How to Get Your Puppy to Sleep Through the Night

Bringing home a new puppy is an exciting time. However, the first few nights can be a challenging time for both you and your puppy. Puppies are known for their boundless energy and curiosity, which can make it difficult for them to settle down and sleep through the night. With the right routine and a little patience, you can help your puppy establish a healthy sleep routine.

In this blog, we'll give you our essential puppy sleep tips to ensure you and your puppy get a restful night's sleep.

Understanding how your puppy sleeps will help you cater to their sleep needs and put together a sleep routine that works for them. 

You might feel like you can see your puppy growing before your eyes and you’d be right - it’s hard work growing so quickly. This is why on average most puppies sleep between 18 and 20 hours a day, so they can focus their energy on growing. However, they have an on/off switch when it comes to sleep, which is why they have zoomies one minute and crash out the next. 

Puppies' sleep patterns are much like babies! Despite spending most of their day sleeping they have much shorter sleep cycles, waking up frequently throughout the night. So if your puppy is waking up several times a night don’t worry, this behaviour is completely normal for their age and will usually diminish with training and age. We’ve put together our top sleep training tips to help you get your puppy to sleep through the night.

The first step to getting your puppy to sleep through the night is having a comfy sleep set up for them. Dogs are naturally den animals, their instinct is to seek out a cosy shelter for themselves. You may find providing them with a crate and a comfy bed to sleep in appeals to their den-seeking instincts.

The perfect puppy crate set-up

Our partners at Lords & Labradors specialise in crates and bedding. Your puppy can sleep easy for less with Lords & Labradors with an exclusive 10% off for Waggel members!

Our puppy crate essentials:

• Dog crate

• Puppy crate bed – The Lords & Labradors Cosy & Calming Puppy Crate Beds fit exactly half their dog crates, leaving half the crate for puppy pads or bowls. 

• Puppy training pads

• Comfort items such as a heartbeat teddy or blanket with either yours or their mum's scent

• Treats for reassurance

Creating a bedtime routine for your puppy is key to getting them to sleep through the night. Having a consistent routine will help signal to them that it’s time to wind down and sleep.

It will take time to find a routine that works for you and your puppy but we’ve put together a simple routine for you to start with.

Set a regular bedtime: Help your puppy regulate their internal clock by choosing a bedtime to stick to.

Quiet playtime: Engage in calm and quiet play with your puppy before bedtime. Avoid overly stimulating activities that could leave them too excited to sleep. Snuffling or puzzle toys are great ways to wear their brains out without getting them too excited.

Toilet break: Before heading to bed, take your puppy outside for a bathroom break. This will help reduce the chance of night-time accidents.

Dim the lights: As bedtime approaches, dim the lights in the room to signal to your puppy that it's time to sleep.

Bedtime: Finish the routine by putting your puppy in bed. You can try using a cue word like ‘bedtime’ and giving them a treat when they go in their bed for positive reinforcement of the routine.

It will take a few nights for your puppy to start learning the routine but being consistent will really help. 

Even with the best efforts, your puppy is still likely to wake up during the night to begin with. When this happens:

Stay calm: Your puppy will pick up on your energy so staying calm will help them to keep calm. Avoid getting frustrated or upset, remember that your puppy is still learning.

Quietly address their needs: If your puppy needs to go to the toilet, take them out to their designated spot and then return them to their bed.

Minimal interaction: Being quiet and not engaging in playtime during nighttime wake-ups will prevent reinforcing the idea that waking up at night is playtime.

Making sure your puppy is both physically and mentally tired before bed means they are more likely to sleep soundly through the night. Most puppy owners don’t realise the impact of mental stimulation on their puppy. Puzzle toys and training can help tire them out, making it easier for them to settle down at night.

In addition to this, rewarding your puppy’s good behaviour will help build a strong bond between you and encourage them to repeat their behaviour. It will take time for your puppy to learn your routine so be patient and keep rewarding them when they’re good to reinforce it.

Patience and consistency are key when teaching your puppy to sleep through the night. By following these tips and creating a cosy den for your puppy to sleep in they’ll be sleeping soundly in no time.

If you’re a new puppy owner and feel slightly overwhelmed, why not tick one thing off your list and shop puppy essentials at Lords & Labradors? They’ve got everything you need plus the comfiest beds to help your puppy sleep soundly through the night.

For 10% off all future Lords & Labradors purchases, get a quote and become a Waggel member today. This means your pup will be protected and have access to premium pet care - the best of both worlds.