| H.O.T.
Dog Club Training Articles |
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| Crate Training Your Dog |
| by Cindy Hyde |
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| The idea of putting a puppy in a
crate or "cage" is often viewed by some novice dog owners as cruel and
insensitive. A crate, however, if
introduced correctly, can be a puppy’s best friend as well as an effective and vital
training tool. There are many benefits
in buying a crate for your new puppy. At the top of the list are his security and your
peace of mind. Dogs are den animals by nature and the crate provides your puppy with its personal den, its "safe place". If you watch carefully, you will see your new puppy settle down in a small, enclosed, cramped area for a nap, perhaps under a table or bed. Done properly, being confined to a crate is not an unpleasant experience for dogs. Some dogs may not welcome it at first, but with proper persuasion, they usually accept it. Hopefully, your puppy comes from a breeder who crate trained it or started crate training it. In this case, this puppy already considers a crate its home or "den". Crate training a puppy is important for many other reasons. It keeps him out of trouble and makes him feel more secure about being left alone. If you have visitors who are afraid of dogs or service people working in the house, the crate will provide a more relaxed atmosphere for all involved and keep your dog from getting underfoot. It is also a great safety measure when traveling with your dog. A crate is also a good way to maintain a positive relationship with your puppy. After all, if the little guy isn’t running through the house, he cannot be doing things he shouldn’t. You come home, he’s wagging his tail. You tell him he’s a good puppy, calmly open the crate door and immediately take him outside. He relieves himself and once again you praise him, "Good puppy". Lots of positive reinforcement here. There is no need for yelling and screaming when you get home to find that he has trashed the house. There is, of course, no way he could trash the house, as he was safely confined to his crate. A crated puppy cannot chew on an electrical cord and electrocute himself. He cannot find that bug poison you sprinkled under the bathroom sink and forgot about. He cannot get into the cleaning chemicals under your sink when you are not watching. A puppy’s natural instinct is to chew, especially when he is teething. Just like a baby, he will attempt to put everything into his mouth. Anything within the puppy’s potential range is fair game. You wouldn’t let a toddler run unsupervised in your home and help himself to everything within his reach. You shouldn’t do that with a puppy, either. A crate is also where he learns to control his bladder and piddle outside. Dogs will usually make a great effort not to soil their den. If you take your puppy outside often and praise him lavishly for doing his business outside, with the crate’s help, he will housebreak sooner, with fewer accidents. Choose the size of crate that you will be able to use for your dog when it is a fully grown adult. The full grown dog must be able to stand, sit, turn around and lie down comfortably. If, as is usually the case, your dog will be a lot larger than your puppy, it may prove smart to have two crates, one puppy size and one adult size. If this is financially prohibitive, fix the adult size crate to allow the puppy use of only the size he needs. The crate should not give the puppy too much room because puppy may use one end for a bathroom and still have enough room at the other end to sleep "away" from the mess. If your puppy has never seen a crate, introduce him to his new home slowly when he needs to take a nap. Use a toy, bone or treat to induce him to enter using whatever command word you choose (kennel up, crate, bed, or similar words). Leave the door open initially, until he enters of his own free will. Once he is acclimated to going in, begin closing the door. Your puppy may start to whine or bark when he is locked in the crate. This is normal. The puppy may be trying to tell you he has to go. If you are sure he doesn’t need to relieve himself, ignore him. Don’t open it if he whines or cries. Some puppies will only fuss for a few minutes, others may bark for a while. Open it and let him out when he calms down and is quiet. After he eats, he will want to relieve himself. After that, put him in the crate for naptime. He should be comfortable with this. When puppy wakes up, he’ll bark or cry because he needs to go out and doesn’t want to soil his bed. Take him out, let him piddle, play with him for a while. When he is tired and ready for another nap, put him back in the crate. The crate is like a baby’s crib – it is a safe place to sleep, but is not the proper place for bathroom functions. To make your dog more comfortable in his crate, put a washable, fluffy towel on the crate floor. (Don’t use newspapers in the crate—this will only confuse the dog about the proper place to relieve himself.) Put in a safe chew toy (like a Kong or Nylabone) to keep him occupied. A crate will also prevent the puppy from jumping all over you while you are driving, possibly causing an accident. Keeping an animal crated during travel also offers the dog added security in the event of an automobile accident. If you don’t want to crate your dog during travel, pet stores now have safety belts for dogs. Once you reach your destination, a crate provides your dog with a safe haven in a strange location. It makes you a more welcome guest since your dog won’t be running wild through someone’s home or in the motel room. He’ll be happier because he has his "den", your host will be happier since he’ll have no accidents and you’ll be happier because you won’t have to apologize for puddles and ripped furniture. The crate is not a place for punishment. Your dog should always see the crate as a wonderful, happy haven. If you approach the crate as a necessity of dog ownership similar to the leash, collar and water bowl, your dog will accept it readily. It will become his little home. You won’t have to worry about what he is doing when you aren’t watching. And he feels safe while you are gone because he is in his den. If you still have doubts, go visit your local dog pound or animal shelter and talk with the workers. They will likely tell you that the reasons given for surrender of dogs are often that they just couldn’t take it any more – the destruction of their belongings and home. A crate is no substitute for personal attention and obedience training. Patience is still a requirement, but the crate helps make dog ownership a more pleasant and happy experience for dog and owner. |
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