Hi, we have a 12 week old Australian Shepherd/Beagle Mix, we got him at 9 weeks old.

We got the puppy, then found out 1 week later that we are pregnant with our first child. Needless to say, my wife NEEDS her sleep at night, but we are not getting it.

The dog has a climate controlled screened-in porch with a doggy door to a big fenced in backyard outside, and in the porch he has a crate, a bed, and a doghouse. His food and water bowls are also available to him on the porch (in my opinion, the dog has a luxury living condition). The dog is mostly house trained (with the few puppy accidents, of course), and does his business in the yard just like we want him to. I work from home much of the time, and the most time he spends alone is about 4 hours a day. When my wife gets home, we play with him, feed him, but when its time for bed, he cries and whines and scratches at the door for hours at a time. Obviously, I knew this would be part of having a new puppy, but now that we are pregnant, we need sleep more than ever. It has been 3 weeks of this, and I need help finding a solution FAST, or the dog might have to go. My priority is my growing baby, not my puppy's happiness at 2 AM. I need him to learn to be quiet, because I know he WILL be a good dog. HELP PLEASE!

This is just a baby! Don't make him sleep by himself! Dogs are pack animals. They need to be with groups to feel secure. He's crying because he is left out in the open. That's scary!

Get a crate. Put the crate in your bedroom and let the dog sleep there. There is nothing wrong with that. Dogs are clean animals, this won't effect your wife's pregnancy in the least bit.

Leaving a puppy outside (might as well be) by himself all night long is just wrong. He needs you.

This puppy is just like your baby on the way. Would you leave your new baby in the living room on the floor? Or would you put him in the safety of his room with a crib? Same concept, but instead of a crib, use a crate. The crate works the same as a crib. Keeps your pup safe, secure and in one place.

Now for the harshness.. If you're not willing to put an effort into this dog now, you will ignore him completely once the baby is born. Ask yourself, Do you want to handle a dog with a baby? Or do you think you can find a happy medium? Don't you think for a second once that baby is born that you won't be woken up throughout the night. Think of this as a trial run for the human baby.

The baby isn't even here yet. This puppy is here now. To have your dog act well behaved when the baby arrives is going to take work NOW. You're not going to get any sympathy from anyone. The puppy needs to be with you, not on a porch by itself. The puppy is going to wake up in the middle of the night, take him out to go potty. Its all part of raising a puppy. If you're not willing to do this NOW when your wife is pregnant, then you should consider giving the dog up. The dog is only going to be more ignored once the baby shows up. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems like since you've found out your pregnant, the dogs needs are on the back burner.

Take care of your pup! Hes just a baby!

Ok, we tried crate training in our bedroom for the first few nights, and I am totally against that. The few nights that he was in the house in the crate next to me, he violently tried to chew through the crate. Endlessly barking and scratching and biting at it. He hates the crate. So we move him to the porch and there he has been for three weeks. I respect your views, and I believe that crate training works for the people that want a dog in the house 100% of the time. But, I do ask that you respect mine, in that If I do not want a dog in my bedroom, then there is nothing wrong with the dog sleeping in his own porch. Of course the baby's needs will take priority over the dog's needs- one is human one is not. And Of course I would not leave my child on the porch all night. Only a horrible person would even draw the analogy. However, dogs have been around for centuries, and have survived just fine living in the good 'ole outdoors living happy dog lives, and somehow those dogs learned to hush at night without their human "parents" sleeping next to them. I just want to figure out how to best help my puppy learn that the screened in porch is his place to sleep.

Your dog is lonely. Plain and simple. He wants to be with his family. He is crying to you, telling you he needs to be with some one. He is just a puppy.

I understand, but maybe not respect your decision, but it's yours to make.

Try leaving a radio on low, or a ticking clock, or some sort of noise machine which will make him feel that someone is around.

Yes, dogs can sleep outside. Key word is dogs. Not puppies.

Your puppy is lonely. It just not right to make kit sleep all alone in the back of the house.

If you're not willing to put any effort into this pup because of a baby, then you should give the dog up. Things are only going to become worse the more you try and separate this puppy from you house hold.

Dogs that live outside do OK with a companion. Dogs that live outside by themselves live a miserable existence. Dogs are pack animals. They need others to be around them to grow up healthy.

Please consider this dogs needs. This pup is here now. You need to make a decision in favor of the dog.