New dog wakes me up

So, I've got a new dog from the SPCA, 7 year old rott/husky mix, had a
really really good home last time, was in the shelter for a month. He's
great but for one issue... I can't sleep with him. Period. I have
insomnia and I can't sleep a wink unless I'm in a totally dark, totally
quiet room by myself.

I work at home so because of my insomnia I stay up late and sleep in
late, but my dog whines and scratches at my door earlier and earlier
each morning to come into my room, where he spends most of his day
because I also spend most of my day here. This is completely
unacceptable as a situation and I need to find a way to curb this
behavior. I'd like to be able to hang out with him in my room during the
day, I just have to kick him out at night. Should I start limiting the

Rocky...

Is there a reason that he can't sleep in your bedroom at night?
You wrote that you need total quiet at night - does he make
noise?

\"The Tactician\" Luke Michaels...

I can't do it, I've tried, having insomnia... the conditions under which
I can sleep are very very picky and specific and I just can't sleep with
an animal in the room.

Kathleen...

You're going to be in serious trouble if you ever get married.

Can you sleep *without* an animal in the room?

How bad is your general sleep quality? There are specific problems that
can create sleep disorders and they are for the most part treatable. If
you're having serious sleep issues I would strongly advise mentioning it
to your doctor. Sleep is a huge quality of life issue.

Paula...

I would second that. I have several friends and acquaintances who
found out after going to sleep centers that what they thought was
light sleeping or insomnia was something very treatable. Some sleep
disorders can actually be life threatening. Better to get a good
workup from people who really know sleep disorders than risk even the
poor quality of life that insomnia causes.

As far as the dog goes, is there someone else in the house, in a
different room, who could sleep with the dog? The dog is going to
want to spend as much time with you as possible, especially sleep
time. Sometimes dogs are happy to sleep out of the bedroom, but most
often not. The more tired the dog is, the longer it will sleep at
night, if that helps.

FWIW, I'm a very light sleeper, but since getting dogs I've
learned to get back to sleep quickly. I've looked after a
French Bulldog at night a couple of times - they make continuous
snuffling noises while asleep, so I've resorted to earplugs when
he stays.

amount of time he spends in here? Should I ignore him in the morning
when he scratches and whines?

showdogbark...

I have insomnia also. The best time to sleep is at night as you will be
following the natural light darkness internal clock for sleep. Either
change your habits or take the dog back, or let him in your room and
suffer the consequences, it is not fair to get a dog and expect it to
lead a life foreign to them. Like sleeping in the day and being up at
night, if you had wanted that you should have gotten a Mirema dog since
it is awake at nights.

elegy...

eh, i used to work nights and sleep days. the dogs never caused a
problem, even when it came time to switch back over to a "normal"
schedule when i changed jobs. as long as they get enough exercise when
i'm awake, they're good about settling down when i go through the
"going to bed" motions.

Mary Healey...

Dogs are adaptable, and sleep during the day as well as at night. A normal
dog spends less than 50% awake during a 24h period.
cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=72649&dopt=Citation)

Paula...

My dogs sleep a lot of the day. Are dogs different from humans in
their sleep blocks? Humans pretty much do the up for a block of time

Mary Healey...

I confess that the extent of my knowledge is the abstract of the cited
article and personal observation. But it doesn't surprise me in the least
that dogs sleep 10 or more hours a day; my dogs snooze through the night,
and nap during the day (in between bouts of scaring away trespassers,
snarfing up mulberries, swearing at small wildlife, and interacting with
me).

and then sleep for a block of time thing but most dogs seem to do off
and on sleeping throughout the day and night more.

Mary Healey...

Naps are wasted on dogs and the young.

Adult humans usually get between 4 and 8 hours of sleep during a 24h period.

Why would Maremmas be any more nocturnal than other dogs?

showdogbark...

"We use a Maremma to protect our sheep, goats, and free range
broilers. Guard dogs don't need much as far as shelter, they should
have at least an insulated dog house big enough for them to fit in,
although our dog spends most of its time sleeping outside in the rain
and snow and goes inside the barn went it is warm. Most guard dogs
will be fairly inactive
during the day time but you will see them guard /patrol all night. "
Taken from a breeder typical of a breeder of Maremma dogs. I searched the web for

Mary Healey...

And who would that be, and how do I verify this?

Y'know, for someone who demands proof of the littlest things, you really
have an annoying tendency to quote unnamed and unknown sources.

And did you edit the quote without noting same?

