Ever wondered- Why does your little boy sleep like it is a long sleep marathon? Meet my Labrador Casper- a pup who fantasizes more than he barks all day.
Labrador pups are little bundles of joy filled with- energy, cuteness and playfulness. But like human toddlers and babies, they also need a bunch of rest and sleep to grow both mentally and physically. Sleep and rest are crucial in the development of mental and physical health. But sometimes, a lab puppy cannot sleep according to his needs due to some environmental factors or stress, leading to excessive barking, chewing nature and an overall frustrated floof. So, if you are a first-time lab parent, then you might be wondering how many hours does a Labrador puppy sleep? And how do you ensure that your lab catches those luxurious ZZZs without getting that midnight chaos?
How many hours does a Labrador Puppy Sleep
Lab puppies, like human babies, need a lot of sleep to develop both mentally and physically. On average, a lab puppy sleeps 18 to 20 hours per day till they reach the age of four to six months. They take frequent short naps instead of taking one long deep sleep. After six months, the lab puppy starts getting to be an adult. From the age of four months to six months, the lab puppies sleep span starts getting a little shorter, which is 16 to 18 hours per day. Now, after six months, the age from 7 months to seven years, the sleep span of Labrador is only 12 to 14 hours per day depending on the activities he does all day. But remember, a lab sleeps to balance his activities and mental health and to get energy to do work. So, if he does more activities, he will sleep more to get energy.
Tips for Ensuring Your Lab Gets Enough Sleep
My Lab, Casper, used to drive me and my family crazy at night due to his strange sleep routine. He’d doze off like a night-shift worker who is totally exhausted from his work and at night, he would run and bark around like there’s a doggo party goin’ on. He made both our neighbors and us wake up at 2 AM with his loud Boww Boww (Poor neighbors- they couldn’t sleep because of a wild animal). After a week of this routine, our neighbors usually called us at 2 AM, asking “What’s goin’ on there? Is everything okay?” Our reply always was “It’s Casper again.” After hearing this answer 15 to 16 times, they moved out (Uff…Casper). Yup- he made one house abandoned. At that time, the dog in the streets also felt well-mannered. I knew this was the time to make a stop to his routine. I searched and searched on Google… And I struck gold – Sleep Tips. Hurray!! And after following those tips? Life changed. He started sleeping all night and the 2 AM chaos? Disappeared. We finally started to sleep like normal humans again.
If you are a bit skeptical that your lab is also turning into a night ninja like my Casper, you can also follow the tips that I followed. These tips will help you survive:
👉 Establish a Routine:
Puppies survive on a routine which is followed by consistency. Make a routine of sleeping, eating and outdoor activities and doing potty. This will help with easy sleeping and easy doing other activities.
👉 Create a Comfy Sleep Place:
Make a comfy place to sleep by keeping a bed or crate and dim lighted and quiet area. Make sure the bed or crate is warm and clean by ensuring that there are no drafts and no loud noise (Don’t scream loud if your lab is not sleeping. Just make him feel relaxed!).
👉 Limit Exercise before Sleep Time:
Avoid over energetic stimulation before sleep time as it can overexcite the pup and will make sleep difficult.
👉 Provide Sufficient Exercise in a Day-time:
Lab is an energetic and active dog breed. So, make him do both mental and physical work, so that he can be tired by the end of the day and be ready to sleep (Don’t get confused in this and above tip).
👉 Establish a Bedtime Routine:
Create a soothing pre- sleep massage or gentle playing to give him a signal that it is time to sleep.
👉 Monitor Diet and Meal Times:
When it is dinnertime make sure you don’t feed him heavy meals as it can disturb puppy’s sleep by making him wake up at nighttime to go to washroom.
👉 Ensure Bathroom Breaks:
Before going to sleep, always ensure bathroom breaks to avoid interruption during sleep.
👉 Avoid Disturbance:
Once your pup has slept, ensure that there is no kind of disturbance that can wake up your pup.
👉 Address Anxiety or Stress:
Lab puppies can suffer from anxiety or stress if they are exposed to new routine. You can avoid anxiety or stress by giving them things like calming aids and comforting things like a blanket with their mother’s scent.
👉 Be Patient:
If your lab is having difficulty with the new sleep routine, then be patient and positively encourage your lab to adjust according to it on a regular basis.
Conclusion
How many hours does your lab pup sleep? Literally, a lot!! From 18 to 20 hours per day as a little pup to 16 to 18 hours per day as furry adolescents. An overenergetic adult sleeps from 12 hours to 14 hours depending on the wild activities he does the entire day.
If your furball is having problems in catching those ZZZ’s like my buddy Casper- you should set a routine, create a comfortable sleeping place, keep a track of his night snackies to prevent his potty break during the nighttime, and ensure bathroom breaks to avoid that pee and potty dramas. These gold tips really work like magic. My Casper now strikes the bed before me.
There’s nothing better than these sleep tips as these will help you to make your midnight party lab sleep peacefully without that midnight chaos. Just trust me guys- When your lab sleeps well… You will also sleep like a baby in his deep sleep.
Casper’s saying- “After those hooman massages, catchin’ those precious Zzzs is my new hobby. Sorry squirrels and butterflies, you can blame my hooman.”
Thank you for reading this article and stay tuned for more!