did listen to this and calm down quickly at bedtime. (Amazon has two albums for free if you are a prime member). Once the soft crate became unsafe for him (since he could easily topple it), I put him in the kitchen in the wire crate. Since he was sleeping through the night by then, there weren't any wakings during the night, and he settles right down every night at bedtime without any issues. I usually wake up before him and get my shower and dressed for the day, so it is nice having him in the kitchen now so that I can get these things done (nearly impossible when he was sleeping upstairs). So I highly recommend the initial sleeping in the bedroom with a transition to the kitchen once your pup sleeps through the night. The change I would make next time is to skip the soft sided crate and just get a small wire one that would work until he was 4 months or so.


We also have 2 crates for our 9 week old. They are both hard plastic kennels. The larger one is in the bedroom with a divider in it. That one is 40 inches. I bought it and then realized it won't fit in our car! We have a 36" in the kitchen and he rarely goes in there unless we are leaving him alone in the house. Yesterday I slid it into the den and turned on cartoons. He stayed in there while I left the house for a couple of hours and seemed to be happy. That's the crate we will use for traveling until he's old enough to just stay in the back of the car on his own.

We have always had our dogs sleep in the bedroom with us as adults. Our last Golden would sleep on the floor next to me.


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## 153330 (Dec 29, 2016)

Scott was in a crate in the dining room from the first night, but we took it in turns to sleep on a camp bed within reach (our kids were 13 and 17 though which helped a lot). If he cried we put our fingers through the bars and said 'its OK pup'. 
We had an alarm for every 2-3 hours for the first week, every 3-4 hours the second week. Toilet trips were quick, no-nonsense affairs. Nobody wanted to play at 4am! By the 3rd week he was mostly toilet trained so we moved back to our own beds, taking it in turns to check on him about 1am for another week. After that he was happy to sleep in his crate from about 10pm to about 6am without a problem.
One absolutley genius thing his breeder did, was have their elderly mother crochet a big wool blanket made of squares. This was in the whelping box the entire time the puppies were with their mum. As each puppy went to its new home, the breeders unpicked a square of blanket, and sent it with the puppy. Worked like a charm to calm Scott when he was little, although he did eventually decide it was fun to chew. We still have the remainer of it - what a simple, smart idea!
Scott is now nearly 2 and had free rein of the house. He normally sleeps on the upstairs landing outside the bedrooms (guarding the family?) although he does still sometimes choose to sleep in his bed, where his crate used to be, in the dining room.


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## WI12345 (Dec 31, 2016)

HollyB said:


> Scott was in a crate in the dining room from the first night, but we took it in turns to sleep on a camp bed within reach (our kids were 13 and 17 though which helped a lot). If he cried we put our fingers through the bars and said 'its OK pup'.
> We had an alarm for every 2-3 hours for the first week, every 3-4 hours the second week. Toilet trips were quick, no-nonsense affairs. Nobody wanted to play at 4am! By the 3rd week he was mostly toilet trained so we moved back to our own beds, taking it in turns to check on him about 1am for another week. After that he was happy to sleep in his crate from about 10pm to about 6am without a problem.
> One absolutley genius thing his breeder did, was have their elderly mother crochet a big wool blanket made of squares. This was in the whelping box the entire time the puppies were with their mum. As each puppy went to its new home, the breeders unpicked a square of blanket, and sent it with the puppy. Worked like a charm to calm Scott when he was little, although he did eventually decide it was fun to chew. We still have the remainer of it - what a simple, smart idea!
> Scott is now nearly 2 and had free rein of the house. He normally sleeps on the upstairs landing outside the bedrooms (guarding the family?) although he does still sometimes choose to sleep in his bed, where his crate used to be, in the dining room.


I enjoyed hearing about how your dog sleeps outside of all the bedrooms. Typical Golden! With our last Golden, my husband always said he had a perfect understanding of geometry. Depending on how many people were in the house (usually just the two of us but sometimes overnight guests), he always managed to find a spot where he was directly in between all of us.


