[cbs2008]

Hi, I've been reading some things about crate training, but I still want some additional info/feedback. What do you guys think?

[Shalva]

what do we think about crate training????

well on my part my puppy contract states that the puppy must be crate trained.
not only is it a safe place to travel in a car
if the puppy or adult dog has to go to the vet ie. for spay or neuter they are used to being confined in a crate.....

if you are traveling and are staying in hotels many require the dogs be crated in the room.

it makes housetraining easier.....

it gives your puppy a safe place to hang out when you are tired of watching the little beastie.....

so yeah good idea
s

[mom2kdg]

I think it's one of the best things that you can do for your pet.

[FilleBelle]

What is your question, specifically? What do we think about it or how does one do it or what is its purpose?

I think most of us here are going to give a resounding yes to crate training.

[cbs2008]

Originally Posted by FilleBelle

What is your question, specifically? What do we think about it or how does one do it or what is its purpose?

I think most of us here are going to give a resounding yes to crate training.

Well, I've pretty much decided to give it a go. I just basically need some advice on how its best to go about doing it with an adult dog, everysite I've read was on puppies, I didn't know if you had to go about it differently with an older dog. Any advice will be helpful.

Thanks!!

[briteday]

But a crate that is just big enough for the dog to stand, turn around, and lay down in. Any bigger and they may be tempted to eliminate in their crate since they would be able to avoid sleeping in it. I like the airline type plastic crates as my dogs have always liked the den atmosphere of privacy. And if they happen to have a mess in there of any kind it is pretty much contained to the crate. But many people use the wire crates very effectively as well so it's just personal preference.

I have adopted a few adult dogs and foster many through our shelter. Adult dogs may need to be "put" into the crate for a while, depends on each dog, but most of my dogs go into a crate on their own during the day to nap, enjoy a chew toy without another dog eyeballing them, or just to get out of the activity with kids or such around the house.

Initially all of my dogs ride home in the car in their crate. So it is a fact of life from the time the leash is put in my hands. They are put into the crate to sleep from the first night. Some need a bit of soft talk or a quiet radio station playing in the backround to settle down. Also, putting a light towel or blanket over the crate gives them some security as well. They are let out of the crate as soon as we wake in the morning. If we leave the house for more than an hour they are crated. And if I go to work outside the house during the day they are crated.

We keep their sleeping crates in whatever bedroom they happen to sleep in. My daughter's dogs sleep in her room. My dog sleeps in mine, unless she snores! Sometimes I put my dog out in the laundry room if she's too noisy. We keep a couple of crates (we have 3 dogs) in the family room so they can be with us but in the privacy of their crate if they want to nap or whatever during the day. It's also handy if someone drops by and your dog would be better off in a crate, than to have to run down to the bedroom for a crate. (for instance, we had a family with 5 kids drop in this evening...go crate, hurry!)

Our dogs are not allowed in a vehicle unless they are in a crate. And our vet will often request that we keep a dog crated while they are recovering from something, like a spay, to prevent too much bounding around and to keep them quiet. So crates have many purposes. And a crate should never be used as punishment. Time out to settle down, but never put them in a crate in anger.

[cbs2008]

Ok, thanks for the advice. I hope this works because I'm tired of cleaning pee every morning before work! Thanks again!!

[Shalva]

this is what I give my puppy people, it is written specifically for my retriever puppies but the actual training is the same for all dogs.

Every puppy needs to learn to Relax in a crate. This is important to a puppy’s future. It makes stays at the vet much easier, whenever they have to be confined for medical reasons. It is also necessary for traveling or if you need to board your dog away from home. It’s important during the destructive chewing stage that is likely when your pup hits several months of age. This stage can last until age 2 or so and with retrievers, until they are much older. Another critical time where a crate is needed is during any transitions, and times when you cannot watch your puppy every second. So it’s very important that your new puppy learns to relax in their crate.

When a puppy is trained and reliable in the house which can take quite a long time with a retriever puppy, the crate may be used while you are away to keep your house intact and your puppy safe. Regardless of whether you choose to continue using your crate throughout your puppy’s life or not, it is very important that they are used to their crates.

Usually it works best if you crate your puppy in your bedroom, and yes, close to the bed is fine. In the bed is not, not for the puppy that is going to go through so much transition as it rapidly matures over the next year. If you want your dog to share your bed, wait until after puberty to try that. Make sure that the crate is far enough from the bed that you don’t wake up in the middle of the night to find that your puppy has pulled and is eating all of your blankets inside the crate. It is amazing what a puppy can manage to pull through those bars. I should add that you don’t have to put your puppy in your bedroom. None of my dogs as puppies were in the bedroom, they were downstairs where the noise was muffled just a little, and where when they needed to go out, they had ready access to a door.

