When all else fails, GROWL!

Last night was Jack's 8th night. I thought I was so smart, and that the crate sleeping issue was resolved. He would sleep in my room, and be able to see me, and be quiet and sleep all night with MAYBE a potty break if he woke up whining.

Nope.

I put him in his crate beside me, not on my bed, but in a spot where he could see me from a distance of about one foot. He started whining. Ugh. I put my fingers in through the grate. He liked that. For 30 seconds. Then whining.

Oh I was SO DISCOURAGED!

I tried singing. Nope. I tried gently banging the side of his crate when he wailed. Nope. I tried total silence. Nope. I thought, what if he has to go potty? Took him out. He didn't have to. Back in the crate. Back to whining.

EIGHT NIGHTS, AND HE HASN'T GOTTEN THIS YET? EIGHT NIGHTS AND I've missed THIS MUCH SLEEP? And I've followed all the rules? I haven't heard of anyone else whose dog yelled for this many nights! Why me?

WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?

I pick up his crate to move him INTO the bed with me, under my covers. As I lift the crate by the top handle, the door falls off. Completely off. Now my plan of staying in darkness and quietly moving him to calm him--fails. I have to turn the light on to see why the door fell off. It's because the crate top wasn't properly snapped on when I took it off to clean out the poop two days ago.

Great. NOW Jack has whined and gotten all kinds of responses, including having the LIGHT TURNED ON and being in my lap while I fix the crate. Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I'm going BACKWARDS with this training!

So I fix the crate and the door, and move the crate beside me under the covers.

Whining continues.

At this point, I'm so exhausted that i just fall asleep despite the whining! I'm dozing off and on for TWO HOURS, totally ignoring him while he continues to whine.

What is left to try? I feel the temptation to yell at the top of my lungs, "PUH-LEEEZE, JACK, STOP WHINING!" but I restrain myself. Standing ovation for overcoming THAT one.

Wits' end.

Suddenly, something I read from a British dog psychologist occurs to me.

There are five levels of correction by mother dogs. Humans CAN use them, too. The most extreme is to growl and grab the back of the neck. You aren't supposed to do that except in emergencies. But the next one down is just growling.

I figure I'm one step down from an all-out freakout, and am therefore entirely entitled to use a level four correction.

I try it. After a major wail, I growl for about one second.

He goes totally silent. Long pause of silence. Hope arises in me.

He wails again. I growl. He goes totally silent.

After about a minute, he gives a little bitty wail, more like a defeated protest wail, but I growl once more.

He never made ONE sound the entire rest of the night.

I woke up at 8, with him quietly beside me. I was exhilarated.

But--was this just a one-time coincidence? Will it work again tonight? If it doesn't, what in the WORLD will I do?