Now it’s 3:20 AM, and I was woken up around 1 AM by the dog barking and haven’t been able to fall asleep again. It seems like there might be a mouse in the house? This might be because I noticed a mousetrap in the kitchen, and I did hear some noises that sounded like a mouse. Now the two dogs have fallen asleep, but I am still awake. 
I would wake the dogs, purely as an act of revenge
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Take the dog into your bedroom and it will stop.
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Unless the animal is in the walls of the bedroom. I had a opossum get into the wall between my bedroom and bathroom once. I never heard it but my Cocker Spaniel would start barking at the wall at 4 in the morning. She was a little crazy anyways so i just ignored it at first until i actually heard it. I had to call Critter Ridder to cone trap it and take it away.
If i were OP, i’d inform the homeowners to see if this was usual behavior. If not they may need to some investigation.
Just checking in on you @CatloverForever - have you managed to catch up on your sleep at all?
This happens to us a few times on sits - we brought the dog beds into the bedroom with us and everyone slept peacefully.
Hopefully you’ve found a solution and managed to get some sleep by now
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The host didn’t allow dog sleep in bedroom. Also the bedroom is extremely hot without air conditioner, so I actually also sleep in the couch during my stay.
Thank you asking. Actually, I didn’t sleep well that night. I only managed to fall asleep when it was already daylight. I felt sleepy the entire day. Thankfully, it only happened for one night.
We are currently on a 10-day pet sit for a 4-year-old maltipoo. Per the pet parent’s instructions, she sleeps in her crate at night. We take her outside for a bathroom break around 10 PM, after which she goes into her crate on her own. However, for the past two nights, she has been barking and whining throughout the night, leaving us sleepless. Noise-canceling earplugs and headphones haven’t helped. Does anyone have suggestions for how to manage this?
@BunnyCat, sorry to hear of your sleepless nights. We recently encountered dogs that barked every night - only briefly but to wake us up. Not sustainable.
Unsure if the two nights of disturbed sleep were the first two nights of your housesit, or whether dog slept well on initial nights.
Suggest clarify facts. Openly disclose to Pet Parent. Has such barking occurred in the past? Recently? Frequently? A confessions may result. It’s certainly possible that “sleeps in her crate at night” is an aspirational statement - we’ve encountered this on several topics. It’s possible that, in the real world, dog is accustomed to sleeping in pet parent bed or in pet parent bedroom. As necessary, you may need to pivot tactics.
Assess pet. Does there seem any credible reason why dog would be barking at nighttime? Sufficient exercise/food/water/etc? Any seeming medical issues?
Consider VET helpline, subject to membership level.
Ultimately it is not your pet. Next step actions may vary materially depending on Pet Parent communication and any pet assessment.
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@Bunnycat What about putting a rug or something over the top and down most of the side of the crate? I’ve found this can help.
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Those were first two nights of our sit. Pet parent is silent so far (messages are read, but un-replied). There is no mention of any barking or whining at night in the welcome guide or during the handover.
We did that, but it appears the dog has spent the night shredding the blanket by pulling it down. We also tried leaving a radio on, but that didn’t make a difference.
Oh, how annoying! Not good owners haven’t responded to you either.
Maybe add a piece of clothing that smells like the dog’s humans, to comfort them while falling asleep? Separately, at a sit where I sat a year-old pup, the pup got a chew treat every night when she went into her crate, which occupied her for a stretch and created positive associations to some degree with the crate.
Maybe other folks have other suggestions. And if nothing else works, maybe move her crate into another room so you don’t have to hear (so clearly).
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@BunnyCat, first night being disturbed and no comms from Pet Parent seems an ominous combination.
Would you reasonably expect Pet Parent to respond in timely manner? Materially different time zones. Rural locations with limited internet. Intensive activities (e.g. wedding, celebrations). Each could reasonably impair PP response time.
If nighttime barking continues and Pet Parent is unreasonably responsive then suggest reach out to member services at support@trustedhousesitters.com. THS can directly contact PP with related question and to seek guidance … perhaps PP may be more responsive to comms from THS MS.
It remains my hope that there is an accidental and/or unlucky happenstance. But there is certainly a non-zero possibility that this behaviour was well known to PP and consciously omitted from housesit listing and welcome guide. Fingers crossed this is not the case.
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Thank you to everyone who shared suggestions and advice on this topic. The homeowner responded yesterday (they are at a remote camping location), and we adjusted the dog’s sleeping arrangement from a locked crate to an unlocked one. Now the dog has full access to the first floor at night. The homeowners explained that they only asked us to lock the crate to prevent accidents on the carpet, but we assured her that we go to bed pretty late and wake up at 5 a.m. (compared to her usual 8–9 a.m.). Last night, everyone got a good night’s sleep, no barking and whining and there were no accidents this morning. Thanks again, everyone!
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So great to hear, thanks for letting us know!
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That’s a good outcome @BunnyCat 
I’m so glad the owner got in touch and that you were able to agree something that worked better for you and your new canine pal.
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