Stop Your Puppy Crying — The Ultimate Guide.

Does your puppy cry at night? Is the crying getting worse? Does he also cry in his crate during the day?

All puppies cry, and some puppies cry a lot.

Hearing a puppy cry can be very scary and ruin the first few days with your new friend.

And sleep loss can mess up your life and make you prone to accidents. So, below you will find many tips to help you get your puppy settled in as quickly as possible.

You’ll find help with nighttime crying, daytime crying, crate groaning, and more.

And we’ll help you find the fastest way to stop your puppy’s crying and help him settle into his new home.

Why do puppies cry?

Like most mammalian babies, puppies cry to make sure their needs are met and to alert their caregivers when they are in danger.

In very young puppies, crying is often a response to a strong physical or emotional need. For example

• Pain
• Hunger
• Full bladder and bowel movements
• Fear
• As puppies grow, they may also learn to ask for attention. Learned crying occurs when the sound the puppy makes has been regularly rewarded in the past.

This comes later, but you need to be aware of it so you don’t get into trouble. We’ll talk a little more about learned crying in a moment.

Why do new puppies cry so much?

Most well-fed puppies rarely cry out of pain or hunger. And unless they’re stuck in bed, they don’t usually cry with a full bladder. They just pee where they stand.

So in the first few days, your puppy will often cry out of fear.

It’s not something he does on purpose or something he can control.

Why do new puppies get scared?

Think of it as nostalgia. Only worse. Because your puppy doesn’t know when he’s coming home or where his family is.

Fortunately, very young puppies have short memories and recover quickly from their sadness, but in those first few days, your puppy will be a little scared, even if he doesn’t show it.

And he will be especially anxious when left alone.

This doesn’t mean you and your dog have to be joined at the hip forever, but it does mean some temporary changes in your own lifestyle. We’ll get back to that in a minute.

Why do puppies cry at night?

Most puppies sleep quite well at night when they are near an adult.

Most nighttime crying that new parents experience is due to their attempts to get the puppy to sleep on his first night alone.

Sometimes this works, and the puppy cries a little and then falls asleep. Most of the time you stay awake with your fingers in your ears while your puppy cries all night in the kitchen.

In a box or drawer near your bed, most puppies will sleep for several hours. However, most will wake up once or twice a night and have to get up to urinate.

So the other cause of nighttime crying is often that the puppy needs to answer the call of nature.

Letting a puppy sleep alone

If you don’t want to get up at night to visit your puppy and don’t want him sleeping in your room, it’s important to make sure he can leave the bed to pee and poop on the puppy pad.

You don’t want the puppy to have to pee in his bed, and most new puppies can’t go all night without emptying their bladder at least once.

If you leave him alone the first night, there is a chance that your puppy will cry very loudly for a while. If you wake him up later, he will cry louder and longer the next time.

Should you let your puppy cry?

Should I let my puppy cry at night?

Letting your puppy cry at night can cause your puppy some problems, such as

Sleep Disorders

Wake up the neighbors

Dirt

Separation anxiety

You may think the puppy will fall asleep very quickly. But it doesn’t always work that way. Some puppies will scream most of the night. And unless you live in a soundproof room or have a mansion, you can hear the noise.

Not only will they hear it, but so will their neighbors. And they probably won’t be happy about it.

If you can’t hear the puppy crying, you won’t know when he needs to go outside to pee.

And puppies left alone at night can become so anxious that they get diarrhea. I can tell you from experience that shampooing a puppy in the morning is no fun!

It is possible that stress can cause long-term problems, such as separation anxiety. However, having your puppy at your bedside for a few nights seems to be the most attractive option.

How to prevent a puppy from crying at night

You can prevent a puppy from crying at night by putting it in a box or drawer next to your bed. He can feel and hear you, and if he starts to move or get upset, you can calm him down with your hand.

Even if your new puppy is away from the family den on his first night in his new home, he won’t be frightened if he’s next to your bed, and you’ll both be able to sleep.

It doesn’t have to be a permanent arrangement. Over the next few days, you will need to spend some time preparing your puppy for the transition to his permanent sleeping space.

When does the puppy stop crying at night?

As long as you can leave your crib to urinate, your puppy will stop crying when left alone at night, once he has a familiar and safe “den” to sleep in.

At this point, nothing in your home is familiar.

Small cubs are extremely vulnerable in the wild, and it is vital to their survival that they are never left unattended unless they are safe in their den. That’s why cubs instinctively ask for help when they are alone outside their den. And they rest happily when they are inside.

You need to create this “denning experience” in your home. Your puppy doesn’t need a luxurious bed or expensive blankets. It’s all about familiarity.

Here’s how to create a happy den for your puppy

Over the next few days, it is important to continue adding treats and toys to your puppy’s new crate or basket so that it gradually becomes a safe place for your puppy. Your “happy place

If you are persevering and generous, it won’t take long. This way, you can consume a large part of your puppy’s food ration.

Very soon, your puppy will retire to his crate to take a nap,

And in a few days, you will be able to sleep there at night without being afraid.

