Dear Mary . . I think like we humans, pets also have a grieving period of "time". I know that you need your sleep and it can be frustrating to have your furry fam member waking you at odd hours of the night! ;(
I don't really have any advice, other than continue to be compassionate and understanding . . . knowing that "time" will take care of this. As an afterthought, try to ignore negative behavior and support the positive (kind of like raising a two year old). If you consistently give into or acknowledge the negative behavior, it will further instill this behavior for the dog/cat to get the attention it wants. It will take a lot of discipline on your part, but well worth the effort to set some boundaries. I think you'll find that with a little time this will all right itself. Good luck and keep us posted. Hugs, Dayna

I had problems with both of my dogs waking me up VEEERRRRY early for some time. At almost a year now and they are back to their old selves. Please give your dog some more time. My older dog who is 13 was miserable for 9 months. The puppy recovered faster.

For my two dogs, they definitely wake up early since my husband passed away. So it works better if I feed them their evening meal a little later (maybe half hour or 45 minutes), then they tend to sleep about that much later.

And in case they still do wake up too early I just let them outside for a few minutes, then bring them upstairs with me and we all go back to sleep about two more hours before work.

I do the same Lisa.....feed later and take her out before she crates up. She loves her crate as that is her safe place.

mary, there is a new collar out that emits a soothing substance I believe, you might want to ask your vet about it. it just takes time for them to process their grief too.

give your pet some articles of your husband, shirts shoes whater has his smell.

Be careful with the clothing. My puppy, who is completely trained and has no accidents, peed on my deceased husband's shirt. The vet said it was separation anxiety even though I was there.

We had a couple dogs when my husband passed. One was truly his dog and he had a hard time with my husband gone. I put a piece of clothing with him and began taking short walks with him just before bedtime. It will improve. I also cried with him and he became my closest friend. Building that bond will help him to adjust. Sharon

Our dog Taber mourned as well when my Husband passed away 10 weeks ago. He just seemed sad for lack of a better word. We went to see our Vet who recommend a collar that the dog wears for 4 weeks. It is suppose to emit a calming scent to calm a dog. They recommend them for the new pup who is leaving it's Mother. For separation anxiety. It is called Adaptil collar. I live in Canada so may have a different name where you live. Expensive. It was $60.00. I had it on Taber for 5 weeks to be sure to get the full benefit. Also I changed his route for his evening walks and it perked him up abit. Something different to look forward to. The walks are longer as well. Though I can be tired in the evenings, forcing myself with the longer walks meant he slept better and so do I. Did the collar work? We really will never know but they pick up on our emotions as you probably already know. After 10 weeks, maybe he knows it is just me and him now. I am more calm and at least I feel I did something to help him. Good luck. As we walk this difficult path, I can say my dog has given me so much comfort just being here.

I TOO FEED MY DOG LATER IN EVENING, ADDED A HEAPING TABLESPOON OF VANILLA FLAVORED YOGURT.... SEEMED TO HELP

My dog didn't stop until I moved. This same dog had no problems when my mother passed. I was living with my parents at the time of my mother's death, so it didn't make sense. Then I figured it was because my husband died suddenly, without warning. My mom had been sick for nearly a decade.

Have you tried a Thundershirt? I heard this works for dogs with anxiety. Not sure about grief, but it may be worth a try. Here's the link:

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/pet-thundershirts-blue/205365?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=blue%20thundershirt%20dog&device=c&mcid=PS_bing_nonbrand_pet_

My husband's black lab, Cinder, took a while to recover. I took her to an obedience class so we could bond and also spent some separate quality time with her in the evening, training her and playing the games she liked. It took a while but it worked.

Hugs,
Val

My dog sleeps on my wifes old blanket - I haven't washed it - but it brings him comfort and stopped the late night early morning barking episodes.