Category: Top Dog

I love my BC pup, he's 5 months now, I got him at 8 weeks. I'm raising him on my own which has been as full-on as I expected. He's a landshark, currently doesn't cuddle and on top of it all I'm about to go back to full-time work (I work outdoors, take him along and crate him for two hours at a time, then a walk or play or meal or all three). I'm just tired from raising him by myself I guess and not feeling at all like doing training sessions when he's being sharky and an annoying adolescent. He's so smart and knows sit, down, drops his toy, he can settle for half an hour at a time, we have a really good fetch routine and his recall is okay except when it really matters and while I'm listing all those things, I dunno why I'm even complaining 🙂 It just feels never ending at times. Tell me it gets easier, even if it gets harder at first!

I have a 3-month-old Toy Goldendoodle. He needs to be alone on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday since my partner and I both have to work at the office. My office is a 20-minute walk from home, so I come back around noon to feed him, take him out, and play with him a little.

However, from the camera, I can see that it’s quite difficult for him. He’s alone from 9:00 am–12:00 pm and 1:00 pm–4:30 pm in his playpen with a lick mat or a Kong stuffed with food (peanut butter, yogurt, etc.). He also has an interactive mat to search for treats. Overall, I think he has a lot to keep him busy.

Despite this, when we’re away, he seems to ignore his favorite toys and barks a lot until he eventually falls asleep. I know this isn’t the ideal situation, but it’s the only approach we’ve found so far. I would really appreciate any advice.

Is it normal for an 11 week old golden retriever to take 50 minutes to settle for sleep in the evening? She naps multiple times a day as we started with the 60/60 sleeping schedule. I try not to rile her up on her last awake window before night sleep. I give her food in a slow eating rug. When I put her in her crate, I give her a frozen lick mat or a carrot or apple to chew on (which she loves and they both agree with her digestion wise).

She often finishes her licking mat or her apple/carrot and then starts whining and barking in short intervals. Like she barks twice, I tell her calmly it's sleeping time, she plops down, 1 minute later she whines for a few seconds, then stops, then 2 minutes later she barks a few barks again, and so on for close to an hour.

I cover her crate with a blanket, turn lights off, put chill music in the background. Sometimes I ignore her completely, other times I talk calmly to her, just a few words to reassure her. I don't understand why it takes her so long to fall asleep especially since she's not agitated before I put her in her crate. And she naps just fine in he crate during the day without this much complait.