Guest rhy&ge Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Hi guys! So it's confirmed - my partner and I have a mini poodle pup on the way He will be ready to go the first week of June and we're so excited!! But being first time doggie owners, we have lots of questions, especially about crate training. First of all, where should we put the crate?? We were thinking either our room or the bathroom (where his indoor pup potty will be.) And then, how long does he stay in the crate for? At what point can he start to sleep elsewhere (if he wants)?? Is it just after he's housetrained?? Thanks so much guys, I'm sure these questions have all be asked before! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Panzer Attack! Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 How exciting! With my pup, at my home he is in my bedroom, but stays in the lounge room at my partner's house. He's 13 weeks and sleeps in his crate, as well as spending about half the day free ranging so I can control his toileting as much as possible. I guess it really depends where you want the dog to sleep in the future. Will you be able to hear him cry at night from the bathroom? Will he be cold? I know some people let their pups sleep in their bed from the day they come home, but at the moment I'm quite enjoying having a dog free bed! I'm also scared of rolling over and killing him as he's only 1.5kg LOL. I'd personally always give him the option of sleeping in the crate, but that's just me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rhy&ge Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 My partner actually wants him to sleep on the bed with us, but I'm not so sure. My partner is actually being deployed for 6 months after pup arrives so I'm worried that if he gets used to sleeping on the bed, then when my man gets back he will get territorial about the bed.... And that would seriously be the last thing my man would need to come home to! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsdog2 Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I had the crate beside my side of the bed and when my pup started to get restless I put my hand where she could reach it and she would lean up against it and go back so sleep again. We never had any problems with her at night - of course in the beginning I would have to get up through the night for toilet but as soon as she was put back in her crate she just went back so sleep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrotpea Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Congrats on your new puppy! We had the crate in the bedroom as described by gsdog2 for the first few weeks, then once she was sleeping through the night we moved her crate into the lounge(which is just outside our bedroom door). Ruby is still not reliable with her toilet training - she only lets me know if she needs to go unless I am near the door/walking around, in which case she will trot over to the door so I can let her out. When she is more reliable I will probably let her sleep wherever she wants (ie. in the bed) When Ruby was very little I took her crate with me into the kitchen (about the first week I think) until she was a bit more settled, then I set up a playpen for her. I would recommend having a space for your pup where they can see you for the first few weeks, and a safe space outside. I think 2-3 hours is the most you can expect from them in a crate for the first few weeks, then toilet, play and back in the crate. With this sort of routine Ruby spent/spends all her crate time sleeping. When she woke up I knew she would be ready to go outside to the toilet. She is 5 months now so the time intervals have gotten longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirst_goldens Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 set the crate up where u want the dog to sleep permanently... Dallas' crate is in my room but away from my bed i avoided letting her touch my hands or talking to her as it takes longer for them to learn to settle wihtout ut assistance... she was sleeping through the night with zero crying within a week :D:) clever baby girl i have! i watch her like a hawk... she free roams the house all day long and she follows me around and i do the basics every 2-3 hrs she goes out and i watch her go to the toilet to be sure she has gone... about 30 mins after eating she goes out and right after waking up... she only goes on grass as well which the breeder started so that was great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsdog2 Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 (edited) set the crate up where u want the dog to sleep permanently... Dallas' crate is in my room but away from my bed i avoided letting her touch my hands or talking to her as it takes longer for them to learn to settle wihtout ut assistance... No problems with my girl settling through the night with the simple touch of a hand . I must say I didn't speak to her, just let her feel my hand was there. After sleeping with a litter of pups I think it gives them comfort to "feel" you nearby. Also, she was only in our room for a couple of weeks and then transferred to our closed in garage (still sleeping in crate). I can honestly say we didn't once hear a squeak out of her using a crate (while she was in our bedroom or in the garage) - I can definately recommend using one for your new pup Edited May 4, 2011 by gsdog2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrotpea Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I found that a little bit of comfort from feeling my hand helped Ruby to settle on