Crate training is a valuable way to keep your new puppy safe and more quickly teach house-training.
Dogs are den animals. Your dog’s wild ancestors would dig shallow holes or caves in out-of-the-way places where they could sleep, hide from predators, and rear their pups. Modern dogs still retain this ancient instinct. They love a quiet refuge where they can take a snooze or get out of the fray. The crate is your dog’s “den.”
Crate training is universally recommended for housetraining because dogs—even the youngest pups—don’t like to soil their dens. Your pup will quickly learn to hold it in or else. Preventing accidents is much more effective than correcting your puppy after the fact.
Crating also restricts your puppy or young dog’s access to the rest of the house so she can’t get into trouble while you’re away. This could literally save her life. Later, your adult dog is likely to use the crate by choice. You’ll often find your dog in there with the door open, snoozing or just chilling out.
Finally, the crate is a great home away from home if you ever need to travel with your dog.
Used properly, a crate is a cozy and comfortable space where your dog feels at ease. But it should not be abused. A dog left crated for long stretches without exercise and human interaction will become bored, depressed, or anxious. A young puppy can only go so long before she’ll need company and a bathroom break. If you’re home during the day, your puppy should be interacting with you, not constantly crated.
Crates are NOT indicated for dogs with separation anxiety or compulsive disorders unless they are already known to be calm in a crate. Being confined only increases their distress, and a panicked dog can get severely injured in an attempt to escape.
Crates should never be used for punishment. If you grab your dog angrily and shove her into the crate, she'll start to associate it with negative feelings, which could make her anxious or stressed in the crate.
Crates come in three major types: plastic, metal, and soft-sided. Crates can be purchased at most major pet stores and online pet supply outlets.
Crates come in all sizes. The right size crate is one in which your dog, as an adult, will be able to stand up, lie down, and turn around. Not sure what size to get for your growing puppy? Ask your veterinarian, shelter, or breeder for advice. Too much extra space and your puppy might choose the far corner of her crate to do her business, and house-training will be slower. Options include purchasing a second crate to use when your pup is small, renting successively larger crates as she grows, or buying one full-sized crate and partitioning it. Some crates come with built-in partitions just for this purpose.
Some pups will take to the crate right away. For others, it’s an epic struggle. If your pup comes from a breeder, she may have learned her crate manners already. If not, be sure to proceed gradually. It also helps to have your pup on a regular schedule of feeding, play, and sleep times. Puppies have natural cycles of rest and activity during the day. An awareness of your puppy’s physiologic down times will maximize your success with crate-training.
Teach your puppy to use the crate by linking it with something pleasant. Here are some tips:
Once your puppy can remain content and relaxed in the crate for about 30 minutes, you can begin leaving home for short periods. Give her the “kennel” command and a treat, and then close the door and walk away. Don’t linger over goodbyes and don’t make a big fuss when you return, no matter how excited you are to see each other. This actually makes separation harder.
Your puppy is also ready to start sleeping in her crate overnight. Since young pups need a bathroom break during the night, keep the crate nearby—beside your bed or in the hallway—so you can hear when she stirs. Later you can choose to move the crate to a preferred spot. However most dogs are happiest sleeping close to their favorite person.
Adult dogs should be crated for no more than 8 hours at a time. For puppies, a good rule of thumb is to calculate your puppy’s age in months and add one. So for a 3-month old pup, she might spend a maximum of 4 hours before needing some social interaction and a potty break. Fortunately, you may find that this interval extends at night when your dog is sleeping and her whole system slows down. But the opposite is true when it’s daytime and she’s awake and alert.
If your 3-month-old puppy is crying and 4 hours have passed since bedtime, she probably needs to do her business. Then again, if she’s been out already but is fussing and won’t settle, try giving a correction as in step 5, above. If this doesn’t work, it may be best to ignore her. Don’t dote or coddle. It will truly make matters worse. Feel comfort in knowing that your pup will inevitably mature and adapt, and that these sleepless nights will soon be a distant memory.
Setbacks are common during crate training, so don’t be discouraged. If your puppy repeatedly soils her crate, consider the following:
Be aware that a puppy who abruptly loses housetraining may actually have a medical problem with her bowels or bladder.If things just don’t seem right, consult your veterinarian.
Probably not. Crate training is best done when your dog is young, but old dogs can still learn new tricks. Your dog may need to be crated after a big surgery, for travel, to prevent destructive chewing, or to protect her from bolting out the door when guests arrive. Use the same procedure as you would for a puppy to acclimate your adult dog to the crate (see steps 1-6 above), although you may have to take it much slower. Again, crate training is usually not safe for dogs with true separation anxiety.
With any luck, your dog will soon love her “room with a view.”
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