The dog crate is a useful, and sometimes life saving tool. You recently acquired a new family member, whether a puppy or an adult dog, and a process of adjustment and learning the rules of your household begins.
Tips Before You Start Crate Training
Consistency
I can't stress this enough. Be Consistent. Do the same things, make the same gestures, and say the same words all the time and your dog will learn faster as a result.
Patience
To lose patience with your new dog is to take 2 steps backward in any training process. Always keep in mind that if you stay calm, your dog will stay calm too, which in turn will generate confidence and trust.
Personality
Each dog learns differently, which can lengthen or shorten the success of the crate training process, or any training exercise for that matter. Dogs have personalities that are as variable as humans and we have to adjust accordingly.
Dog Crate Training Process
1. Introduce Your Dog to His Crate
Bring the crate to the room you spend the most time in. Put a soft blanket in the crate. Sit down beside the crate, propping the door open with your body so it won't swing and scare your dog. You may even want to remove the door at the beginning. Call your dog in a sing-song, happy voice. You may even incorporate the "come" command at this point. Reward your dog with a treat, and then put a treat on the floor in front of the crate, one on the ledge, and a couple inside the crate. If your dog hesitates and backs up, that's okay, do not try to coax him. Leave the treats and walk away. You may have to repeat this process a few times. If food or treats are not an enticement, try a toy. If your dog runs into the crate to retrieve a ball, it was his idea to enter. The outcome of this exercise is to make your dog believe it was his choice to walk into the crate, not yours.
2. Eating Meals in the Dog Crate
Once your dog will walk in and out of the crate on his own, you can start feeding him his meals inside. At first leave the door open while he is eating, giving him quiet praise. When you feel the time is right, have him enter his crate, put the food down, praise him, and shut the door. When he has finished eating, immediately open the door. If he is comfortable with the door being closed, slowly lengthen the time before you open the door after he is finished eating. If he starts to whine, you may have increased the length of time too quickly. This is a critical point. You cannot let him out before he stops whining, otherwise he will then associate whining to being let out of his crate. Wait until he is quiet, and then let him out. At his next feeding, cut back the time and proceed from there.
3. Lengthening Your Dog's Crate Time
Now that our dog is eating his meals and staying in his crate comfortably and without anxiety, you can crate him for short periods of time other than his feeding time. Call him in your sing-song voice, point inside the crate with a treat and/or toy in your hand, and close the door, leaving the treat or toy inside with him. Sit in the same room for a short time, get up and leave the room for about 30 minutes, then come back and sit in the same room for 5 to 10 minutes. If your dog is quiet, let him out of his crate and praise him. Repeat this process until you feel your dog is relaxed and content to be left in his crate while you are out of the room. Work your way up to a couple of hours of crate time without your presence. Depending on your dog's personality and energy level this part of dog crate training could take up to a couple of weeks. If your dog makes a fuss while you are out of the room the first time, ignore him and do not let him out until he settles down and is quiet.
4. Crating Your Dog During the Day
Your dog is now happily spending 30 minutes to 2 hours in his crate while you exit the room. The next step is to leave him in his crate while you make a short trip away from home. For this exercise you use your command and point to the crate, giving him a treat and a toy to play with. The treat could be optional at this point. Vary your routine when you are getting ready to leave and crate him anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes before stepping out the door. Make this a matter-of-fact exercise and refrain from any prolonged good-byes. Crate him, treat him and walk out the door. When you return home, come in quietly and keep your arrival low-key. Your dog will be enthusiastic to see you but do not reward him for his excited behavior by responding in kind. Let him out of his dog crate after he has calmed down and you are settled. Continue to feed him in his crate and reinforce crate time now and again for 30 minutes just so he doesn't relate crate time with you leaving him alone.
5. Crating Your Dog During the Night
Put your dog in his crate in the usual manner. You may want to have the crate in the bedroom or hallway near your bedroom door. If you have a puppy, the bedroom is the best place during the night as they tend to need a potty break in the wee hours and you will be able to hear him if he whines to get out. Adult dogs sometimes prefer to sleep near you as they feel socially isolated in another part of your home. If you prefer the dog crate be somewhere else in your home, wait until your dog sleeps through the night and then slowly move the crate to where you prefer it to be.
Possible Problems
Whining
If your dog whines or cries at night while he is in his crate, it is difficult to separate the reasons for his actions.
Questions you need to ask yourself:
1. Did he go potty before bedtime?
2. Was he fed?
3. Is he comfortable - cold or hot?
This process of elimination determines the first step of troubleshooting the whining and crying. If it is none of the above, try ignoring him. If you have not rewarded him in the past for his behavior by letting him out of his dog crate, then I cannot emphasize enough - Do Not Start. If he continues whining, after about 10 minutes, ask him your command word for potty. If he gets excited, take him outside, but make sure it is business only and not playtime. Make it short and return him to his crate without scolding or fuss. If you are convinced he doesn't need to go potty, ignore the whining until it stops. Don't give in. He learns very quickly that he can break you down no matter how long he has to whine to get out. Trust me; they can go on forever if they think they have the slightest chance. If you have progressed slowly in your crate training, you should not have this problem. If you end up with this problem and it becomes unmanageable, start the crate training process over.
Separation Anxiety
A dog crate will not remedy separation anxiety. Destructive behavior while you are away is not something a dog crate will solve. The possibility of your dog hurting himself while being crated if he has this behavior is very high. Separation anxiety is a complex problem best left to professional animal behaviorists.
Spending Too Much Time in the Crate
A crate will not solve problems. It can be a time out place if handled correctly with no scolding involved, but it is not a prison where a dog may feel trapped and helpless. If you work during the day and crate your dog, come home and let him out, then go to bed and crate him all night again, that is too much time spent in his crate. Arrangements to have someone let him out and walk him or a doggie day care during the day would help meet his physical and emotional needs. Puppies can be in their crate during the day for 30 minutes for every month of age. A 5 month old puppy should only be in his crate for a maximum of 2 1/2 hours at one time during the day.
If you crate train your dog properly, he will think it is his safe place and always be happy to spend some time in it when needed. This article is a guideline for you. What works for some may not work for you and your dog. Educate yourself and study your dog's behavior for a win, win relationship.
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