After 11 yrs. my Basset Hound (Brinkley) is suddenly waking up 3 or 4 times at night. We recently got a puppy, who sleeps through the night, but Brinkley started doing this before we got the puppy. Obviously, as a Basset Hound, he sleeps pretty much all day. I try to exercise him, but he has some joint problems, so he moves slowly and really doesn't like to go for walks anymore. He goes to bed about 10 pm and wakes up at about 1 am, 3 am, 4 am and 5:30 am, at which time I get up and feed him. He will usually go out and eliminate at 1 am, but the other times he just wants out of his sleeping area. Needless to say, my husband and I are exhausted! I'm at my wits end, please help!

Welcome to the joys of having an older dog. Older dogs have issues sleeping through the night. I'd bet that your dog is getting up because of his joint issues. He's most likely in pain and needs to walk around to relieve it.

Have you talked to a vet about his joint problems? There are things, some natural, that can be added to his food, or given in pill form, to relieve some of the joint pain. That may help him sleep better at night.

In the long run, it may get a bit better, but older dogs are simply more restless at night. It's part of aging.

He is getting up beacause of his joint issues