Dog Training Tricks

Posts Tagged ‘puppy crate training’

do you keep it in the garden ? or inside? I dont really understand – and isnt it a cage? can someone help me with the basics?

The theory behind crate training is that a dog does not like to mess his den. The crate is the den, and your pup will try to keep it clean. Crate training is therefore a housebreaking aid. Rather than have the pup loose in the house unsupervised, when you can’t devote attention to it puppy goes in the crate. Because the pup does not want to make a mess in his den, he will cry, bark or otherwise alert you to the fact that he needs “out”. Cue the pup by asking “Do you want to go OUT?” You take the pup outside to the designated potty area. Repeat the cue “Go OUT” (or any other word or phrase you wish to use – I tell mine to “hurry up”) and praise when he does his business.

Sometimes at first it works backwards…pup messes the crate then cries, but this phase is usually short lived IF the pup has been raised in a clean environment. They discover quickly that if they alert you first, they can avoid messing their own house.

Teaching a dog to use a crate simplifies the training process because it is not dependent on you being alert to the pup’s activities every minute of the day and night. None of us can devote 24/7 to a new puppy, and the crate is simply a safe place to leave the dog for those periods when you are away, asleep or otherwise occupied. Aside from helping with housebreaking, being in a crate prevents your puppy from getting into trouble with things like chewing. That said, the crate is NOT a place to leave the dog all the time. Puppies need interaction with their human pack in order to learn proper manners, and to continue the housebreaking process by learning to ask for “out” while loose in the house.

Some people only use crates while the dog is growing up, others always crate their dogs when they are away. Once the dog is trained, it’s up to you whether to continue using the crate.

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There still is a certain amount of controversy and discussion as to whether crate training for puppies is good for them or cruel. While it is easy to see why crate training can be viewed as hard hearted, especially when you see a small puppy in a crate forlornly gazing through the bars. But is that really the case? Let’s take a closer look at the real detail of puppy crate training.

Firstly dogs are den animals, that is to say they like to be in enclosed areas for security. Have you ever noticed how a dog will often take a bone or some other item underneath a table to chew? Also crate training can be very beneficial for you and most comfortably for your puppy when transporting it in a car or on a visit to the vets. So it would appear therefore that the sooner your puppy can get used to a crate the better it will be for everybody.

One of the other benefits of puppy crate training is also house training and is based on the assumption that a dog will not soil an area where it has to settle. For this reason it is important that you do not have the crate too big as your dog will just use the other end as its bathroom! So how big should the crate be? Well that will depend on the size of your puppy. As a rule of thumb the crate should just be big enough for it to stand up comfortably and to easily turn around.

Make sure the crate is comfortable and welcoming for your puppy by placing its blanket and favourite toys in there. Position the crate where it is out of the way but not isolated from the rest of the house and once you have decided where the crate will be situated – leave it there.

An important aspect of puppy crate training is that your puppy feels safe and secure in its crate and so you should not try to force him into it. Your puppy must want to go into the crate so the more inviting you can make it the better, so start by enticing him in with treats and games. Once your puppy first enters the crate only leave him there for short periods at a time and always make sure you are in clear sight so he can see you are there. Once he has got used to being in there you can start leaving him there for longer periods of time and leaving the room, always remembering that you must make sure he has relieved himself before you close the crate.

Fairly soon you will find that your puppy is happy and comfortable enough to doze off to sleep that is the time that the crate has become his den. This is also the time when you can start to leave him overnight, but a word of warning, this is also the time when you are going to have to become a little hard hearted. When you leave your puppy in the crate overnight for the first time it will start to cry and whine – guaranteed! No matter how many toys and blankets it has in there it will whine to come out and you of course will be the first to want to go and let him out. Don’t do it.  Remind yourself that he is in a warm comfortable place where normally he is happy to doze and that he will soon get used to it. You’ll be surprised how quickly he does. In general puppy crate training is a good thing and will be a desirable experience for your pup if you go about it the right way.

Mike Hooker

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