One more crate training question :D

[Stephanie]

A friend advised me to keep the crate and food right next to each other. Basically in the same area the puppy will be spending most of his time. My house isn't too big and I wanted to put the crate in the dinning room and his food and play area in the kitchen (floors). Is this a bad idea? Should I put the crate in the kitchen? I bought a medium sized crate for him to grow into (there is an extra wire to make it smaller for puppies) and it takes up a pretty good amount of space in my kitchen area, but I still have room to walk through. The only problem with that is that it reduces the amount of free space he has to run around.

So, does it matter that his crate is in one room and his food and play stuff in another???

[Tricia, Shiloh, Fenway & Tessie]

He'll get used to whatever the routine is at YOUR house....he'll know where his bed is and where is toys go...and he'll definitely know where to find the food! I think you should arrange it the way that it works best for you in your home. He will prove to be an amazingly adaptable boy and will follow your lead in where his stuff is. Just know that at first he will probably whine and cry in his crate at night....no matter where you put it. The first week is the hardest....then he'll start to settle down and get into the routine! When does he come home?

[Kathy (Max's Mom)]

Hi Stephanie, I don't think it matters at all. When I first got Max his crate was upstairs in my bedroom (which lasted all of 3 days due to the whining - lol) then I put it in the dining room. His "play area" is pretty much any room I am in. I also purchased at walmart one of the crate covers so he can only see out the cage opening...this makes it more of a 'den' for him. He'll whimper for a few minutes cause he's 'lonely', but he's fine otherwise...I don't think it makes any difference where you have what situated...just as long as you have your routines of where stuff is so he/she knows where to go for what; it'll help you both later down the road for training purposes too! Good luck with your doodle. :-)

[Stephanie]

Thank you for all your responses! I'm so happy I found this community <3

[Sonja]

Stephanie, our little girl is now five months old, and I read and read the discussions on Doodle Kisses before we got her and before I even joined. I totally love this doodle community and attribute our early puppy successes to the shared knowledge I received. It is just so nice to know that there are people who have been through all the stages and have so much to offer. By the way, Maizy's crate is in our bedroom and her food is in the kitchen, where we blocked her if we didn't want her to wander around the house. Her toys are in whatever room we are in, on a little quilted pad. I am a quilter and made a quilt for her for each room!...talk about overkill. We just gave her free rein of the house yesterday and she seems to know where the best things to find are in each room, and goes to her crate when she is tired at night. I have found that she is very adaptable to whatever we want her to do.