Puppy Crate Training
Puppy crate training is one of the best things you can teach your puppy. There are people who think it’s cruel to put puppies and dogs in crates but this is far from being true. In fact, puppy crate training helps your puppy in several different ways.
Traveling With Your Puppy
Traveling with your puppy is much safer if you use a crate. A puppy who rides lose in a vehicle can be tossed around or even thrown from the vehicle if you have an accident. He could end up loose on the road, hit by a car, injured or killed. It’s much safer for your puppy to be secure in a crate when he rides in a car.
If you plan to fly on a plane with your puppy he may be able to fly in the cabin with you while he is very small but once your puppy is an adult dog he’ll most likely need to fly in a crate unless he’s a very small Toy dog. Even if you are flying with your dog, only the smallest dogs are allowed to fly in the cabin. This means that dogs need to be familiar and comfortable with being crated when they travel.
Using A Crate For House Training
Crate training can also make house training your puppy much easier. Most puppies have a natural instinct to keep their sleeping area clean. If you crate your puppy during the times when he is supposed to be sleeping, such as during the night, then you can encourage your puppy to wait to potty until you take him out for him to relieve himself. Of course, you can’t expect puppies to go too long without relieving themselves. They have small bladders and young puppies may not be able to make it all the way through the night at first. But crate training does prevent puppies from having accidents all over the house and getting into other trouble at night.
Puppy Crate Training
In order to crate train your puppy you should begin by choosing a crate that will be the proper size for your puppy when he’s an adult. Otherwise, you will simply have to buy a larger crate when your puppy grows. If the crate is too big for your puppy when he’s small you can purchase a simple crate divider to make it the right size at the moment. Many people think that a crate should be as large as possible but the opposite is true. A crate should be a cozy, snug place for your puppy where he feels safe and secure. It can be compared to a wolf’s den. If it’s too large then your puppy won’t feel secure.
Once you have chosen your puppy’s crate you should place it somewhere in your home where your puppy can see it. Place a comfortable mat inside the crate. A sheepskin mat is often a favorite. Put some toys and treats in the crate. Leave the door open so your puppy can go in and out as he pleases. Let him explore the crate and get used to it. If he wants to curl up and sleep inside that’s fine. If he wants to play inside the crate, that’s fine. You can even feed him his food in the crate if you like. Your puppy should begin to think of the crate as a positive place and as his own special place.
Place some special treats in the crate and, with your puppy in the crate, close the crate door for a couple of minutes. Make sure you are nearby so your puppy can see you. Let your puppy out. You can do this several times, gradually increasing the time your puppy spends in the crate. If you do this slowly, and your puppy is already used to the crate, he shouldn’t object to spending a little time in the crate.
As you increase the time your puppy spends in the crate, see if your puppy will relax and take a nap. Your puppy may object to staying in the crate for longer periods of time but he will calm down. If he barks or cries and you let him out then he will bark more and cry more the next time. If you ignore him for a few minutes he should stop and play with his toys or eat his treats. He should eventually take a nap.
If you continue with this crate training it should be just a few days before your puppy is crate trained. He should start sleeping through the night, or nearly through the night. Make sure that you take him outside to potty just before putting him in his crate at night and take him outside first thing in the morning. If he does have an accident in his crate, try feeding him his dinner a little earlier in the evening and removing his water a little earlier. If your puppy is very young you may need to take him out during the night until he gets a little older.
If necessary, you may want to place your puppy’s crate in your bedroom at night so you can better monitor how he’s sleeping and if he needs to go out.
If you follow these suggestions for crate training your puppy should be crate trained for all purposes very quickly.