9 week old lab crying

[gilly100788]

Hi, can anyone give me a quick answer to stop by pup crying every time i leave the room, shes great at night sleeps like a baby, well untill 5.30am !! but its just when i leave the room she howls,also what time should she have her last feed at night time as not sure if having it too early in the evening and thats why waking so early. Many Thanks

[FredPuli43]

She's only nine weeks, not long away from her mum and siblings. Get her used to being left, by gradually increasing the length of time you are away. The conventional advice is not to make a big fuss of her when you come back, lest she starts to see your return as a major event and attaches worrying significance to your leaving next time.If you're not going out, she can still probably hear you and will persist, but you have to steel yourself to her plaintive cries, otherwise you'll have a grown bitch who yelps and barks when you're not with her.

When out of the room or house, make sure she has suitable toys to distract her or comfort her.

Feeding? Giving the last meal in the early evening shouldn't cause problems. The pup will always wake at a time that doesn't suit you!

[chrissa1]

Why would you want to leave her in a room by herself? Let her come with you from room to room.
She's only a baby and needs time to get used to the house.

[lankeela]

I feed puppies four times a day till they are four months old, then three meals till six months and then two meals a day (can drop this to once at a year but mine always have a small breakfast still). I try to feed around 8 am, 12 - 1, 4 - 5 and 8 - 9 for a last milky/cereal feed to help them sleep. Make sure you take her out and stay out with her till she has done a wee and a poo after each feed, and again before bed time. Try to get up before she wakes up so you can get her out straight away, it will be a pain but worth it when she learns to wait for you to let her out. As for leaving her don't go back if she howls, but make sure she has something to chew on or play with or is ready for a snooze before leaving her. Try keeping the doors open between you and her, and put her in a crate or puppy play pen to rest.

[chrissa1]

Sorry, but I say again. Why would you want to leave her in a room while you are in the house?

[gilly100788]

Hi, thank you so much for your answers, firstly i leave her downstairs whilst i go to the bathroom as she is not allowed up stairs at the moment due to you should let her incase she falls and hurts her legs,as labs are prone to hip problems and letting them jump about up and down the stairs will only cause here problems later in life. Thank you lankeela thats what i hve been feeding her at the moment and at those sort of times, she has plenty of toys to play with and likes to go in her bed when shes tired i dnt crate her.

[chrissa1]

Hi gilly100788. Having owned 8 Labs over the past 30 odd years and still owning Toby aged 7, I'm well aware of Hip Dysplasia, having the wretched thing found in one of our puppies 20 years ago. He was born with it and it cost us £1000 to have him "put right".

However, I wouldn't have thought that the occasional trip up the stairs is going to cause this.

I would advise a child's stairgate at the bottom would be the better option. This would not be as final to him as a closed door is and he could watch and hear you go upstairs and it will eventually dawn on him that you Do come back.

[jan01]

IT REALLY PULLS AT THE HEART STRINGS GILLY DOESN'T IT!! HOWEVER SHE NEEDS TO ADAPT TO HER NEW SURROUNDINGS & LEARN HOUSE RULES ... TRY TO KEEP HER WELL FED, ENTERTAINED & EXHAUSTED :)

[lankeela]

Having had GSDs for many years we do try to ensure puppies don't run up and down stairs too much, carrying them up till they get too big to do it! However its more for the protection of the shoulders than the hips, and more the coming down than the going up. They can put all their weight on the shoulders and put too much pressure on them if allowed. If a dog is predisposed to bad hips there's nothing much you can do, and only constant jumping and wear and tear would have any effect on an otherwise healthy dog. Although you say you don't crate her, perhaps if she had someone secure she could think of as her own it might make her settle better - you could leave the door open most of the time and just shut it when you leave her for short periods.

[firewatch]

Try crate training, and make it her safe place with toys etc, but be prepared for them to be destroyed quickly. We have 7 month old black lab and he was crae trained first night we had him and its served us well. When we go out he goes in there we just have to say bed and he goes.
Its like having a baby, start with short periods of seperation 10 mins, just sit out of sight, and only praise if she quite and after a few minutes of returning. Sprite our lab is pretty good at being left now.Be prepared though to have a dog that is a walking dustbin in the house-nothing is safe!

[gilly100788]

In answer to the questions i have a stair gate at my kitchen door which is where she is, its a large kitchen and she can see the front door livingroom and stairs,so she knows i am only up the stairs, i would never shut a door on her. and i really dont want to crate her,as i dont like the thought of her in a cage, i have had a lab before for 14 yrs and she never cried when i left the room but this one is so different

[ladybirder]

Gilly as you say your pup goes to her bed when she wants to sleep then she obviously feels safe and happy there and like you I see no need for a crate. Everything is strange and new for her and you seem a sensible person so I'm sure everything will work itself out soon. Good luck.

[gilly100788]

Thanks i do too,

[jules77]

How long have you had her? Just wandering when she was taken away from her siblings?

I do things differently depending on the puppy. My last one cried at night, so I bought him up to sleep in the bedroom, I tried a crate and he screamed the house down, he still wont go in one to this day. My latest puppy stops downstairs in the kitchen and has only ever cried once, when I made the mistake of letting her see me go upstairs. She obviously knew I was still in the house and wanted to be with us. If I give her a biscuit and creep away while she is still eating it, she is fine. Good luck with her.

[rsvp]

realise I'm going to be shot down in flames but have had dogs/puppies for years and have never had one that stressed when I left for a short while. They were always given a safe haven, a hot water bottle, a cuddly toy and a loud clock ticking very closly nearby. Also, the radio was always on and no-one made an issue about leaving the room. Agree with the no fuss when you go and come back. It is unlikely she howled if her Mum, siblings left her for just a few minutes but she has had a huge trama in her life leaving them so it's up to you to make the transition as painless as possible. Don't transfer your tensions to the pup - calmly leave the room without any issues and calmly return then ignore the pup for a while.

[gilly100788]

Hi, thank all so much for your advice, hopefully she will start trusting us soon that we will be back, she has now started to wake at 4.30am to go out to do her business as she dosnt like going indoors bless her, she has her last meal at 8pm like the breeder said to do and she does her business b4 bed time and still wants another one at 4.30am !! any advice on this one.

[jules77]

All of mine are fed at 5am, including the puppy that is still wanting four meals a day at just over four months.

[gilly100788]

ok thanks jules, ill carry on the way im going then, thanks for your help

[lankeela]

You should be glad she asks to go out, that is very good for such a young puppy and will make life much easier for you and her than having to clean up. It will soon get later, the older she gets.

[kendra20]

she is obviously insecure not long left her mommy and is missing her siblings and mommy. my puppy is now 8months but cried quite a bit when we first had him. I left him an cardigan of mine which i had worn to snuggle up to. also only leave for a few mins each time I left the telly on or radio so it wasnt silent in the room. having said that he still cries to come into bed with us at 3am but hes only tiny a bit difficult with a lab. and i let him sleep in bedroom which he still does. rod for me own back i think.