How Did You Go About Crate Training Your Pup?

[goldee]

How did you go about crate training your pup? How do you get them used to going in there?

This is only the 2nd night ive had her, but i put her in there and she is crying so much. Its awful to hear and hard not to want to just go pick her up.

Her first night she whimpered for about 10 mins and then quite. she went to bed at 11pm and didn't wake up once during the night, got up at 6.30. no messes in her crate either.

Tonight she's been crying/whimpering for a good 20/30 minutes. Ive taken her outside and she did another wee. She did her other toilets before too.

We haven't had any accidents yet. Strangely enough, she will go to the very back of the garden in the plants and dirt to do her number 2 business. (nobody walks up there its covered in plants and trees and rocks).

I know its only been 2 days but i dont want the crate to have a negative affect on her. I want to go about it the right way to get her in there at night, coz right now she doesn't like it.

[koalathebear]

Hi there

Elbie cried ALL night for three nights. Not just crying but screaming, howling, yowling and making strange Gollum-like noises. Everyone told us to take Elbie out at regular intervals for his toilet but not to give in to his crying in case he used it to get attention. We were so afraid that the neighbours were going to kill us or report us to the RSPCA for animal cruelty.

The compromise was that we put the crate in our bedroom near the bed and put our fingertips against the grate of the crate so that he could lick them. He stopped crying immediately. After a week, we moved the crate further away. Eventually we migrated him to a larger crate down in the kitchen and he sleeps peacefully every night and we just go down there at 4am to let him out for a toilet break and then first thing in the morning. During the day the crate door is open unless we go out for short trips and crate him. Hope that helps.

[goldee]

thanks. it does. Shes quietened down now, still a few whimpers. i put a ticking clock near her crate - heard the sound helps.

i wonder if i need to bring the crate in my room, at the moment its in the family room, which is next to mine, but she still isn't close.

i was so surprised she slept from say 11.15 to 6.30am on her first night.

i want her to be able to hop in there her self eventually - does your's go in by himself?

[Elsha_UK_AU]

I haven't crate trained mine. I have set up his bed next to ours and put some MDF boarding along the edge so he cannot roam around the bedroom...so in a way I guess he is "crated" in at night. During the day, he roams the house (living areas only) if I am home and if not, has the laundry and tiled back part of the house. He is good about going on puppy pads, will cry at night if he needs to go out and during the day will scratch at the door or sit there waiting

Susan

[koalathebear]

thanks. it does. Shes quietened down now, still a few whimpers. i put a ticking clock near her crate - heard the sound helps.

i wonder if i need to bring the crate in my room, at the moment its in the family room, which is next to mine, but she still isn't close.

i was so surprised she slept from say 11.15 to 6.30am on her first night.

i want her to be able to hop in there her self eventually - does your's go in by himself?

At first nothing helped for the night screaming - we had a clock, radio, chew toys etc. Only the fingers in the grate helped You sound a little luckier with your puppy. Also, even though we had our puppy in our bedroom near the bed the first three nights, he still cried. So we put the crate on a box right next to our bed - high up enough so that he could see us/hear us. It also made it easier for us to reach him to put our fingers in his crate. We only had to leave our fingers there about 10 minutes and he calmed down and fell asleep.

Yes, these days, Elbie goes into his crate voluntarily - he has day naps there, plays there and sometimes when he was in trouble or pissed off, he'd make a very affronted sound and flounce off into his crate to sulk The way you make it tempting for him is to put comfy blankets/dog pillow in there, his favourite toy and we'd sprinkle some treats in the crate. The crate should also be placed near where you hang out during the day so that he doesn't feel lonely and can be in his 'den' while still close to you. Not all dogs take to crates but Elbie adores his.

Edited May 22, 2010 by koalathebear

[Elsha_UK_AU]

I didn't have the first night screaming....as I had a 13 month old CKCS and they cosied up together (much to the older ones disgust).

