Puppy squealing at night!

by Pauline
(queensland)

I have a 9 week old Tibetan Terrier and have only had her for 4 nights.

I am currently trying to crate train her which is going okay but every night and every time I leave the house she squeals and yelps the place down.

How do i prevent this.






Hi Pauline
This is actually perfectly normal behavior for a puppy of this age. Her natural instincts compel her to stay near to her 'pack' and now that pack is YOU! In the wild, a puppy who was left alone would probably die, so her instincts are natural.

However, she's a domesticated dog and so she needs to learn that you will come back for her and that it's perfectly okay for her to be alone for short periods.

Some puppies learn this fairly quickly, others take longer and make more fuss about it! I'd recommend that you read my Crate Training A Puppy page as it explains how to handle this behavior.

As long as you know that she's not hungry or thirsty, or needing a potty break, you can safely ignore her crying and complaining. She needs to learn that squealing will not win her freedom!

With time and patience most puppies soon accept being left alone like this. However, occasionally a pup will experience more severe separation anxiety. If she gets absolutely hysterical the whole time you're out of her sight, or pees or poops out of distress, or ends up panting and wild-eyed, then it's possible that this is what's happening.

I have several pages on my site devoted to helping a puppy or dog deal with separation anxiety and I'd recommend reading this page .. Separation Anxiety In Your Dog first. If you think that she could be experiencing this, the tips and advice on those pages will help you deal with it.

However, it's most likely that she's just exhibiting normal puppy distress at being left alone and that it will pass if you treat it with patience and understanding.

Hope this helps, best of luck with your new pup.