Refuses crate in the night

Winston's dad said:

In general he is quite a stubborn puppy

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Please stop thinking of your puppy as "stubborn". dogs, especially puppies, are not stubborn - it just is not a thing with dogs. Attributing human characteristics to dogs is rarely helpful and often to the the detriment of the dog and the human-dog relationship.

If your dog (especially puppy!) doesn't do what you ask them to do, it is because:

--they don't yet fully understand what you want and the dog needs more training
--they are not motivated enough to do what you want and you need to find higher value rewards
--there is a medical or physical or emotional reason the dog doesn't want to do what you want, in which case medical evaluation (not in this case), more gentle training, and higher value treats combined with a great deal of patience, and 100% consistency, will overcome this in most cases.

In this case, just give it time and continue with the training.

Don't worry too much about his not going in on his own. If he doesn't, then don't give him a treat and just gently pop him in there, since that doesn't upset him. If he ever does go in on his own, give him bonus treats and a lot of praise. He will learn that if he refuses, he goes in anyway...but if he goes in on his own, he gets treats. Eventually he will go in on his own to get the treats.

Winston's dad said:

Thanks. These are good points for me to remember and try out. I agree, he isn't stubborn in the human sense of the word. Generally, if there something he doesn't want to do, (go outside, come inside, go in his pen or crate) he will simply sit down and not move. But maybe I just need to up the rewards to make so irresistible that he'll come anyway. Question on that - can you over-treat a dog in training? Or will that eventually work it self out over time? Thanks!

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You cannot over-treat a dog in training, although you do need to take into account what you are using for treats. they need to be very, very small pieces, for one thing. I mean, tiny. That way you are less likely to treat the dog to the point that he is stuffed. In addition, it should be just enough that the dog really wants to get more, and will pay attention as a result.

And if you are concerned about weight, or if the treats are all that good for him, use kibble for some of the treats and then reduce the amount you feed accordingly. Using tiny pieces of cooked fat free chicken breast is good, or very small treats that have good ingredients in them. I buy high quality moist treats and then cut them down into smaller pieces. String cheese can be used at times, again tiny pieces. Mixing it up so the dog gets different delicious things is also good for keeping their attention.

If the dog is not doing what you want, work to train so you know the dog fully understands why you want. Often, we think the dog knows when really, the dog doesn't. also, dogs do not generalize well, so he may know something perfectly in the kitchen, but need to be re-taught to do it in the back yard or even the bedroom. Once you have taught him and rewarded him for doing what you ask in several places, he will know it applies everywhere.