[Lightning&Stomps]

Recently, about an hour or so after I go to bed at night, Lightning has started barking. It's not an urgent bark, but an "I want something" bark. When the weather gets warm, Stomps likes to sleep in the garage or outside, but the kitty is usually in the living room with Lightning (they really like each other). Besides, I have dog doors, so he can go outside if he wants/needs to. I've tried letting him bark himself to sleep--never works. I have to get up, open my bedroom door, and turn on the hall light. At which point Lightning gets up and trots through the kitchen and out the door. And that's it. Weird but not a big deal. Last night, though, I woke up at 3 a.m. to his barking. I must have been really out of it, because I kept falling back asleep and waking up, with him still barking. It even became a part of my dreams. Anyway, I finally looked at the clock after he'd been barking for a while--it was 5:30 a.m.! He'd been barking for at least 2 1/2 hours. I got up, went to the hallway, turned on the light, and he ran outside. What could be up with him? Nothing has changed in our house. He's nine now, but still acts like a baby. Any suggestions on how to stop this? Sorry for the long post.

 

[Dozer-Digger]

Install a Clapper, that way when he barks the lights come on. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[clarejon]

maybe leave the light on when going to bed tonight and see if it still happens? maybe he cant see in the dark anymore?

 

[murraysmom]

Raccoon?

Our backyard is a pathway for skunks this time of year- I leave lights on in the back and side of the house and that discourages them.

 

[jallen9696]

I think the light on or the clapper are great ideas... the clapper is a classic...how about a night light...I know Moosie picks the strangest hours to come in, get on the stool and perch his head on the bed...as though he is saying..."are you gonna get up now, Mom?"...this morning he followed me everywhere when I was up at 3:00...and he followed me into the kitchen, the computer room, the bathroom taking a shower, then back to the bedroom to change...the whole time dropping to the floor with an exceptionally loud clunk.... and sighing loudly with an occassional whine...which I think was thrown in for good measure...I think they have "needy days"...I even tried the "out out" routine with the flood lights, a few treats but...no go...so I chaulk it up to a "needy day"...I love it and would not change it for the world....hope the idea of the light works for you...I can imagine getting that I would get a little cranky with the barking!

 

[Lightning&Stomps]

I think the Clapper is an excellent idea! :lol: I'm going to install one as soon as I can. I'll let you know how it turns out. At the very least it will be a funny addition to the list of things I do for these crazy animals. On a serious note, I do worry that maybe his eyesight is going, even though he's only 9. He doesn't act like it, but it's one of the few things I can think of that might cause this behavior change. Thanks for the ideas!

 

[biscuit]

Lightning is a little young for this, but Lady is, as far as we can figure, "really old," as the vet puts it. And she's got a little bit of doggie senility going on. Not bad - more amusing than anything - but one thing she does is bark in the middle of the night.

Of course, she also sometimes forgets she's coming in the door when she's halfway in. Or she goes outside to pee and forgets why she went out. I have to remind her - seriously! "Lady, peepee! Peepee!" or "Lady, you're coming in the house! That's right, you were going this way! Good girl!"

Another she does is, if she sees an animal, she'll start barking, then she seems to forget why she's barking but she's pretty sure she started doing it for a good reason so she decides she'd better not stop barking. Or at least that's as far as I can figure out what she's thinking. So I sometimes have to remind her she doesn't have to bark. "Lady! Oh Lady! Psst! It's okay now, you don't have to bark! Let's go look. See? It's gone."

Lady is kind of like having a sweet old great grandma living in the house. You know: "Grandma! Grandma!! The spoons are over here. If you try to stir with the hammer, you might break your cup!" Or "Grandma! You don't need to hurry up and finish your desert! The Ed Sullivan Show went off the air 40 years ago!" :lol: :lol:

That said, I agree about the clapper. I'd do it here, but all heck would probably break loose. Yogi's never liked to bark too much, but Lady and him have started having these call and response duet things, with Yogi barking once in one room and Lady barking back once, then Yogi responding, then Lady ... " They really enjoy it. But if they figured out they could make lights go off and on while they're doing it, they'd probably never stop. :blink: :blink:

 

[Lightning&Stomps]

Biscuit, you're so funny! I'm going to get the clapper, but I foresee Lightning figuring out it's a scam within a day or two. He's very smart when it suits him. For instance, he barks maniacally when I'm preparing his dinner. Nothing I've tried has gotten him to stop. So then I taught him a hand signal for "hush." Now when I use the hand signal, he runs into the next room, where he can't see me, and continues his crazy barking. Crazy like a fox, I tell you.