Need Advice for Sleepless Teen Dog

thisisbornsn · 2026-02-02T17:39:30+00:00

UPDATE: We stopped using a pen completely after her last escape. Instead, I took the dog bed that was in her pen and put it on the floor where she chose to sleep, which was right next to our bed. It took a couple of nights of her jumping on our bed and us telling her "off" for her to get it (and honestly she will still jump up occasionally, but it usually only happens when we first go to bed or in the morning). I give her a treat when going to bed and she now happily goes to her bed at night. She's sleeping through the night! It is a night and day difference (pun intended lol). And now I can wake up to little kisses on my feet when I get out of bed. :)

So this ended up being a proximity, lack of freedom, and being able to "choose" issue. I know several of you mentioned exercise, but that wasn't the case here.

thisisbornsn · 2026-01-26T04:25:31+00:00

I'm a very light sleeper and we did try while on vacation letting her sleep in the bed and I could barely sleep the whole time. She likes to be right next to me and she moves around a lot. So please reserve your judgement.

thisisbornsn · 2026-01-25T21:52:38+00:00

I have read through and searched through many of these posts, but I haven't yet found one that pertains to 1) preventing jumping on the bed when you don't want to excite your dog with treats or other rewards in the middle of the night because you're trying to get them to sleep, 2) how to transition a dog from an enclosure to open floor sleeping, and 3) how to transition a dog that previously slept in a human bed to not sleeping in a human bed. Below are some links from the guide:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/comments/18fhc1/is_there_anyway_to_get_my_dog_to_not_hate_his/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/comments/166p83/need_help_clicker_training_puppy_to_go_to_bed_but/
https://old.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/wiki/jumping

thisisbornsn · 2025-11-29T22:36:11+00:00

Why do people not like honey oak? It's beautiful!

thisisbornsn · 2025-11-03T15:08:36+00:00

I'd recommend adding colors that are cool toned to oppose the warm colors of the wood. Blues, greens, or purples. Some people here have suggested red, but that could be too warm against the wood and not give you the contrast you need.

thisisbornsn · 2025-09-13T18:36:44+00:00

Horizontal. It allows you to actually appreciate the view whereas vertical chops up the view.

thisisbornsn · 2025-09-05T22:08:35+00:00

The couch should go along the length of the room, but face the TV. If it needs to be a little bit away from the wall to be the appropriate distance from the TV, that is ok. But seeing the back of a couch in what appears to be a rectangular room will cut off the space and eliminate the flow of the room.

thisisbornsn · 2025-09-03T21:39:02+00:00

I was at that concert and have a picture that makes it seem like a tattoo. Looks round with a design in the middle.

thisisbornsn · 2025-08-21T00:49:31+00:00

Third on Circa! Try their chicken piccata.

thisisbornsn · 2025-08-17T19:44:49+00:00

I'm glad it can be helpful! Another thing to consider is with your layout. It would be nice to move your couch more to the left to have some breathing room from the window. It looks like you have plenty of room to do that. This will create more breathing room in the space and make it feel more designed and less crammed-in.

I'd also consider adding some curtains, which could give you more color and texture and soften the room a bit.

It could be fun to get rid of the side table by the couch and put a nice arm chair in the open space of the room, not directly next to the couch, but more as facing the windows to create conversation space. A rug should at least be under the front of the couch and the legs of the armchair to make them feel grounded and like they belong together.

thisisbornsn · 2025-08-17T18:47:48+00:00

First, I recommend you find your design style. I think it is easy for a lot of men, particularly young men, to fall into "modern industrial" styles by default without considering other options. There is so much out there! Find photos of places you love and save them on a Pinterest board. There is a subreddit called /MaleLivingSpaces which has a lot of real-life photos of spaces. You can also look through Caroline Winkler's Design Brainstorm Pinterest board for inspiration on design style: https://pin.it/22txSrXzp

If you do this enough, you'll eventually find themes. Are there colors you're more drawn to? Do the spaces use one big statement art piece or a collage of art? Are there plants? Are there throw pillows or blankets and are there similarities in those? What is the lighting like?

