I know there are alot of animal lovers on here so I would like some advise and opinions. We have 2 outside big dogs that are about 8 years old and we've had them since they were only weeks old. They grew up together and can't get along without each other. They play all the time and have never fought with each other. They are always together. But here for the past 3 months or so they have been getting into it during the night many times for some reason. They just bicker all night and keep us awake. Getting onto them doesn't help. I will not hit a animal. So.....I have read that you can give dogs Melatonin for reasons like if one is scared of thunder, or maybe has had surgery to him one sleep, etc. For the last 2 night I have give them 3mgs of Melatonin and never heard a word out of them all night.....and I finally got to sleep thru the night! So has anyone ever give their pet Melatonin? Is it safe to give everynight? I sure don't want to harm them in any way! They are my kids. I would just like your input on this. Thanks!

do you have a vet that you can call and ask? to find out the correct dosages also?

I would call the vet and ask them. If they know your dogs, then they would know what your dogs can handle. They look very sweet.

If they are outside dogs, is something "out there" bothering them or alerting them?

melatonin didn't work for me at all. please check with your Vet before you give animals anything. they may have something else you can try. but also try to see if there may be a reason for this behavior.

They are just aggravating each other for some reason. I did call the vet and he said it would be fine but I was just curious if anyone had given to their dogs.

Marsye,

Your babies are adorable! After I read your post I googled giving Melatonin to dogs. There's a lot of info out there. Evidently it's used more for stress relief than to get dogs to sleep better. I wish I'd known about it when we had our beloved Keeshond. She was terrified of thunderstorms. We always knew when a storm was coming because about an hour ahead of time she'd start to hide. If it started storming during the night she would wake us up until we'd pet her and hold her to comfort her.

Fireworks were a nightmare for her, poor thing. I would shut all the windows and turn on the a/c (if that wasn't already done), which helped a little, but she was just so scared. We always watched our town's fireworks from our back yard, but eventually I stopped watching them and stayed in the house with her to keep her calm. I should have gotten a sedative from the vet, but never did. From what I read on the internet, Melatonin might have worked well for Keesha.

Marsye, Keesha and Sammy (our Peke), were very loving and close like your dogs. However, for some reason they'd get active at night and start growling, racing back and forth through the house, and playing/nipping at each other. They didn't do it all the time, but fairly often. It didn't last all night though, just for about an hour then they'd collapse and go to sleep. Since your dogs are doing this the entire night, have you considered crating them separately to correct their behavior instead of or in addition to using the Melatonin?

I just love their pic. They really are sweeties.

Sandy

Did you change anything in their environment? Sometimes readjusting the position of the bed can send ours into a tail spin. Did they sneak a toy out or is there something they may be fighting over? They can be like children. It's odd that they "just" started this behavior so I think something changed.

Thanks Sandy! My dog on the left is also terified of storms and fireworks so I know what you went thru, exactly! They are outside dogs and crating them would be very difficult....one of them would throw a fit. I think he was abused as a puppy and he wouldn't be able to handle that. I'm just hoping someday they will settle down on their own.

Nothing as changed that we can find.

Dr. took my niece off Adderall and put her on Melatonin. Said it was much safer and would give her the same focus. It's non addictive, non habit forming, and cost a fraction of the Adderall. My vet told me to give my dog Meatonin when we were traveling and she was getting nervous in the car.

Duh, if I'd read your first post more carefully I would have realized you said they're outside dogs, so crating wouldn't be an option. Well, it sounds as though the Melatonin is working. Hopefully it will continue to work and get them through this bickering period and back to their normal loving selves.

I feel so sorry for dogs who are terrified of storms and fireworks. It always took a few weeks to get Keesha back to normal after July 4th. We have a fenced-in yard, but she was always scared to go out after the fireworks were over. I'd have to put her on a leash to get her to go out with me, then she'd be ready to head right back inside as soon as she relieved herself.

Sammy, on the other hand, used to love the fireworks. Well, I don't know that he actually cared anything about the fireworks themselves, but we always had relatives come to watch them with us and he loved the party atmosphere and laying on a blanket in the yard with us at night. The noise didn't seem to bother him at all. But suddenly he changed. One year he was fine, the next year he acted almost as terrified as Keesha. And he's been that way ever since. He wants to be outside with us right up to the time he hears the first boom, then he races for the door. He doesn't become nearly as anxious as she was though, he just wants to be inside. Maybe it's an age thing, as a young dog he didn't mind the noise, but as he's gotten older it bothers him more.

Well, it certainly sounds like Melatonin can be very helpful for nervous or anxious dogs. The only drawback is it shouldn't be used if a dog is on certain medications. I appreciate learning about it. Thanks!

My dad has to give meds to his dog when it storms. He always knows about an hour before the storm hits it is coming. I'll ask him what he gives his dog.

Interesting as I have a rat terrier who is terrified of thunder. I always know when a storm is coming, she shivvers and trembles so bad. I will check into this as I would like to be able to ease her discomfort.

BTW, love the picture of your fur babies.

Marsye, are they both boy's? I had a problem with my guys 5 years ago and it got vicious, the big one took a chunk out of the little ones neck, so it was very serious. I took them to a specialist who figured out that I had their alpha dog thing confused, and I did it. So they were trying to do it and were not having much sucess. Some one has to be a pack leader and it has to be you, so when ever they get into it you have to get them both on the ground and take over as a pack leader. This can only get worse, I saw little signs and ignored them until one tried to kill the other. Now they get a long well and realize I'm the boss, take them to where they sleep and make them stay. By all means I do not hit, smack or even raise my voice, I just look them straight in the eye and do a low growl, to let them know this is the head dog. So far it's been working, just don't let it go to far. We are the ones that usually cause our animals to have issues. God I love them to death, and you have a couple of cuties there. Good Luck

I don't know how to answer you, but I wanted to say your babies are adoreable

Your kids are so cute. Never thought of giving melatonin to my two min pins who are both just terrified of thunder or other loud noises. Will give it a try next time, (wont happen till next summer now).

:) Adorable babies. Give them loys ofmhugs and kisses for me. I adore animals. I would also ck w/vet.

Hugs

Helen

If your pups are both male, is it possible that a female has moved into the neighborhood? A female in heat can cause males to become competitive with each other. And she doesn't have to be real close, just close enough for a dog to know!! Ya know?

Maybe I should tell my DM to look into it for hers, gets kind of hyper sometimes.

Maybe I should tell my DM to look into it for hers, gets kind of hyper sometimes.

Well someone on here suggested all natural Rescue Remedy so I bought some off of Ebay. You use 4 drops on a treat at bedtime. I've used it the last 2 nights and not a word out of them. :thumbup: Now if I could just find something that would magically give me more time in the day. :lol: