This has been a complete game changer:
https://www.amazon.com/SmartPetLove-Snuggle-Puppy-Behavioral-Brown/dp/B000C9YHFS
Seriously. Heat pack, heart beat, and peaceful sleep. Our 10 week old instantly curls up with it/next to it when we put her in her crate at bed time. Even the first night with it had her sleeping through the night.
Hey everyone, I just wanted to thank you all so much for your detailed and thought-out replies, they were super helpful!
I wanted to follow up and say that the second night went much much better than the first, based off of a few changes I made after reading the feedback here. On her second night, she only cried a few minutes in total the whole night, mostly after returning her to her crate after taking her out to the bathroom. Here are the changes we made:
We decided to keep the crate in the kitchen because I think she has a bad association with our bedroom after a sad first night, and is most comfortable in the kitchen.
We purchased the Smart Pet Snuggle Puppy Behavioral Toy from a local pet store. It comes with a battery powered mechanism on the inside that simulates the heart beat of the dog's mom. When she was tuckered out from daily activity, we got her used to the behavioral toy (as in, not a toy to chew but a toy to cuddle with). This seemed to bring her comfort in her crate. Oddly enough, I was also mildly comforted by the sound of the dog toy's heartbeat haha.
We made sure she was good and tired by the time bedtime rolled around. We sprinted around the back yard during the day and took her for a short 15 minute walk right before bed in a quiet area with no one around.
The biggest thing that we changed is that we decided to keep the crate in the kitchen because she has spent most of her time in the kitchen, and we made a make-shift bed for ourselves on the floor right beside the crate. Then we got her to go in to her crate, closed the door, and went to bed right beside her. At first she cried a bit, but anytime she did we gently told her to "shush" and we put our hands nearby so she could lick or smell them while she laid down in her crate.
The above steps brought about a lot of success the second night and we finally got some decent rest. She didn't cry much and had a good sleep too, I think. The kitchen floor isn't the most comfortable, but it is worth it!
Thank you to everyone who provided some advice and feedback, I really appreciate it!
There is plush puppy you can get on amazon that has a battery powered plastic heart inside of it (you can remove it) that beats and reminds the puppy of being with it’s mother or litter mates. It also comes with a heating pad too! We are only 2 weeks into our puppy adoption and I’m feeling very overwhelmed too, but this toy has been the first thing our puppy will entertain herself with with out us being around!
Here is the link:
SmartPetLove Snuggle Puppy Behavioral Aid Toy https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000C9YHFS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Ll8aFbC2EDF5F