While crate training Barbie, we found the only really effective way to stop her whinging her lungs out, was to move her crate to the bedroom.
The problem with this is that Barbie often talks in her sleep.
When I was younger, I had a border collie X blue heeler called Lucy and she used to talk in her sleep too. She always slept in my bedroom because I was living in a shared-house at that point in time. The first time she did it, she barked with her mouth closed. It almost sounded like an evil clown laughing. Lucy sometimes cried in her sleep but most often it was this closed-snout bark. Barbie's vocalisations while asleep are more varied though. She goes from huffing and puffing like she is chasing something, to squeaking, to that muffled closed mouth bark. Sometimes she even growls. Sometimes she kicks her crate or hits it with her wagging tail. She must have quite vivid dreams!
Last night I woke up with a start because it sounded like there was a stranger in the room whispering something. I swear they sounded like English words. Once I was fully awake though I realised that it was Barbie huffing.
She has actually grown to accept her crate finally. On mornings where she gets squeezed off the bed, sometimes she will give up and voluntarily curl up in her crate. I always give her a treat at bedtime when she goes in the crate and she doesn't complain anymore. She does the quietest little squeaks in the morning when she wants to go out. She is a fairly subtle dog. I think it may be all about energy conservation. Why put effort into making a lot of noise when some tiny squeaks will do?