You can tell in this pic, that he was not overly fussed! His nose is wrinkled where he was growling as the pup had put his paw on him!

Susan

[4Kelpies]

thanks. it does. Shes quietened down now, still a few whimpers. i put a ticking clock near her crate - heard the sound helps.

i wonder if i need to bring the crate in my room, at the moment its in the family room, which is next to mine, but she still isn't close.

i was so surprised she slept from say 11.15 to 6.30am on her first night.

i want her to be able to hop in there her self eventually - does your's go in by himself?

Please bring your crate into your room and let the puppy know she's not alone. You can always move it to another area of the house later . Your puppy is a pack animal who has been taken away from her pack. Of course she is frightened and is crying for help in the only way she knows. In the wild a baby pack animal separated from the pack will die. All her instincts tell her to scream for help until the pack find her and she is safe again. You're not giving in to her or molly coddling her by letting her know you're around. You're just giving her an environment where she can feel secure.

[mrs tornsocks]

Put crate & pup in your room for a few days/week until she settles down, then gradually move the crate each night - just a metre or so each time - out to the place you want to be. By the time you get her there, she should be more settled.

Keep going, it's very early days.

You can find heaps of info on this topic if you do a search (top right), click on search and more search options. Then, type in crate training or crate or crate puppy, then under search where - click "search titles only", you'll find heaps of advice and previous threads on this topic.

[GoldenGirl85]

Feed all her meals inside the crate, that way she learns that its a good place, during the day encourage her to go inside by putting a cuddly toy in but dont close the door, when she is comfortable just being in the rate close the door, but dont latch it, that way she can still escape if she starts to feel clausto, give her lots of praise everytime she goes into the crate or even looks in it, it needs to be the most positive place you can provide for her, pretty soon she will love spending time in her crate

The crate must never be used for punishment, it is a safe place

Do we get to see photos of your girl? you should join is in the retriever thread!

[goldee]

Feed all her meals inside the crate, that way she learns that its a good place, during the day encourage her to go inside by putting a cuddly toy in but dont close the door, when she is comfortable just being in the rate close the door, but dont latch it, that way she can still escape if she starts to feel clausto, give her lots of praise everytime she goes into the crate or even looks in it, it needs to be the most positive place you can provide for her, pretty soon she will love spending time in her crate

The crate must never be used for punishment, it is a safe place

Do we get to see photos of your girl? you should join is in the retriever thread!

thanks!. I'll have to try to feed her meals in there. she loves the outdoor so is in the garden most of the day and her crate is in side - it pretty big.

Right now i have to pick her up and put her in there and when i shut the door she tries to get out and then cries. Its awful to hear. One night it went on for 30 mins and another night it was only about 10 mins. its not bad i guess considering she's only been here 5 days. i dont want it to be a negative thing for her. I dont want her to be scared of it because im putting her in there and shutting the door.

we have a big bed for her too (just from cheap as chips) that she lies on inside. Would it help if we put that bed inside the crate and leave the door open on the crate and see if she use it during the day and evening before bed and then switch it back?

She doesnt go crazy over treats like these pediegree training treats or small bit of schmackos. so it even hard to try to get her to go in there. if you try with a toy she sees it but is way more interested in biting your hand instead!

Oh yes will post some! im still deciding on a name tho!!

[GoldenGirl85]

Feed all her meals inside the crate, that way she learns that its a good place, during the day encourage her to go inside by putting a cuddly toy in but dont close the door, when she is comfortable just being in the rate close the door, but dont latch it, that way she can still escape if she starts to feel clausto, give her lots of praise everytime she goes into the crate or even looks in it, it needs to be the most positive place you can provide for her, pretty soon she will love spending time in her crate

The crate must never be used for punishment, it is a safe place

Do we get to see photos of your girl? you should join is in the retriever thread!

thanks!. I'll have to try to feed her meals in there. she loves the outdoor so is in the garden most of the day and her crate is in side - it pretty big.