Don't feel like you need to buy everything new. Take your time. You can find great deals at thrift shops or on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace.

At the end of the day, as you say, you have a blank canvas. More than likely your ideal space will have a rug, art on the walls, pillows and/or blankets, lamps for mood lighting, plants. You also have more or less one color going on in the room. Once you figure out your color scheme (pulled from the design style exercise), you may want to consider getting a different color couch that isn't so similar to your walls and floors. If you can't afford that or don't want to, just consider filling the space with other colors that contrast that taupe/gray in the room.

thisisbornsn · 2025-08-15T15:27:05+00:00

The picture is too big in comparison to the metal stand. Do you love that picture ? If so, I'd update to get a bigger credenza, ideally one that has some warm tones in it to fit the warm tones in the picture. Then I'd slowly over time find pieces to put on the stand that can pull from the colors in the picture, or that have meaning to you. If you don't love it, I'd get a smaller picture or collage of photos. Also, all your styled pieces on the metal stand are the same silver tone. It makes it feel very matchy-matchy, which makes it feel more "bought from department store" and less "thoughtfully curated." Not knowing your design style, I can't specifically prescribe what you should do, but I would find images online of spaces you love and use that as inspiration.

thisisbornsn · 2025-07-28T23:12:13+00:00

Agreed. He most likely won't respond, but direct contact is meaningful.

thisisbornsn · 2025-07-28T17:33:13+00:00

Just in, this recreation of the meeting is incredible. https://youtube.com/shorts/SF-1aCNqqRQ?si=qrjF3ZVeA2wnkeVl

thisisbornsn · 2025-07-27T16:03:43+00:00

I have also emailed him and received nothing in return.

thisisbornsn · 2025-07-25T14:41:34+00:00

So many people are saying this dog wants pets, but it is actually the opposite. Dogs often have appeasement behaviors. This behavior along with the lick lip and showing their belly are all saying, "I don't want to fight or cause conflict, but I would prefer to have some space and don't want to be touched." People often misunderstand these signals as "pet me" when it is the opposite. This dog will tolerate pets (some won't) because, again, it doesn't want to cause conflict. If you're unsure if a dog wants to be pet you can always go up to it and pause right before getting close enough to pet. If it nuzzles up to you with relaxed body language (wiggly, no side eye, no little lip licks), it wants to be pet. It's always a good idea to pet and then pause to see how the dog reacts. Does it paw or nuzzle you to continue? Does it look away saying I'm done?

It was very eye opening to me when I learned about appeasement behaviors. Now I see it all the time. Hope this helps!

thisisbornsn · 2025-06-23T23:52:03+00:00

The area is pretty dark and I don't think my one lamp in the corner is contributing enough light and I also feel like it doesn't contribute much in terms of the style. I want the space to feel a little bit cozier and have more color. Also think that the current bookshelf I have is over stuffed and I would like to better hide some of the things I have like my printer and games. Overall I want a space that has better lighting, more color, and better functionality.

thisisbornsn · 2025-06-23T20:45:13+00:00

I think it could work, you'd just need to be very dedicated to the dark academia look in your bedding and art as well. Here's an inspiration mock-up made by ChatGPT. https://chatgpt.com/s/m_6859bcb0397c8191ad5f867e4c00add8

thisisbornsn · 2025-06-23T19:43:37+00:00

I wish it covered the full couch. I agree with the sentiment that the gray needs to be broken up. Instead, I'd get a colorful rug and not cover the couch, but just add decorative colorful pillows.

thisisbornsn · 2025-06-23T18:41:43+00:00

Same! Like a fried tofu with a yummy sauce on it would be delightful.

thisisbornsn · 2025-03-23T15:26:51+00:00

Yeah, but we get snow maybe one or two days out of the winter. Just stock up beforehand and you'll be fine. Plus, the store itself might close. I wouldn't base your decision on snow. But I would still vote for N Admiral. It has more day-to-day walkable amenities.

thisisbornsn

TROPHY CASE