Ever crate trained a puppy? Weigh in here.

[feroxfemina]

I'd like to hear personal experiences. We have a new family member who's a 14 week old Shih Tzu named Domino.

I've been working on crate training him (especially at night) and to be honest - It's a bit exhausting. Not that I wasn't expecting it to be with a new puppy and all, but this IS my first time crate training a dog.

Tonight will be night #5, and last night he still whined/barked/clawed/jumped when it was bedtime. I feed him his meals inside of there, a part of it is divided to prevent too much room. I also make sure he potties and gets a buncha exercise before the evening 'lock up'.

During the day, I coax him in there with treats at least twice a day, and give him a ton of praise, and then close the door. Just for an hour or so so he can learn that crating IS acceptable for more than just sleeping at night.

Anywho. Ideas? Tips? Advice? Suggestions? Anything that helped you?

How long did it take you?

[PrincessEmilysMommy]

We have a shipoo that we crate trained. I know for us it was making sure there wasn't too much room in the crate. Do you cover his crate at night? We used a big beach towel to cover it and once it was covered she would lay right down and relax. I didn't really put her in during the day because with Emily running around I think she felt sad, however, on her own she would go in to sleep. We would crate her when we left and at night.
Where do you keep his crate?

[3girls2luv]

I crate trained my chihuahua and it took about a week to do it. He was used to sleeping with me but when DH and I got married well lou lou had to move to his own bed. He barked for awhile but he eventually got used to it and learned to like it. He still sleeps in his crate at night on his own. I think it will take time and consistency for the most part. Congrats on the new puppy by the way. Do you have pics? :)

[feroxfemina]

I don't cover his crate, actually. I should try it. His crate is where he can see everyone, pretty much. That's where I was told to put it.

I'll upload pics in just a few! Hands busy.

[Firemom]

I have a 5 month old Lab/rottie pup that I got at 8 weeks and I have to say she took to her crate the first day. but I have heard that you should put the crate in your bedroom. Since mine was fine leave her in a downstairs playroom

[PrincessEmilysMommy]

We tried in our room at night. Dh snores & she would bark. lol

She did better in the living room.

[3girls2luv]

Lou lou was happier in the hall where he could hear my girls. He is extremely over protective of them and he was very leary about DH since he had never been around a man. Now he loves DH more than me. :(

[jvigil03]

We did this with our golden, but only when we were not home. She took to it and eventually would go in there to sleep and rest all the time. We don't have the crate anymore, but since we crate trained her, she never has had an accident in the house.

[Peeka2]

I heard that if the dog is unhappy in the crate then you need to retrain them for it. I am sure there are books how to do it.

The dog we had was crate trained when we got her. I hated it at first...thought it was cruel. But we soon figured out that she was happier being crated. If we left her out of her cage when we left she would have accidents. She had severe separation anxiety and felt "safer" in her cage when we were not in the house.

[Still_Tbog]

I heard that if the dog is unhappy in the crate then you need to retrain them for it. I am sure there are books how to do it.

The dog we had was crate trained when we got her. I hated it at first...thought it was cruel. But we soon figured out that she was happier being crated. If we left her out of her cage when we left she would have accidents. She had severe separation anxiety and felt "safer" in her cage when we were not in the house.

This is our Border Collie. She is 5 and still gets upset if she is left out when we leave. She has ruined couches and torn up blinds trying to look out and see where we went.

[Peeka2]

This is our Border Collie. She is 5 and still gets upset if she is left out when we leave. She has ruined couches and torn up blinds trying to look out and see where we went.

We were convinced that Keena was abused before we had her...we got her when she was 2. She would bark and cry the whole time we were gone for the first few months and for 2 weeks after we went on vacation and left her with my mom. She acted traumatized...poor dog.

[Amy_G_]

Don't feed the dog in the crate. For feeding you should bring him out, have him sit and put his food down and tell him to eat. For a puppy you probably should feed him several times a day, and if you feed them right before bed, they might need to go poop in the middle of the night like a baby. Often crying in the middle of the night means they need to go poop or pee, so always consider that before ignoring them
The crate should be big enough dog can stand up and turn around, but not jump around or potty in the corner and not have to lay down in it. Think of it as a den, not as a cage. it should be a safe place with the door always open.

whenever you are NOT watching the baby dog, they should be in their crate so they do not have an accident in the house or get into something they shouldn't.

Google some helpful crate training tips.

[feroxfemina]

Mhm. I encourage him to use his crate during the day while napping after a good play session. I feed him NEAR his crate to associate it with his 'den'ing instincts.

I've tried covering it up today, and just now when he was put in after his 'last' potty break. He is quiet so far. Hooray, maybe?! Also, I have the divider in it to prevent too much room for him.

Still haven't gotten around to uploading pics. Busybusy. Will do that now!

[jessiehannan]

A old tshirt that you have worn all day after getting sweaty, put in the crate for bedding has always worked for me. Doffy foes in for bed, or when I leave that is it. My cousins send their doggy to her crate as punishment for when ever she doesn't behave. I'm not really big on that.

[feroxfemina]

Or not. I guess I somehow deleted the pictures off my camera. He's super cute, though.

Fluffy, mostly white with a few black patches. His ears are black and he has a black Bandit mask. His registered name is silly long, and mostly a joke.