aimeewaymeyb Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Hi, I'm new to the forum We adopted 2 ex racer greyhounds 2 years ago (1 first then a companion 3 months later) Molly first the Coco second. She is definitely in charge, probably as she was first. They sleep in the kitchen, mostly because Coco chews everything if he gets a chance. So if we go to bed late they are usually ok but if we go earlier (about 10.30pm) like last night... Barking at 1.30am...i went down (I know this is reinforcement and wrong) then 2.30am then sporadically during the night. I went down at 4.30 and moved all of the toys from one side of the room (possibly stolen from one dog to the other??.) Into the centre of the room. They were then silent until we got up. WTH??!!! I really need to sort this as we are adopting a baby in April and she will sleep in the room above the kitchen. 😴 Any suggestions greatly received (sleeping in bed room not an option) TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleptogrey Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 With all of the crazy cold weather are your dogs getting enough exercise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aimeewaymeyb Posted February 6, 2019 Author Share Posted February 6, 2019 No they are not... I am two weeks out of spinal surgery so they have had minimal walks for the past month. They don't walk far when we do walk but do you think that might be a contributing factor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Barking at 1.30am...i went down (I know this is reinforcement and wrong) then 2.30am then sporadically during the night. I went down at 4.30 and moved all of the toys from one side of the room (possibly stolen from one dog to the other??.) Into the centre of the room. They were then silent until we got up. WTH??!!! Yup...you rewarded the barking. I know it is hard, but you need to just ignore them. Don't go down. Don't yell at them from upstairs. Just remain quiet. It will take some time before they understand that you are not coming to them. Perhaps removing all the toys before you retire for the night will help. Are they cold? Maybe they need Jammies. How old are Molly and Coco? Exercise is very important, especially if they are young. Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aimeewaymeyb Posted February 6, 2019 Author Share Posted February 6, 2019 Eek, that's another thing we do... Shout QUIET from upstairs 🙄 I left the toys as I thought they might be bored lol. Cold might be a thing, I will look for jammies!! They are nearly 8 years old. Very lazy really to be honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizeebee Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Has this been going on for two years? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aimeewaymeyb Posted February 6, 2019 Author Share Posted February 6, 2019 No it's totally sporadic. To be honest I'm thinking they may have got into a routine with my husband going to bed around midnight to 1am the last few weeks, then last night we all went up at about 11pm. Maybe upset their routine? I have no clue. Very strange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizeebee Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 It doesn't sound like they want to go outside or anything like that? If yours aren't asking for that I'd definitely work on truly ignoring them. Our guy is newer than yours, but we're working on "if you make noise in the middle of the night literally all that you're going to get is sent to the yard for a no-nonsense potty." We're getting close to him waking up with our alarm, but he insists on getting up something like 15 minutes before, which makes me think he's hearing the furnace kick on or a neighbor leaving or something. Maybe yours are also hearing a sound in the night? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 (edited) Sorry but I m a BIG non believer in ignoring dogs and shouting shut up. They are telling you something. Maggie barks at one EMT vechicle but not the others...sometimes at the train if the engineer is heavy on the whistle and at any strangers in the alley. I quit Petco as trainer as the lead trainer advised locking puppies in a crate in the bathroom and ignoring them all night. To me that was like walking your kid to a shed in the yard and telling them good night while you go back to the company of your spouse.How many bedrooms are upstairs? Is there one you could dog proof and baby gate/ex-pen off? If they can't sleep in your bedroom they might just want to be near. Edited February 6, 2019 by Hubcitypam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizeebee Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 I agree somewhat with hubcitypam - if you can have them somewhere closer to you, that might be just the ticket. And while you do want to make sure that there's nothing really wrong that's causing the barking, I think by not responding to them and seeing what happens you'll figure out what the deal is. You're not truly ignoring them, you're still listening and observing what they're doing and will be there if you realize something has actually happened. If they have to go out you'll know the next day because there's a little present on your floor. If they are reacting to something that's spooking them they'll either stop when that trigger stops or when they realize you aren't threatened by it. Both going down to them or hollering a response you're kind of saying "yes, thank you for warning me!" The same way an owner yelling at a habitual barker to stop is actually saying "yes, let's bark together at this threat!" I'd just try to pay close attention to the how your routine (or lack there of) impacts their behavior. Do they not wake up and bark if you guys go to bed later? Maybe they need to be more tuckered out before an early bedtime Do they not wake up and bark if they are dressed/covered/warmer (for us PJs was the ticket for less disturbed sleeping) Do they only bark on trash day? Presumably hearing the early morning truck Do they only bark on the day(s) your water softener cycles? That usually happens once or twice a week Maybe try turning off the ice maker? Maybe they are hearing that in the kitchen - ours is definitely loud We've definitely done a lot of this process of elimination to figure out what's going on. It's super fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Ah... Human bedtime routine has changed and with that so has the dogs behaviour! These dogs have been in this home for 2 years and the barking is a new thing. I am not suggesting they lock these hounds up and ignore them all night! But if they are not cold, there are no intruders, noisy neighbours, washing machines or garbage trucks, etc, etc and the barking is becoming a nightly habit, then yes... I would ignore. And... I absolutely agree that having the dogs sleep in the same room as humans is best, but the OP said there was no way that would be an option. Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleptogrey Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 No they are not... I am two weeks out of spinal surgery so they have had minimal walks for the past month. They don't walk far when we do walk but do you think that might be a contributing factor? BINGO!!!! can you hire a dog walker to exhaust them? before you start changing their environment think about their physical needs- EXERCISE!!!! even my old decrepit 12 year old wants exercise or else he is bonkers. a good dog is a tired dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aimeewaymeyb Posted February 7, 2019 Author Share Posted February 7, 2019 So....last night I stayed up until midnight, I moved the bed that was near the French doors over to the other side of the room in case there was a draught and I put the toys in a box (open topped). Not. A. Peep. Came down at 7am and no toys have moved either. They're having my life lol Thank you for all your comments. I am definitely going to start increasing their exercise (and mine) very soon 💪😊❤️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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