20 Things You Do That Cause Your Dog To Misbehave

11. Flip-flopped schedule

Think about it, though. He can sleep whenever he wants. He doesn’t share your concept of a normal schedule. This bad habit might have started when he was a puppy.

You accepted that he needed to go out at night, and somehow needing to go out morphed into eating, drinking, and playing.

And, the next thing you know, your dog has no respect whatsoever for human schedules. This is one of those times when an ounce of prevention beats a pound of cure.

Yes, puppies need to go out at night. But all they need to do is relieve themselves and maybe get a quick drink of water. They don’t need to eat, and they certainly don’t need to play. Pick your puppy up, carry him outside, and use whatever word you’ve chosen to tell him to do his business.

Then, take him back outside and put him in his sleeping spot. The key is to be extremely boring. Getting up at night should be about going to the bathroom and nothing else. Ignore all pleas to play, even if it means putting a pillow over your head while you try to sleep through the whining.