I leave the door open, i have water, toys and his bed in it. He is 5mths, we had the whining and howling ect, but we carried on. Just keep going if thats where you want him to sleep. I also fited an old paddling pool in the bottom for any mishaps. Once mine was trained to go outside, i found he will whin in the night if he needs to go. Still only puppies, it will stop . I tried the tv, but it didnt work, i did put a teddy in with him, he liked that so much, he nearly has as many as my 7 yr old