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On 3/29 I brought home my very first chihuahua, a chocolate/tan male named Martini. He's actually my first dog too, but not by design. My parents never let me have one but I surrounded myself with dogs belonging to friends and neighbors.. and now I'm a professional petsitter!
I just have a question about what's been going on around here the past 2 nights. I feel good about the way things are going, but if I'm doing anything that will lead to issues in the future, please bring this to my attention.
I try to keep Martini up and about as much as possible in the evening so that eventually he'll crash and sleep for a few hours. When MY bedtime neared, I brought him up onto my lap and let him fall asleep. Once he was completely zonked out, I put him in his crate where he continued to sleep. He slept for a solid 4 hours before deciding he had to go potty, so I woke up and took him. He was less tired at that point and wanted to play. I laid down on the bed and put him next to me, and when he fell back asleep I put him back in the crate.
Now my question is, should I just be putting him in his crate when he is awake, and teach him to fall asleep on his own? He already regards the crate as his bed and "safe place" so I don't think it's that scary for him to fall asleep with me and wake up locked in the crate. And also, when he wakes up for a potty break, should I put him back in the crate right after or is it okay that I let him fall asleep with me first? The main reason I do it is because my boyfriend has to get up really early in the morning, so every moment of sleep is valuable.. but when the puppy is crying, it's enough to repeatedly wake him up. Is Martini learning bad habits from this?
Thanks for any help! Pictures soon!
Amy
I just have a question about what's been going on around here the past 2 nights. I feel good about the way things are going, but if I'm doing anything that will lead to issues in the future, please bring this to my attention.
I try to keep Martini up and about as much as possible in the evening so that eventually he'll crash and sleep for a few hours. When MY bedtime neared, I brought him up onto my lap and let him fall asleep. Once he was completely zonked out, I put him in his crate where he continued to sleep. He slept for a solid 4 hours before deciding he had to go potty, so I woke up and took him. He was less tired at that point and wanted to play. I laid down on the bed and put him next to me, and when he fell back asleep I put him back in the crate.
Now my question is, should I just be putting him in his crate when he is awake, and teach him to fall asleep on his own? He already regards the crate as his bed and "safe place" so I don't think it's that scary for him to fall asleep with me and wake up locked in the crate. And also, when he wakes up for a potty break, should I put him back in the crate right after or is it okay that I let him fall asleep with me first? The main reason I do it is because my boyfriend has to get up really early in the morning, so every moment of sleep is valuable.. but when the puppy is crying, it's enough to repeatedly wake him up. Is Martini learning bad habits from this?
Thanks for any help! Pictures soon!
Amy