Prevent puppy crying during the daytime

Some puppies cry when they are very hungry, but many do not. So don’t be tempted to use crying as an indicator that your puppy needs more food.

The most common cause of crying during the day is when the puppy is left alone while the adults go to another room.

The best way to avoid this problem is to leave the puppy with you as much as possible for the first few days and then teach him to be alone in small touches.

Teaching a puppy to be alone without crying

This training is in three stages.

• Packaging of the box
• Canned Sleep Training
• Leaving the room

Teaching puppies to be alone

It’s good to see that some puppy packs at the vet include information on how to teach puppies to be alone.

If you go to work, your puppy will likely spend some time alone from an early age.

But not all puppies learn this valuable skill.

One of the things my own veterinary brochures point out is that puppies that don’t learn to be alone before they are 13 weeks old are more likely to suffer from separation anxiety later in life.

In other words: Puppies need to get used to the experience of being “alone” early on. This is part of the “socialization package” we need to work on with our puppies.

It is not an excuse to leave a puppy for long periods of time or in unfamiliar places.

But a few weeks after you bring your puppy home, you should be able to stay alone for ten minutes without crying in the house.

One study showed that most puppies left alone in the house for up to 60 minutes showed no stress-related behavior and those that were stressed improved as they got used to being alone.

Note that the maximum time was one hour. Long periods of isolation are not appropriate for young puppies.

Tips learned to prevent crying

Puppies don’t just cry when they are locked up or left alone. Some puppies are very noisy most of the time and quickly learn to ask for attention during the day.

Therefore, it is very important not to “amplify” this type of crying.

This means that you should not do anything that the puppy might perceive as a reward while he is crying.

This includes taking him, going into the room he is in if you are not there already, feeding him, talking to him, letting him see you if he does not see you already.

All these things are rewarding for a puppy, so it’s important to do them when your puppy is doing something you want to encourage.

Many people find this quite difficult. But if you can respect this rule, and your family does too, crying will soon become very rare in your home.

Try to prevent possible crying episodes by making sure your puppy has regular company, the opportunity to use the toilet, safe toys to chew on and a safe, familiar place to sleep.

At the same time, it is important to reinforce all periods of silence so that the puppy learns that silence is a better way to meet his needs in our illogical and modern world.

We can “reinforce” silence by rewarding it.

How to Reward the Silence of a Puppy

When your puppy has started barking and crying, periods of silence can be quite short.

When you give a reward, the puppy has probably started crying again, and you end up rewarding the noise instead of the silence.

So you need an “event marker”. You can use a word like “good” or a mouse click.

During the first few days with a puppy in our house, I have a clicker on a string around my neck.

When the puppy calms down, I press the button and reward it with a treat or a hug.

This is especially helpful if a puppy has started to scream when you leave the room. Wait for a pause in the crying, then press the button to mute it and return.

You can give the puppy a treat as a reward.

Building a time alone

For a puppy that cries when left, you can ask for a longer period of quiet time before pressing the button.

Two or three seconds, then five, then ten, and so on.

You can also wait a minute.

Puppies learn very quickly (in a day or two) that “quiet” is a reward.

If you do it right when you get up to wait a minute, the crying has largely stopped and the puppy is calm most of the time.

Box training for your puppy

Many people give the puppy control of the whole house when he comes home.

Confining puppies to one or two rooms helps them feel safe at first and gives other family members a safe haven from bites.

The sooner he feels safe in his “new den,” the sooner he’ll be glad to be left there, and the sooner he’ll be happy, the sooner he’ll stop crying.

Remember, your Labrador puppy will stop crying once his home looks like yours until he learns to cry as a reward.

Allowing a puppy the freedom and access a human guest would give him may seem fair, but puppies don’t need freedom. They need company and a little time to adjust to their new life.

Your puppy needs you

People sometimes worry that this gentle, gradual approach to raising puppies and teaching them to be alone will spoil them.

But it’s important to realize that letting a puppy cry on its own doesn’t make it any harder.

On the contrary, research suggests that a higher level of maternal care (and in this case, you are now the surrogate caregiver) makes puppies braver and more confident.

This is one of the reasons I no longer use the “crying” option with my puppies.

A study published in 1977 examined the pain of separation in 24 young puppies and concluded that human companionship was the most effective method of relieving the pain of separation in puppies.

Better than another dog, much better than toys, and even better than food. In other words, your puppy needs you.

This doesn’t mean that your puppy needs to have company all the time. On the contrary, he should also learn to be on his own, but the first few days in your home are a special case.

Don’t be afraid to spend time with your puppy, especially in the early stages. Puppies need to feel safe. And if you can do that, the crying will stop.

Try to avoid triggering the puppy’s fear response or teaching it to ask for attention.

Place the puppy at your bedside for the first four or five nights.

Starting in the second week, teach your puppy to be alone for short periods of the day.

Gradually increase the amount of time you spend alone…

Provide plenty of company and interaction for the puppy.