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## Mayabear (Aug 26, 2015)

I don't think there is a right or wrong way to do it. I would expect an 8 week old puppy to be very disoriented in a new home craving constant contact and wanting to have eyes on her new family. I would also expect at least one, maybe two nighttime potty outings the first week/10 days. If you are diligent about setting an alarm to wake you up in the middle of the night, then that's fine. 

We chose to keep the crate in our room. We moved some furniture around to make it happen. I would sit outside the crate and Maya would fall asleep in my lap and I would gently move her to the crate. In the first week she woke us up whining to go outside to potty. Quick trip and then back in the crate, no playing, no snuggling. Within 10 days at the most she was sleeping through the night in her crate. 

If the dog is not within your sight, then choose what you leave in the crate carefully. Maybe I am the more paranoid kind, but I would be concerned about cloth/fabric if your puppy starts to chew them, or anything else that could be a choking hazard. Once you have a few days with your pup then you will start to understand her personality and determine what can be safely left in the crate.

Good luck - it will be exciting and mad, all at the same time!


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## ceegee (Mar 26, 2015)

My little guy slept in his Sherpa travel bag for the first couple of weeks, next to my bed. We transitioned him to a crate only when he started to grow out of the bag. The bag is small and would easily fit into any available space.


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## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

A lot depends on the pup itself. My first Golden pup loved her crate. It was in my living room, and it never even came up that she would need to be in my room. She was very independent. Never cried in the crate. Slept through the night. I was on the same floor as her, just down the hall, so I could hear her if she needed to go out.

My second pup hated the crate. Screamed and cried and howled. She hated to be separated from me. So, the first two nights, I slept in the living room with her, and then I bought a second crate. Moved one into my room, and had a day crate in the living room for when I was at work. It was way better. She had some tummy issues in the beginning, too, and we were going out a LOT all night long. So all in all, having her in my room was way better.


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## Jasperthegoldenboy (Mar 23, 2017)

We got our pup about 6 weeks ago now. He slept in a box next to our bed for the first week or so and then he started eating the box so we took it away. It was good for taking him out in the night because I would hear him as soon as he got up. We had no night time accidents. After that week in the box he was used to sleeping in our room and we felt bad making him leave so now he still sleeps in our room. He sleeps on his bed on the floor at the foot of our bed. I like it because then we can hear exactly when he gets up in the morning. My advice though, if you don't want your pup getting used to sleeping in your room, would be to have him sleep in the crate right away. You can stay with him on the floor for the first couple nights to make him comfortable (what my family did with previous pups) and then leave once he is used to it. Obviously not so comfortable on the floor but it will help your pup become better adjusted and not be afraid/sad. Jasper likes his crate in the day time for playing and napping. We also crate him when we are not home but he just doesn't want to be in there at night when we go to bed.


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## puddles everywhere (May 13, 2016)

I'm going to be the odd ball here.... my pup slept in my bed. Like someone said in an earlier post, put them where you want them to sleep when they grow up. I wanted my girl to sleep on my bed when she grew up. She came with a UTI and this was actually easier for me, anytime she un-snuggled it woke me up and we were out the door!

When she got older we did use a crate when I traveled with no issues. As far as securing when you could not watch them I gated her in a safe room with toys, chew bones & comfy bed. Everyone has to do what works for them.


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## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

WI12345 said:


> \The first night we put the crate in our bedroom and left a light on so he could see us. He hated it. Barked, cried, scratched, etc.


Great point here - all this is assuming that puppy is ok with the crate right away! I've watched videos about how to get pups acclimated to the crate (putting treats in there, not closing the door at first, feeding in there to make them ok with it, etc) but I think I'd assumed that would be able to happen pretty quickly when we brought her home. Fingers crossed!

Hopefully she likes to sleep like I do - dark and with white noise. That would work out pretty well for everyone


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## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

Jasperthegoldenboy said:


> We got our pup about 6 weeks ago now. He slept in a box next to our bed for the first week or so


This is a really good idea. If pup isn't ok with crate right away, I would think that a large box would work out well as a temporary solution for a couple of nights until she is more comfortable with the crate!