Crate training is also a great way to housebreak your puppy. Dogs do not like to soil where they sleep. Puppies are exactly the same and most puppies do not wish to soil their sleeping area. This makes crate training an excellent tool to teach the puppy that they can hold it and that they need to go outside to potty.

The first thing that you want to do is make sure your crate is sized properly. I buy crates that will accommodate my dog as an adult. I want my adult dogs to be able to relax and stretch out in their crates. However, an adult sized crate is way too big for your average puppy. There are many ways to make a crate smaller. I have packed the back of my crates with cardboard boxes…. As the puppy grows I remove some of the boxes. Newer crates come with dividers that can be moved allowing the puppy more room as he/she grows. In a nutshell, you want your puppy to have enough room to sit, stand and lie down, that’s it. You don’t want your puppy to have room to pee on one side of the crate and then move to the other side of the crate to sleep. This is a studio apartment we are talking about here, not a condo.

One last point about crate training is that you should not put any kind of bed or sheepskin or anything that you think your puppy can chew and destroy or swallow into the crate. The only toy that I allow in a crate even with my adult dogs is a kong. This is a chewable rubber like toy that can be filled with peanut butter or yogurt and frozen to give puppy something to do while you are gone.

Now your puppy is not going to be pleased that you have infringed upon his autonomy and his god given right to run throughout your home and pee upon the furniture. It is highly likely that he/she will pitch a fit in the crate. You will want to go and cuddle him and console him and assure him that you will never again put him in that nasty “cage”. OK, two things, get over the “cage” issue. A crate is not a “cage” it is your puppy’s space, his very own space. This means that nobody is allowed in your puppy’s crate except your puppy. This also means kids are not allowed in the crate, as much as you might like to crate them at times, get them their own crate. Second, turn around and walk away. Do not, and I repeat Do not succumb to the screaming. You can do this! You are the human, and you have the power to ignore a pitiful wailing puppy.

The worst thing that people do when they crate train is let the puppy holler and scream for a long period of time and then when they are on their very last nerve, they let the puppy out, simply because they just can’t stand it anymore. STOP, don’t do it! You will teach your puppy that persistence pays off. He will learn “gee, if I scream for a long time she lets me out…. Sweet!”. If you are sure that your puppy doesn’t need to go out (i.e. He pottied five minutes prior to being put in the crate) then let him/her yell. When he is quiet for more than a second because he is taking a breath, then you can let him out. Your puppy will rapidly learn that he can come out of his crate ONLY when he is quiet.

I find that night time is a little harder. My three flat-coats created quite a stink in their crates for about the first two weeks that they were home. They screamed, they cried, they body slammed the crate, and it was hard to tell at midnight and at 1am and 2 am and 2:15 am and 2:30 am (you get the idea), if they had to go potty. I would get up periodically and let them out and they thought it was wonderful to be outside chasing lightning bugs at 2 in the morning. I was not quite as pleased. You have to use your judgment. A puppy IS going to have to go out during the night, that is a fact of life. You have to use your judgment about the need to take them out during the night. I generally pick up all food AND water at 7 pm. They go out to potty at around 9 before I go to bed. I can be pretty sure that the puppy is ok for at least 45 minutes. If they are still screaming and I start thinking “hmm I wonder if they have to go out?” I take the puppy out, ON A LEASH. I don’t care if the yard is fenced, I don’t care if it is safe. It is not playtime, this is potty time. If the puppy does not “go” within say ten minutes. Back into the house and crate he goes. You can only hope that at some point your puppy will cry themselves to sleep. The key is that as badly as you want them to be quiet, no matter if you have a meeting at 8 the next morning, let them yell. Don’t yell back, don’t coddle them.

There are people who feel that if you are home your puppy should be out with you. I don’t entirely agree with this. Your crate should not be overused of course, but there are times when it is impossible to watch your puppy every second. If it is one of those times, then the puppy needs to be in his crate. I can also say that after a week of my flat coats pitching a fit every night in the crate, I started crating them more during the day. They needed to start getting used to the crate, and I needed to get some sleep. The more they were crated during the day, the faster they got used to their crates and the easier life got.

It can be very difficult crate training a puppy. It is heart wrenching to listen to this baby scream and cry, but it is the best thing that you can do for both you and your puppy. Now I have four dogs, two are 3.5 years old, one is 2 and one is ten months. There are 3 crates available and most of the time, the doors to the crates are left open and yes the dogs do go in their crates to relax. I can train one dog and the others can hang out in the crates without being stressed. If they see the nail clippers, the first thing they do is run to their crates; they know I won’t pull them out of there. The crates have become their homes and it works out the best for all of us.

[MagicToller]

With appropriate use, the crate is one of the single most important training tool I use, second only to the lead

[lipglossdreamz]

Also,

NEver use a crate as punishment. A crate is the bed for the dog and a place where they can feel safe.

Using the crate as punishment will only cause problems!