Crate training question . . . the first week

[Julie, Boomer, Milo & Casey]

We are bringing home our puppy at the end of this month.   We also have a 2yo doodle who was crate trained.   I picked up puppy #1 in the morning and spent time during the first day treating him as he walked in to the crate in our family room.  If I recall, my husband just 'nudged' him in to the crate that we had in our bedroom the first night.  He did whine so I slept on the floor next to him.   Puppy #2 won't be home until mid to late day...not allowing much time for the initial crate training.   Any suggestions what to do on day one since I won't have much time to spend treating him and training him to go in to his crate.    His breeder has not had him in a crate either so this will all be new to him. 

 

On a similar note...doodle #1 never really liked his crate.  Never went in to it willingly.   I would like for puppy #2 to enjoy walking in to his crate.   How do you train a puppy/dog to enjoy the crate.  What did you do so that at 6 months, 12 months etc - s/he would willingly go in to the crate?

 

THANKS!

[Kimberly Daisy Kalli]

Hi Julie,

We also have a 2 year old doodle, who is crate trained.  She loves her crate.  It took her about 5 days to stay in it without whining at night.  We give her a small piece of a treat every time she goes in.  If we say "crate" anywhere in our house, she runs to her crate (tail wagging).  She also goes in it to take a nap with the door open even if we don't send her in.  Our 2nd doodle (Kalli) is 15 weeks old.   It took her 2 nights to be in her crate without whining.  The breeder let us bring a small stuffed toy and rub it on the mom, the dad and her litter mates to pick up their smell.  We had a 4 hour car ride home.  Kalli sniffed the little toy the whole way home and laid on it for 3 weeks at night in her crate.  She did whine those first 2 nights and we reassured her with a calm voice, but did not take her out of the crate until it was time for a potty break.  Kalli loves going in her crate now and also goes in to nap without us sending her there.  Each of our dogs also has a fluffy blanket in their crate.  Best of luck with your new puppy!  Can't wait to see pictures!

[Julie, Boomer, Milo & Casey]

I'm going to use your idea of bringing a stuffed toy with us when we pick him up.   Are you saying that you used small treats to get her in the crate during the day and night?      I assume she didn't want to go in to the crate on her own at night, right?     I remember that being the hardest part with doodle #1 so we would have to really nudge him to get in and then close the door...which obviously led to him not liking the crate.  He slept in it fine but never went in willingly so we stopped using the crate at night around 6mo....and took away the daytime crating around 12 months.   I want to be able to say "crate" and have the puppy go in...Thanks.

[shelly]

I don't know if we were just lucky, or she just felt comfortable, but... she came in a crate on a plane from Air Canada.. by the time we got her home it was about 3:00 in the afternoon... she played and then we would keep putting treats in her crate... BUT she wasn't very hungry, so it wasn't the treats... we had a separate wire crate with a divider in my son's room for sleeping at night.  We put it so she could see him easily right next to his bed, but not too close or she couldn't see up... we then put the shirt my son wore that day outside the crate right next to it on the floor, so she could smell him.... to get her in we treated her she whined a bit but then settled quickly and actually slept 6 hours... perhaps she was extra tired from her trip, but from then on that's what we did... she slept in his room for about 4 months and then graduated to the den in a larger crate (with no clothing needed - lol) where she still sleeps today - she'll be 3 in March.  Good luck with your new puppy - so exciting!

[Sandra Griffith]

Try some of the following:

1) Feed your puppy in the crate.

2) When your puppy is not looking place small treats in the crate so he/she will find these as a bonus when he/she goes in.

3) When your puppy is in the crate randomly give him/her treats when in the crate.

4) Give your dog a stuffed Kong when in the crate to occupy them with something delicious.

Keep the treats very small- they will fill up if you give them large treats.  By small treats I mean a shred of chicken or small piece of cheese (about a 1 cm size cube).

 

 

[Julie, Boomer, Milo & Casey]

Thank you for the ideas - I'm going to use these! 

[Becka]

I've done all of these things that Sandra recommends and Sadie loves her crate and always goes right in--even before I give her the stuffed Kong.

[Deb & Pete]

what is a stuffed Kong? I am new to all of this, am getting my pup in 2 weeks, so trying to learn all I can to help when Pete comes home.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

For both my dogs, I also had a Snuggle Puppy in their crate at night. Amazon sells them and they have a little heartbeat in them. They loved that Snuggle puppy and I swear it helped with the crate training. I kept the crate next to my side of the bed and if they fussed, I just put my fingers inside so they could feel that I was there. Plus, every night before crating them, I put in a special treat too. Good luck.

[shelly]

We could never do (and still can't) stuffed animals with tori.  she tore them apart in minutes flat... and then would EAT small pieces... and she's still eating things she shouldn't....NOT good!

 

Also - is the breeder close to you?  You could drop off to the breeder either a towel or if you plan to use a stuffed animal, or your old tee shirts that they could rub on or place with the puppy and mom and littermates to get THEIR familiar smell on it and THIS could be used either in or just outside the crate, or just to provide a familiar scent to the puppy when it comes to YOU.  You can also search You tube... there are TONS of training tips for getting puppies used to their crates.. I'm a visual person and need to actually SEE it done....

[Jaime and Barley Barker]

I've heard that feeding a puppy inside of the crate can lead to the puppy becoming territorial about his/her food and possibly become food aggressive. I don't know how true that really is. Since we have a multiple dog household (four large dogs), we've always fed the new puppy with the other dogs so the pup could feel part of the pack. Barley used to resist going into the crate until I started treating him. If he was particularly resistant, I grabbed a higher end treat such as cheese or a hot dog piece, or a Kong filled with peanut butter or pumpkin. I also put his crate in the kitchen or family room during the day so he would be near people, and then moved the crate into the bedroom at night. If Barley was especially unhappy about "crate time", I'd play a CD of harp music to calm him down. Barley is now 14 mos. old. I used to think he hated his crate.  However, starting about two months ago, he now waits at his crate door at night to be let in. He now thinks of it as his own safe bed. So, if your puppy resists in the beginning, you might be surprised later on with your pup going in on his/her own.

[Jaime and Barley Barker]

I forgot to add, since Barley was initially crate resistant, that if I had a new treat or toy to give him, I introduced it to him as he was going into his crate. I also would always leave both a soft toy (for cuddling) and a chew toy in his crate to keep him busy, and changed those up every day. I tried to make "crate time" a little fun in that way so he never saw it as a punishment.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

Funny you should mention this. Lucy is in her crate right now with the door open, as she often goes in there to rest on her own accord. She's 14 months old. On her 1st day home with us (at 7-1/2 wks) we put her food and water dishes in her crate and allowed her to go in and out without closing her in. That night she went into her smaller sleeping crate in our bedroom with no problem and no whining throughout the night. I think I was more anxious than her. Now, she may have had some exposure to crates at the breeder's, as she came from an excellent one. That I don't know. But she's NEVER whined about being in her crate and views it as her safe sanctuary. Is it possible you could ask your breeder to expose your puppy to a crate beforehand? And by that I mean leave a crate with the door open and toys and/or treats inside. I don't see why a breeder wouldn't satisfy a simple request like that, and honestly a really GOOD breeder should be doing it anyway.

 

Here's a video of Lucy the 2nd day home with us, playing in (and out) of her crate (I never miss an opportunity to share this). BTW, my husband and I slept with the stuffed puppy she's playing with the night before. It remains, to this day, her favorite stuffed toy (and yes, its still fully intact).

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