When it comes to West Highland Terriers (or Westies) and their sleeping habits, many of us might get a little confused about how much sleep they need and a number of other aspects. However, one of the biggest questions that us dog owners might have is to due with how early Westies wake up. Because of that, you may need to put a certain amount of thought into your dog’s sleep habits, even before you actually get the dog.
It may be a simple question but the answer isn’t as simple as many people might think. After all, it can come down to your specific dog as much as it the breed itself.
Here’s a video of our Sami’s morning ritual. By the way, he NEVER wakes up on his own earlier than 10am. NEVER!
With that in mind, how early do Westies wake up? The answer to that question depends on when your dog actually goes to sleep. However, a proper sleep habit can be ingrained in them through proper training. Because of that, you’ll be able to ensure that your Westie gets up as early, or as late, as you like.
Aside from when your Westie goes to sleep, there are a number of other things that can have a major effect on how early your Westie will wake up. Because of that, there are a number of things that you may need to do in order to ensure that your dog is getting as much sleep as it needs while still adhering as closely as possible to your sleeping habits.
How Much Sleep Does A Westie Need?
West Highland Terriers are known for the amount of energy they have during the day. With that kind of energy, however, they need a certain amount of rest in order to stay healthy.In fact, like a number of other breeds of dogs, they need more sleep than most people. According to a number of reports, West Highland Terriers need about 13 hours sleep over a 24 hour period. Having said that, they will be able to get the vast majority of this sleep during the night when you’re asleep.
If they sleep for the majority of the night and get roughly the same amount of actual sleep that you do, then your Westie won’t need to rest too much during the day. However, they will still need to take a number of naps during the day in order to get to the 13 hour mark. Should they be getting that much sleep between naps and the night, then your Westie will be its healthy and energetic self. You should also make note if your West Highland Terrier is oversleeping or undersleeping, which may indicate some problems.
Having said that, should they get anywhere around the 13 hour mark during the entire day and night, then they’ll be perfectly healthy and it won’t negatively affect your dogs health or energy. Like many other signs, it’s always beneficial to ensure your dog is getting the right amount of sleep during the day and night.
How To Get Your Westie To Sleep Properly
In order to get your West Highland Terrier to sleep properly, you’ll first need to give them the right kind of training when they’re young. After all, the vast majority of dogs need to be trained and Westies aren’t much different. The only major difference is that on top of regular training, you’ll need to teach the dog when and where to sleep.
One of the most effective ways of doing this is through crate training, although you could also train them by letting them sleep with you in the bedroom. However, this may not be as effective as crate training, which has become one of the most recommended ways of training a Westie when they’re still young.
What Is Crate Training?
Crate training is almost exactly what it sounds like; the use of a crate (or something similar) in order to appeal to the breeds natural instincts. These particular instincts aim for a West Highland Terrier to find a place that’s secure, safe and comfortable for them to sleep in. This has carried over from before the breed was domesticated and has stuck with them since.
That’s not a unique idea to Westies, either; the vast majority of people and dogs need somewhere that’s safe and comfortable for them to sleep. Using the likes of a crate helps appeal to this natural den instinct; if the training is done right, then they will go to their sleep area of their own accord when it’s time to sleep or nap.
There are a number of options available when it comes to setting this up, either when you’re training them or even long after that, should you be moving or redecorating the house. Many West Highland Terrier owners tend to use one of two options. The first of these is setting up the crate in a large pen. This allows the dog to play and sleep in the one area. Because of that, they may tend to create less of a mess when they’re playing.
That makes this kind of setup the preferred one for dog owners; after all, less of a mess caused by your dog means that there’s less to clean up every day. The second option is to set up the crate somewhere else in the house, where you believe would be the best place for your West Highland Terrier to sleep. If you were to go for this option, you should also consider how accessible the crate is for your Westie. After all, there’s no point in setting it up somewhere that they won’t be able to get to of their own accord.
It should also be noted that you shouldn’t use the crate as a form of punishment. For example, you mightn’t be able to use the crate as a way to lock your Westie away. This is because the dog many begin to associate the crate with negative connotations. Your West Highland Terrier needs somewhere where they feel safe and secure in order to properly sleep. This won’t be the case if they associate it with somewhere to go when they’ve been bold.
Sleeping On Their Own Vs Sleeping With Owners
Generally speaking, West Highland Terriers don’t have much of a preference when it comes to where they sleep in the house. As we’ve already mentioned above, they have a natural den instinct which is why you have to ensure that the area is safe and secure. When it comes to choosing between sleeping in the same room as their owners versus sleeping somewhere on their own, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference on their sleeping habits.
Having said that, some Westies may prefer sleeping on their own, whereas other may prefer sleeping in the same room as their owners. This is because they may feel more comfortable when there’s somebody else in the room at night. However, this is more of a personal preference and doesn’t have too much of an impact on their sleeping habits.
That being said, no matter which choice you go for, you should ensure that your Westie doesn’t wander too much during the night. This is because they’ll end up needing to sleep more during the daytime in order to compensate for the lack of sleep during the night. With that in mind, it could also be argued that you should keep the bedroom door closed during the night. This will prevent your Westie from wandering too much.
Whichever option you choose, you should make sure that your Westie has their own place to sleep in the bedroom. This is because of the den mentality that we’ve already mentioned. Your dog will be able to sleep easier with its own space. Furthermore, you won’t be annoyed too much by having the dog moving around in the bed constantly, which can be very annoying over the course of a night.
So How Early Do Westies Wake Up?
All of that information doesn’t exactly answer the question of how early your Westie will wake up. However, the answer is highly dependent on how well you’ve trained your West Highland Terrier. Once you’ve properly trained your dog, then they should be able to go to sleep when you do and follow your sleeping habits.
Because of this kind of training they should also wake up at the same time as you every morning regardless of how early or how late that is. With that in mind, it’s important that you train them effectively so that there’s no problem with their sleep schedule. It should also be noted, however, that your Westie will still need to take several naps throughout the day, as we already mentioned.
However, that leaves open the question of how long will a Westie nap for during the day? In short, it depends on when your goes to sleep at night, and how much sleep they actually get during the night. As a rule of thumb, they’ll nap for a few hours during the day but this will be spread out over several naps. Lastly, you might wonder when should you get your Westie go to sleep at night? As we’ve mentioned above, it’s recommended that you train your dog to go to bed when you’re going to bed. Because of that, they’ll get approximately the same amount of sleep you get during the night.
