Is A Puppy Night Light an Effective Sleep Aid?

When you bring a puppy home, it’s natural to want to provide him with the most comfortable living arrangement possible. In fact, you should. This desire to create coziness will obviously extend your new pal’s sleeping arrangement. This may include a night light - but should it include one?

Why Would Someone Consider a Puppy Night Light?

Puppies - particularly those that are freshly removed from a litter - may suffer from separation anxiety when they first move into your home. Logically speaking, this is totally understandable. After all, your new little buddy will have gone through quite a dramatic life change by the time he reaches your doorstep. These anxieties tend to especially manifest during the night, where their whines, barks, and yelps could be interpreted as him missing his mother and litter mates.

It can be quite a frustrating thing to deal with, and it may cause novice dog owners to second-guess their decision to bring a pup into the new home. However, these people should take comfort in knowing that this sense of anxiety will most likely dissipate over time. Getting to the point where it ceases will take some effort on your part as it is up to you to create an environment where your dog feels comfortable with you and all you provide him.

Does a Night Light Help a Puppy Get Comfortable with His Surroundings?

Using a nightlight is not a universal solution. As such, using a nightlight is a matter of trial and error, particularly since there is no breed specificity that you can use to make a proper decision. Some pups will find a little glow in the room comforting while other pups will find it a nuisance whose lone purpose is to keep them awake at night.

But Doesn’t a Puppy Need Help to See at Night?

For some pet owners, utilizing a night light in the space where their pup is sleeping is not just a matter of providing potential comfort. It’s also to help them see should they decide to get up in the middle of the night. After all, the last thing you’d want is to have your pup inadvertently bump into something bad or potentially harmful to his little frame, right?

It is a good, if not a sweet, sentiment. The good news here is that you don't need a high wattage light to provide him with this aid. Dogs have superior night vision than we do when it comes to very low light, so the chances of them getting into trouble are minuscule at best.

The reason for this is because of the way their eyes are designed. The back of a dog’s eye contains a special structure that enables a greater reflection of light to the retina. This enhanced reflection makes it possible to utilize trace amounts of light to illuminate where they are walking.

This trick does not work when the space a pup is in is pitch black. If there an absence of light, your pup will see things just about as good as us, which is to say not all that great. But this doesn’t necessarily solidify the need for a nightlight as a must-purchase accessory.

A dog can memorize the lay of the land, if you will, quick enough to where they will know where things are and where things are not. Because of this, it appears as if your dog can make his way around in the dark rather effortlessly. With that being said, it is imperative that you make sure to keep your house arranged in a consistent order to make sure your pup has a firm grip on your home’s layout.

Go Ahead and Try - It’s the Only Way to Find Out!

If you feel compelled to provide your new pup with a night light, by all means do so. It's the only way you'll find out if he would welcome such an enhancement into his life, and he'll let you know through various whines, barks, and yelps if he'd prefer to keep things dark. Of course, if you'd prefer not to upset the applecart and forego any nightlight-related trials, that's perfectly fine, too.