So Madoc is about 9 1/2 weeks old, we got him at 8 weeks.  He is doing really well with not going potty in his crate, the only time he has any accidents in there are during the afternoon, when he's alone for about 4 hours and 15 minutes.  He's about 50/50 having accidents during that time frame.  I know that it is because he just can't hold it that long yet, and we definitely don't punish him or anything for that.  My wife and I are still working on a plan where he doesn't have to be alone for that long, but have no solution yet.

The reason I'm writing, though, is that I would like to get some opinions/suggestions about night time whining.  He never has any night time accidents, we take him out religiously on schedule - bed at 9:30, potty at 12:30, 3:30, up at 6:30.  Since the first night we got him he hasn't had a single nighttime accident, so i feel we're doing this part pretty well.  What I'd like to know is what can be done to stop the whining that he does when he goes back in his crate after a nighttime potty break.  The first few nights, we practiced "tough love" as suggested by so many books and training articles so as not to teach him - "Make noise, get out of crate".  But after a few nights of over an hour straight of really loud barking/crying/whining we couldn't handle it.  If we put him in his crate and lay down in front of it where he can see us, he will go to sleep in about 2-5 minutes.  But, if he wakes up after only an hour or so of being in there and starts whining, what can we do?  It's not because he has to potty, because he will go right back to sleep if we go lay by him for a minute or three.  We don't want to continue the laying down by him until he's asleep thing, because I know we're conditioning him to think "whine = get attention" which is what we don't want.  His crate is "denned", covered on the top, back and two sides.  Any suggestions other than ticking clock, soft music, warm milk jug? 

Thanks so much!  Also, new to the forum, so "Hi" everyone.

Well, we expected him to cry and whine the first few nights but figured that, given the correct stimulations (ignore when whining/crying not prompted by need to potty; praise when being quiet) that after a week or so the whining would subside, and he would associate the positive reinforcement with the desired behavior....guess that's what I get for trusting book knowledge.  The main reason for my post was not necessarily to stop the whining altogether because I know that, at this early stage in his life, that will likely be his means of communicating "Hey!  I need to potty and I don't want to go in my bed!"  I just wanted to get some ideas/opinions from others that have maybe had the same issue, and get feedback on what worked and what didn't without conditioning the dog towards negative behaviours, i/e make noise = freedom and play time.  I guess we also thought that, given sufficient exercise, he would be more of a sleeper and, even if he would whine and bark, it would subside after a few minutes.  

What can I say...this is my first new puppy since I was a little boy, and I want to make sure that I'm doing everything as "right" as I can so as not to stifle any of his inherent natural abilities for the hunt in conjunction with bringing him up to be a great family companion.

Thanks to all for the advice and suggestions.  I know we'll work through it together and it will be very rewarding. 

I have checked out my local NAVHDA chapter as well as read quite a bit about them.  Still have to get my hands on "The Green Book" and will soon.  Unfortunately, I live in FL and they are not having training days in July/August because it's just so stinkin' hot.  I will definitely take him out the first opportunity they have, which is in September.

Also, through some suggestions of several websites, as well as forums, I've purchased and read Joan Bailey's "How to Help Your Gundog Train Themselves".  Also have her "How to Have the Best Trained Gundog" - but have only skimmed that one as it is more for an older puppy (6 months or so) and incorporates more advanced training techniques which will be utilized further down the road. 

We're VERY excited to train him ourselves, and have already done quite a bit of work on "Come".  We're impressed with how quickly he's learning this command as I know that it is probably tops on the "need to know" command list.  

Also, sidenote, I don't want anyone to think he's a terror.  He does, from reading lots of posts on here, what any GSP puppy does.  Chews on toys mostly (the occasional couch leg for about 2 seconds before we can replace it with an acceptable alternative), romps around with our 8 year old pug, and just loves to run around and explore when we're outside.  We're using a 50' check cord for the outside portion of his "Come" training and we're very impressed with how well he is doing, even though he is only 9 weeks old.  I know he will grow up to be a wonderful dog.  Just sometimes, as many others on here have talked about, the puppy stuff can be challenging! 

Yesterday he did make us very very very proud when he rang his bell for the first time to go outside to potty.

DoubleR, I had two crates with Zoe, a regular wire crate in the kitchen and then a hard plastic travel one in my bedroom.  The vet advised me to put one in the bedroom for at night and it helped a lot with the whining.  A friend of mine suggested the cuddle pal to me which I bought at Petsmart or Petco and it helped a lot. It's got a little pocket on the back of it with velcro and you open it up and it has a little bean bag filled with corn husks that you microwave for 30 seconds and put in the kennel with them - I think the warmth is soothing to them.

http://www.amazon.com/Pet-Stages-Puppy-Cuddle-Pal/dp/B0006MU8WC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342556952&sr=8-1&keywords=petstages+puppy+cuddle+pal

Smatulewicz - I had the same issue with both Archer & Zoe destroying dog beds and someone suggested to me that I take the bedding out and replace it with old sheets or towels.  I did this and it works like a charm no more bed destruction! And it makes it very easy to wash!