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## Julie Timmons (Dec 16, 2016)

I would recommend as soon as you get your pup home, while you all are getting adjusted to each other, place the crate in the living area where you are playing and let your pup explore it while awake. My pup is almost 12 was old, we brought him home at 7.5 weeks. We did this with him and he spent the day going in and out of the crate so at bedtime, he didn't resist it. We sleep with the tv on in our br and had him in there. I found that the light and noise of the tv sometimes kept him from settling down. Once we made the room dark, and had a fan on for white noise, he slept through the night starting on night 3. No potty breaks needed. We were lucky, he also likes to sleep. 9pm - 6 or 7am. He's never had an accident in the crate. 
Without the fan, he would wake and whine and carry on whenever he heard the cat. The white noise helped lessen that. 
Good luck, every pup is different. I had all kinds of plans and preparations that went out the window once we got him home. The pup will help you determine the best course of action.


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## SandyGold (Mar 3, 2016)

We kept our crate in the kitchen and introduced it to him there right away. He did fine sleeping alone at night in his crate. We draped a blanket over it to make him feel cozy. Now he is one and he prefers to sleep in the kitchen, sometimes in the crate (with door open). I'd suggest starting your pup off sleeping where you want him too be. My pup doesn't like coming up to the bedrooms at night. I think it is because he has always been in the kitchen and feels like that is his space. Good luck!


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## Sarah J (Mar 22, 2017)

*Our decision*

Hi all! Thanks so much for all the advice here. It really has helped.

Based on what you've all said, we've decided to go with the two-crate option - at least for now. Trudy's primary crate during the day (a 42" model from midwest pet products) will be on the first floor (we've decided dining room instead of kitchen, since we spend a lot of time there too and don't want her to permanently "set up shop" underfoot) and we will also offer her a second crate in our bedroom for nighttime. The second crate that we purchased will be one size smaller - a 36" model, accounting for our limited space. According to their chart, the 36" is good up to 70 lbs. 

I relished on not having to get up right away as I heard the rain pitter-pattering outside early this morning. I know that being able to sleep until the last minute in the morning won't last long, so I'm really appreciating it while I can  Just three more days until Trudy comes home! :grin2:


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## Good as Gold (Nov 30, 2016)

WI12345 said:


> We also have 2 crates for our 9 week old. They are both hard plastic kennels. The larger one is in the bedroom with a divider in it. That one is 40 inches. I bought it and then realized it won't fit in our car! We have a 36" in the kitchen and he rarely goes in there unless we are leaving him alone in the house. Yesterday I slid it into the den and turned on cartoons. He stayed in there while I left the house for a couple of hours and seemed to be happy. That's the crate we will use for traveling until he's old enough to just stay in the back of the car on his own.





WI12345 said:


> We have always had our dogs sleep in the bedroom with us as adults. Our last Golden would sleep on the floor next to me.



Yep - my last Golden slept in the floor in his own bed next to ours once he was trustworthy and not so needy. That's the best way. My newbie isn't ready for that step yet, but I'll be happy when he is!


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## Good as Gold (Nov 30, 2016)

I relished on not having to get up right away as I heard the rain pitter-pattering outside early this morning. I know that being able to sleep until the last minute in the morning won't last long, so I'm really appreciating it while I can  Just three more days until Trudy comes home! :grin2:[/QUOTE]


LOL! For the last month before my Yeti came home, I slept in and cleaned house and other projects with the idea in my head that these opportunities would not be coming around for a long time. And guess what?! I WAS RIGHT!!!! Puppy ownership is a full time job for awhile! He's 17 weeks now....I figure it will be six more months.


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## murphy1 (Jun 21, 2012)

All of our puppies were crate trained in the corner of the kitchen. All activity was there as it was next to our family room. When were could not watch them we put them in the crate but out whenever we were home. Only the first pup was brought up to the bedroom but not until he was seven months old. We left the door open and he'd stroll in himself and sleep. All the other, including Murphy, spent their first seven months in the kitchen at night, lights off. Never a problem. They get used to the routine very fast. Good luck and I totally agree, SLEEP NOW, as you'll be getting up early for the foreseeable future .


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