Help! My dog won’t fall asleep!

It’s not unusual for humans to have trouble sleeping. Money worries, work stress and difficult relationships are common reasons to upset a good night’s sleep, but why is it that your dog is having trouble? If your dog is waking you up whining, barking and scavenging around the house then read on.

Why is my dog waking me up?
It is annoying to be woken by your pet at frequent intervals through the night – we all love our sleep. But it’s important to understand the reasons why your dog seems to have trouble matching your own sleeping pattern.

First of all, we should remember that while humans are at work doing their human jobs, dogs are left at home without company and bored. If they have nothing to keep them occupied then they simply store up all that energy until their owner comes home. If your dog is not being mentally stimulated then it’s bound to be a bouncing ball of hyperactivity in the evening. To combat this you should look at ways to keep your dog occupied while you are out of the house. This might be something as simple as leaving the TV or radio on for them.

For younger pups, the reason that they are struggling to sleep and are waking you up can be quite different. For them it might be that they are lonely and scared, missing their mother and siblings. To help them adjust to their new environment you can move their bed or crate to your bedside so that they can hear you breathing (or snoring) and feel more assured. Once they feel at home then you can move them downstairs again and leave the radio on so that if they can’t sleep then they are still stimulated by something.

Sometimes your dog might simply have an itch that needs scratching, both metaphorically and physically. It could be that they need to go to the toilet, they might want some love and attention or it could be that they have been frightened by a pest such as a spider or a mouse!

A final tip is to always take your dog for some fun exercise in the evening after you finish work. If they have spent the entire day cooped up then you can really help them burn off their frustration by giving them sometime in the outdoors.

For information about dog training classes, please visit https://www.witsend4pets.co.uk/, read our article “Dog training: what you need to know”, or call us on 0116 244 2455.