her first few nights, and after that she didn't need it. I don't think that total denial of touch is going to help a newly separated puppy be happy....although it depends a lot on the pup - sounds like you got an easy baby Kirst! I had planned to have Ruby's crate in the bathroom, but the first night she just cried and whined all night. I couldn't handle it - I brought her crate beside my bed, and she barely made a sound, the few sounds she did make for those first few nights were either: needing to go to the toilet sounds, or wanting to check that someone was there sounds - both of which were easily solved. By the end of the week she was sleeping through, occasionally waking for a night wee. By 10 weeks she didn't even need a night time wee. By 12 weeks or so her snoring got louder, and I moved her outside our bedroom door with no protests from her at all. And relief for me - no more Ruby snores keeping me awake lol!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sutton Posted May 14, 2011 Share Posted May 14, 2011 My pup will be 8 weeks old when i get him and im unsure of how many times during the night i should take him out, and do you have their food and water in there over night aswell or just water and wait until feeding time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paptacular! Posted May 14, 2011 Share Posted May 14, 2011 My pup will be 8 weeks old when i get him and im unsure of how many times during the night i should take him out, and do you have their food and water in there over night aswell or just water and wait until feeding time? I would withhold both food and water in the crate at night time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PetSitters Posted May 16, 2011 Share Posted May 16, 2011 I had never used a crate prior to a year ago when getting our youngest and was a bit reserved on the idea initially, but crate training I can honestly say is the best thing I have done raisng a puppy. We bought the largest crate available so it was big enough for him as he grew (GSD) and sectioned half of it off with newspaper down for him to toilet away from his bed at night which he used sometimes. We had the crate in the family room next to our bedroom and had soft toys in there and he never once cried at night ever which I expected, but he settled fine. He did come over from Victoria to Adelaide at 8 weeks by car in a small crate which may have perhaps conditioned him to it a bit???. To my surprise, he actually loves his crate or bed and often find him laying in there during the day. I taught him "bed" with treats from day one and the command "bed" he goes in and waits for his treat, there are no issues with him relaxing and I guess his crate to him is a nice place. I do put a sheet over the crate at night as my other two are have free range of the house and sleep anywhere and sometimes if they were floating around at night he wanted to get out and play with a bit of yip yap, but the sheet fixed that. As he grew and was able to hold on during the night, we take him out to toilet around 11pm, put him to bed and someone is up at 6am to let him out and never hear a peep out of him at night to this day. Crate training from a puppy is something I highly recommend every does from day one,it's excellent in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naomi Posted May 16, 2011 Share Posted May 16, 2011 (edited) I had the crate in the bedroom at first. It was next to the bed and when Archie cried, putting my hand on the side of the crate seemed to settle him instantly. It was good because he would whine several times a night to be let out for potty breaks and we could hear him. When he was able to sleep through the night without any potty breaks he was moved to the lounge. This works well as we can put him in there and he settles quickly because he is in a central spot where he can see us and what we are doing. I would suggest 'Crate Games' by Susan Garrett. It's a great DVD. You just want to make sure the pup associates the crate as a good thing. Every time Archie goes in the crate he gets a treat. If he is going to be in there for a prolonged period he gets a kong with stuffing. ETA: Once Archie is put to bed in the crate at night time he doesn't get any food or water. But up until then water is available. Also, I bought a crate that would suit him as a fully sized adult but as a smaller puppy I used a crate divider to section off half of it. Edited May 16, 2011 by Naomi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 You wont need a huge crate for a Toy Poodle so you'll have the advantage of being able to move it around as it suits you Personally I'd have it in the bedroom at night. Being able to hear the puppy as soon as he wakes and take him outside immediately will help with toilet training. I'd not have him sleeping on the bed (at least in the beginning) for two reasons - 1. he could injure himself by jumping/falling off and 2. he will probably take himself off to quietly toilet in the corner, explore the house or chew something he shouldn't whilst you are sleeping. During the day pop the crate in an area such as the family room or kitchen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rhy&ge Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I feel much more prepared now and after reading Ian Dunbar's stuff I have a much better grip on what I'm doing!! And won't be having pup on the bed - it's way too high and yeah, I just don't want to encourage it. Thanks for all the replies! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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