Right now i have to pick her up and put her in there and when i shut the door she tries to get out and then cries. Its awful to hear. One night it went on for 30 mins and another night it was only about 10 mins. its not bad i guess considering she's only been here 5 days. i dont want it to be a negative thing for her. I dont want her to be scared of it because im putting her in there and shutting the door.

we have a big bed for her too (just from cheap as chips) that she lies on inside. Would it help if we put that bed inside the crate and leave the door open on the crate and see if she use it during the day and evening before bed and then switch it back?

She doesnt go crazy over treats like these pediegree training treats or small bit of schmackos. so it even hard to try to get her to go in there. if you try with a toy she sees it but is way more interested in biting your hand instead!

Oh yes will post some! im still deciding on a name tho!!

Yes put the bed in, that will definitely help, also did the breeder give you anything from home for her flight? if they did put that in as well, if they didnt try putting in something that you have worn. Even if she isnt big on treats just yet (wait for it, it will come) try giving her a lick of vegemite or peanut butter or something, my girls love vegemite, either that or just pats is often enough, if you can get her working off not much more than a "good girl" and a nice scratch it will make training much easier, especially if you (like me) dont always carry treats on you

[goldee]

Yes put the bed in, that will definitely help, also did the breeder give you anything from home for her flight? if they did put that in as well, if they didnt try putting in something that you have worn. Even if she isnt big on treats just yet (wait for it, it will come) try giving her a lick of vegemite or peanut butter or something, my girls love vegemite, either that or just pats is often enough, if you can get her working off not much more than a "good girl" and a nice scratch it will make training much easier, especially if you (like me) dont always carry treats on you

Thanks! We have moved her bed into the crate so hopefully she'll be ok to use it today. I put her breakfast in the crate and she hoped in to eat it - well kind of, half in half out!

Nope didn't get anything from the breeder. I will find an old t-shirt or something.

Vegemite! I'll have to try that! we've just been doing the 'good girl' thing and it seems to be working. When she does something good or right we make a fuss of her and she goes all happy.

I do need to try to stop her nipping and bitting feet and hands. Sooner is better than later when she thinks its ok to do it. Her little teeth are like needles!

We haven't had to toilet train her at all. She goes out side when she needs to go.

[aussielover]

thanks. it does. Shes quietened down now, still a few whimpers. i put a ticking clock near her crate - heard the sound helps.

i wonder if i need to bring the crate in my room, at the moment its in the family room, which is next to mine, but she still isn't close.

i was so surprised she slept from say 11.15 to 6.30am on her first night.

i want her to be able to hop in there her self eventually - does your's go in by himself?

Please bring your crate into your room and let the puppy know she's not alone. You can always move it to another area of the house later . Your puppy is a pack animal who has been taken away from her pack. Of course she is frightened and is crying for help in the only way she knows. In the wild a baby pack animal separated from the pack will die. All her instincts tell her to scream for help until the pack find her and she is safe again. You're not giving in to her or molly coddling her by letting her know you're around. You're just giving her an environment where she can feel secure.

What if you can't bring the pup into your bedroom- my bedroom is upstairs and there is no way my parents would let me have the puppy upstairs!

Should I sleep downstairs with the puppy for the first few nights?

[4Kelpies]

thanks. it does. Shes quietened down now, still a few whimpers. i put a ticking clock near her crate - heard the sound helps.

i wonder if i need to bring the crate in my room, at the moment its in the family room, which is next to mine, but she still isn't close.

i was so surprised she slept from say 11.15 to 6.30am on her first night.

i want her to be able to hop in there her self eventually - does your's go in by himself?

Please bring your crate into your room and let the puppy know she's not alone. You can always move it to another area of the house later . Your puppy is a pack animal who has been taken away from her pack. Of course she is frightened and is crying for help in the only way she knows. In the wild a baby pack animal separated from the pack will die. All her instincts tell her to scream for help until the pack find her and she is safe again. You're not giving in to her or molly coddling her by letting her know you're around. You're just giving her an environment where she can feel secure.

