Question for any Doodle Whisperer out in cyberspace

[a.k.a. Rodney]

Has been 2 wks since Derby is home. She's 10+ wks old. She had a tuff day today...several slips ups on the hse breaking end. I was able to catch 2 of 3 of them, but apparently made no impact...anyway, different point I'm heading toward..tonite when we put her to sleep for the nite, as usual, in our room in the travel kennel..she started scratching the bottom of it in serious hyper mode...we finally removed her and put her in her day time crate in the kitchen...no more scratching...and not a peep out of her.
What can be explained about this behavior...?? I'm really confused b/c she was perfectly content with the prior arrangements till tonight. Just a bad day all around for Derby??!!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Yep, mine too.  Still.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Mine three at times. It's a big old thing and sometimes he burrows under it, tries to pull up an edge and tosses it around sort of.

[Jay, Lola and Colonel Esau]

I've never put Lola in a soft crate but I'm certain she would try to scratch and dig too.  That canvas-like material seems to make for good scratching.  She does sleep on a dog bed that is made of something like that and sometimes she tries to dig and scratch that too.  Same thing if I put a pad made of that material in her wire kennel.  If I buy anything like that I only buy Kong brand because it's very durable and she can scratch all she wants without tearing it up.  When she was really little she would do that for a few minutes, get adorably frustrated and then pass out.  Also we don't have a backyard but I do try to take her places where she can dig with immunity.  She loves it and it seems to get out a lot of that frustration.  If she tries to do it on my bed or couch I tell her no.

I wouldn't stress too much about the housebreaking.  It always seems worse than it is when you are going through it.  Just keep doing all the right things, if you make a mistake learn from it and move on.  I never correct a dog for going in the wrong place unless you are absolutely certain the timing will be perfect.  Their little attention spans are so short and you can easily confuse them.  I do make a big deal about them going in the right place and start with verbal cues as early as possible.  For Lola, I say "do you have to go pottty?", as a question, and if she does she will go towards the spot.  If we are already in the spot or in an unfamiliar spot I say "Do your business", as a command" and that is her cue to ... well, do her business.

[a.k.a. Rodney]

As usual just good to hear from you out there with the advise, support & encouragement....
THANX

[BettyAnn, Holmes & Lucy]

Are her daytime and nighttime crates different? She may prefer one over the other if they are. But who knows! I guess she'll let you know :)

I switched out Holmes' fleece blanket in his crate to a towel for Spring. Unfortunately that flimsy towel allowed me to hear his nails on the bottom of the crate while he re-arranged and re-arranged that towel all night! Stuck a thicker cotton blanket in there and problem solved, or at least noises padded.

On the potty thing-- Holmes will be 12 weeks tomorrow. I've had him for 4 weeks and he's only had 2 days of no accidents! I know I had higher expectations when I first got him. He is attached to me all day too, so it is my fault when he has an accident. It is getting better though. 

[David]

Hi

We had a simular problem with our Shepadoodle when he was the same age.  He was OK for the first week in our bedroom at night, then became restless all night long.  So we put him downstairs in the kitchen in his day time play pen, and he slept a lot better, maybe because he wasn't restricted and there's no top on it. Regarding the toilet training, ours was hit and miss (after following all the rules of catching them at it and place them outside with plenty of praise, no paper by the back door as that encourages them to toilet inside etc) until he hit 16 weeks old, then it all stopped.  He went through every night no problem, but I did feed him at 5pm for his third and last meal of the day, and no water after 6pm, and let him out into 'his own area' just before retiring to bed at 11pm ish. It's like a switch went off at 16 weeks old, and was warmly welcomed.  If you find your puppy's toilet is loose, simply add some cooked white rice and that will firm it up.

[Jen and Annie]

Annie is almost 10 months old and will still 'dig' around in her crate when it's time to go to bed.  She LOVES going into her crate, but like others here, I think she is just making her bed a little more comfortable. She will go on for about 2-3 minutes until she gets it 'just right' and then she will lay down.  With the potty training, you really have to just watch them like a hawk for at least the first 2 months that you have them home.  They will go potty in the house: After a meal, after a play session, after a nap, before a nap, after they come out of their crate - basically you have to take them out about every 45 minutes to hour... she will get it eventually.