Trying to figure out dog crating. Does the pup just sleep overnight in the crate, except for pee ‘n’ poop runs?
Crating the dog overnight is fine.
If possible leave the crate in your room so the dog still feels near its people and not left alone (important…your pup very much wants to be close to you).
Remember the crate should be the dog’s “safe” place and a place it wants to be.
Never use the crate for punishment.
Make sure water is in the crate at all times. Consider feeding the dog in the crate. Toss in an old t-shirt you do not care about anymore that you have worn so it has your scent on it. Keep a toy or bone or something in there as well so the dog can relieve some boredom.
When taking the dog out do not immediately get all gushy and happy on the dog. Just open the door and walk away for a bit (dog will probably follow). You do not want to make getting out of the crate a big happytime treat. After a bit then go all huggy on the dog.
Remember, the crate is just to be a place for the dog. Not punishment or something to be avoided in the dog’s mind.
Once the dog is potty trained leave the door open so the dog can come and go as it pleases (indeed leave the door open when you are home so it can go in for a nap if it wants or to eat dinner and so on). Eventually you can dismantle the crate and just leave a doggy bed or somesuch in its place and your dog should happily sleep there from then on.
I’ve crate trained several dogs, and agree with the above. When done correctly, the dog “loves” the crate, and objects if you dispose of it.
Yep.
I know a lot of animal lovers object to the whole crating thing but animal professionals and vets are fine with it.
Our 2 Bostons (4 and 9) are crated every night for the 7 hours. I let them outside before I go to bed and first thing in the morning.
Part of Guide Dog puppy training is crate training. We’ve never had any issues with it. I suspect it is to make sure the dogs can be transported without difficulty. The dogs had no problems with it, especially when they start in crates as puppies.
When I saw the thread title, I thought you were shipping the dog via FedEx or something.
Is “crate” British for “cage”?
When we first got our current dog from the rescue organization we crated him at night and when we went out. We stopped after a month or so. The crate’s still there in the bedroom and he sometimes sleeps in it.
It’s also where he goes to get handed his stuffed Kong when we leave him alone in the house. If I’m too slow walking back there he comes to see what’s taking so long. He certainly doesn’t consider it a punishment place, and we’ve never used it as such. The door’s not been closed in over a year.
On the other hand, if the dog’s getting, not exactly bad, but just over-excited, telling him to go to his crate can help to calm him down.
I thought it was not a nice thing to do but it was the only way I could housetrain my first dog and my other dogs are fine with it too.
While the dog is still house training, you should go immediately from the crate to the outside or wherever you are designating a safe potty area. Then there can be huggy happytime.
Good point.
Just do not making “leaving the cage” super happy time else the dog will then equate leaving the cage with really good things and will pine to be let out.
Frankly not going all huggy-happy is at least as hard for the person as it is for the dog. Your dog is so happy to see you when you let it out you want nothing more than to hug and play with it. Resist that compulsion for a few minutes(ish) (and after potty time while potty training) then indulge in the hugs and petting. Down the road, once all is established and doggie is potty trained and you may well just leave the door open at all times do whatever you want.
I had a dog as a child, and my son had one for his family a few years ago, and I had not known this term. Thanks for fighting my ignorance!
How old is your puppy? I think keeping a very young puppy more than a few hours in a crate isn’t good - they can’t hold it long. When my dog was very young (less than 16 weeks) I woke up in the middle of the night to take him out. I didn’t keep him in the crate longer than 4 hours until he was a bit older - and even then no longer than 7-8 hours, and only when I had to. Fortunately he housetrained very easily.
I’m an animal lover and I like crate training. If you ever need the dog to be confined for whatever reason (emergency evacuation, illness, travel, etc) you’ll be glad you didn’t wait until an emergency situation when everyone’s emotions are running high to familiarize your dog with a crate.
Good rule of thumb: A dog’s age in months plus one equals hours you should be able to see urinary control.
Example 16 week old dog: 4 months + 1 = 5 hours. (Note this is just a guideline)
Hmm. I first read it as, “Do I create the dog overnight?” :smack:
Ok, dog is 8 weeks old, very civilized generally. Here’s what we’re currently starting to do:
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during the day, crate the dog if necessary to accomplish some other short task that the dog can’t do - say for example putting down diatomaceous earth to combat an ant incursion.
He whines and yips piteously. I wait until he is no longer actively yipping and let him out without fanfare, and take him for a walk if it has been a significant period of time. Since he’s yipping in the crate, do I need to wait for him to stop before I let him out? How bout if he pauses for breath? -
during the day or evening put him in the crate with the door open if he’s getting sleepy hanging out, just to motivate the whole ‘crate is homey, and I like to wake up there’ impulse
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at night, I’m taking him for a walk at bedtime, crating him with the door closed for 3 hours
and then taking him out for a nighttime pee, then recrating for 3 hours, in a room with a sleeping human.
Does this sound right?
Did anyone else read the title thinking he wanted to ship the dog overnight somewhere?
We crated our Beagle for the first couple months untill he was potty trained. Once he learned he already was out growing is so it is no longer used or needed
You appear to understand the difference between “crate training” and simply confining a dog to a crate when you leave the house.* In the event you decide to do the latter, I offer this cautionary tale. Take it or leave it. The house accross the street from mine burned down one Sunday morning a couple of years back. The homeowner was not in the home; rather the fire was discovered by two women installing crown moulding on the home next door. My wife alerted me and I went out to see what I could do to help (besides calling the FD, which had been done). I knew there were two dogs inside but I didn’t know where they were. The workers and I broke-in to the house to find the dogs and get them out. They were crated - we could hear them - but by the time we figured out where they were is was too late. It was awful. Put the crate near a door or window - get a sign.
*"Be sure to understand the difference between temporarily confining your dog to a crate and long term confinement when you are not home. The major purpose of confinement when your are not home is to restrict mistakes to a small protected area. The purpose of crate training is quite the opposite. Short term confinement to a crate is intended to inhibit your dog from eliminating when confined, so that she will want to eliminate when released from confinement and taken to an appropriate area. Crate training also helps teach your dog to have bladder and bowel control. Instead of going whenever she feels like it, she learns to hold it and go at convenient scheduled times."Cite
It was funny when we got our puppy…
We got him and then hit the pet store and bought a crate. While I put it together he watched intently. The second it was together he jumped in it. We didn’t have to tell him to get in it, he knew it was his. Obviously, he had been crate trained by the breeder. He still loves his crate. It’s his own space, like a person having their own room.
If you want to freak out the dog, get in his crate. He won’t like it 