What if you can't bring the pup into your bedroom- my bedroom is upstairs and there is no way my parents would let me have the puppy upstairs!

Should I sleep downstairs with the puppy for the first few nights?

Can you work on your parents and let them know it will only be temporary? The puppy can't do any damage to the bedroom if it is in a crate.

If you can't convince them to change their minds, yes you can sleep next to the puppy. I've done this when a puppy piddled in the crate in the bedroom and it was easier to move the puppy to the crate in the lounge room and put the wet crate outside than to clean it and get it dry.

It will make things harder to gradually move the puppy further away from you once it accepts the crate as being a safe place near the new pack, but it would be kinder than having the puppy alone and terrified when spending the first night away from its litter mates.

[GoldenGirl85]

Yes put the bed in, that will definitely help, also did the breeder give you anything from home for her flight? if they did put that in as well, if they didnt try putting in something that you have worn. Even if she isnt big on treats just yet (wait for it, it will come) try giving her a lick of vegemite or peanut butter or something, my girls love vegemite, either that or just pats is often enough, if you can get her working off not much more than a "good girl" and a nice scratch it will make training much easier, especially if you (like me) dont always carry treats on you

Thanks! We have moved her bed into the crate so hopefully she'll be ok to use it today. I put her breakfast in the crate and she hoped in to eat it - well kind of, half in half out!

Nope didn't get anything from the breeder. I will find an old t-shirt or something.

Vegemite! I'll have to try that! we've just been doing the 'good girl' thing and it seems to be working. When she does something good or right we make a fuss of her and she goes all happy.

I do need to try to stop her nipping and bitting feet and hands. Sooner is better than later when she thinks its ok to do it. Her little teeth are like needles!

We haven't had to toilet train her at all. She goes out side when she needs to go.

The way I stopped Lexi from nipping me was to 'yelp' whenever she did it, make sure its high pitched just like a sibling would do when they got hurt, in no time at all she had stopped. Lexi also didnt need toilet training, she had a few accidents inside but she was a very easy pup to train

[Stitch]

I have forgotten how many dogs I have crate trained and Koala has the right idea.

Crate training really is the best way to restrain a puppy/dog and comes in very handy all through their life.

My older girl has her crate in our bedroom and puts herself to bed at 9pm every night.

She hasn't always been in our room but we think she now deserves to be spoilt.

They really get to like the crate as long as you make it a positive experience and give them a treat when you put them in it.

It is just a matter of being consistent and fair when you use the crate and don't use it as a punishment. :D

[goldee]

The way I stopped Lexi from nipping me was to 'yelp' whenever she did it, make sure its high pitched just like a sibling would do when they got hurt, in no time at all she had stopped. Lexi also didnt need toilet training, she had a few accidents inside but she was a very easy pup to train

I'll try that. She nips a lot but she thinks its a game.

Yeah luckily she hasnt needed to much either. She goes outside. She's had a couple of accidents but more due to use not getting her outside quick enough after sleeping or a meal. I opened up her crate to use the full size of it (instead of dividing it in half) I'd read to halve it so they cant do any toilets in there. It didn't seem a lot of a room for her. Thankfully she had the whole space and didn't make a mess in it.

[nicolatu]

Stop play and turn your back on her whenever she bites you. After awhile, they will get it. My puppy took 1 week to learn.

[W Sibs]

I didn't have the first night screaming....as I had a 13 month old CKCS and they cosied up together (much to the older ones disgust).

You can tell in this pic, that he was not overly fussed! His nose is wrinkled where he was growling as the pup had put his paw on him!

Susan

OMG.. that picture is gorgeous!!!! Charlie has that facial expression when Emmy first started cuddling up against him..