The exact quote from that site is:
"We use a Maremma and an Anatolian Shepherd to protect our sheep, goats,
and free range broilers. etc.."

So, why didn't you mention the nocturnal qualities of the Anatolian?

Maremma dogs needs for sleep and came up with lots of breeders who said

Mary Healey...

Name six, or post the web addresses, please.

Handsome Jack Morrison...

You folks should know better.

ShowDogBuffoon is from Kootenay(!), where the average IQ is .097
Canadian.

Maremmas do just fine at night (unless, of course, the Maremmas in
Kootenay descend from the hyena and not the wolf), they even sleep
soundly at night.

"When a Maremma is allowed to sleep close to his humans during the
night, he may snooze so deeply that the trumpets of Jericho would not
bring him to his paws."

Some light sleeper, EH?

Maremmas probably adapt to what is expected of them. If there ain't
nothing to guard, etc., they probably adapt to their human's sleep
patterns as easily as any other dog would (well, except for those
Kootenay "Mareemas," who are descended from hyenas).

We have several ranches around here who have Maremmas. They're
wonderful dogs, but I'd never recommend to anyone that they make them
live indoors, or even that they make good pets (and certainly not for
the average family). About the *last* dog the OP, (the insomniac)
should ever consider is a Maremma (unless he's into spinning yarn).

What he probably needs to do is to work more on treating his insomnia,
or try getting the dog used to being alone a crate in the next room.
Depending on the dog, that could be pretty easy to do, or very hard.

Joke: Did you hear about the dyslexic insomniac agnostic? He used to
lie awake all night wondering if there really was a dog.

Sorry!

Sometimes I just can't help myself...

similar stuff.
I almost bought one once and I was in touch with the Maremma
association who warned me about their nocturnal habits.
My son worked in forestry where he would come across the sheep being
used to clean up the growth in between the trees and so the use of
brushing has been reduced, observed the Maremma dogs work and their
nighttime habits. Phone any Maremma breeder and they will tell you
about this peculiar trait. I spoke with at least ten breeders when I
was thinking of getting one, who all said the same thing about their
sleep.
Like most creatures I am pretty sure they can adapt, however it is not
natural to them. They sleep with the sheep in the day, and the sheep
think that the dog is also a sheep and then at night they guard.

Marcel Beaudoin...

I would like to second this request for proof. I have looked at the
and they don't say anything about it being nocturnal. Kindof important
for them to mention seeing as how they set the breed standard.

showdogbark...

Show Dog Bark

Rocky...

Plus, even Maremmas sleep on the job. I did a 2 day herding
seminar; showing up early on the Sunday morning, I saw a BC
trailing a long piece of "rope" in his mouth while running away
from his owner. Rope? Nuh uh. Sheep guts. The Maremma which

showdogbark...

Sounds like a Maremma that did not get either trained properly or is
not a good worker. Not all breeds work as advertised.

The Maremma which

lived on the ranch was certainly not nocturnal when Wile E. came
to visit.

Marcel Beaudoin...

It also doesn't make sense financially. If the Maremma is sleeping during
the day, it can't move with the sheep. If it can't move with the sheep, it
can't protect them at night.

Suja...

I remember watching Dogs With Jobs on NGC, where they profiled some LGDs
(can't remember the breed, big, white shaggy dogs, probably a Pyr) doing
their thing up on the mountains. During the day, the herders moved the
sheep along, and the dogs were up and about with their flock. At night,
they plopped down, but would alert if they heard anything suspicious (not
unlike a lot of dogs, I suspect). At least once, the whole pack of them
formed a defensive barrier between the sheep and whatever predator was out
there, making sufficient noise and charges to ward it off.

Amy Dahl...

LOL! That conjures up a funny image: a dog show, with lots of
energetic handlers and dogs strutting their stuff...and over on one
side, a ring full of big, sleepy dogs snoozing or plodding groggily
around.

Suja...

Silly Amy! Don't you know that LGDs are only shown at night? They're
nocturnal, don'tyaknow?

Amy Dahl...

Do they use lights, or do the judges have to wear infrared viewers?

Amy Dahl

shore...

I thought that one of the judging criteria is how sleepy
they are during the day. If you can find one that passes
out flat and snoring in midtown traffic, you have a
potential champion.

Amy Dahl

Janet B...

Dogs adapt to owner time schedules. Are you speaking of the Maremma,
a sheep guardian breed? Hard to tell with your unique "knowledge" of
dogs.

Show Dog Bark