View Full Version : New pup hates crate please help
pupmom
04-22-2009, 10:05 PM
Our 6 month puppy hates his crate. He pants like crazy when we leave him in there and the crate is totally wet from slobber. He is otherwise a calm and happy little guy and is doing well in house breaking. We have tried giving him treats in his crate he goes in gets them and gets out. Did the same with toys. Even tried Kong with treats inside. We have started leaving him in the bathroom and he does fine there. Our crate is a travel carrier. Do you think he would like a wire crate better or just leave it alone and keep him in the bathroom when neccessary? Please help I hate to stress our little guy out.
MandyPug
04-22-2009, 10:08 PM
To be honest, my dogs were never crate trained. We basically isolated them to a small area where they couldn't chew bad things and where the floor was easy to clean. If he's doing well with potty training and handles being in the bathroom, then there is no need for the crate.
have you ever put him in his crate as punishment? if so, he may associate being in there with being in the "doghouse" haha literally speaking (oh i'm so funny sometimes).
if you want him to be crate trained, continue what you're doing. if he is that anxious in the crate, it may be a good idea to crate train him properly..the last thing you need is him freaking out at the vet or something because he's afraid of being in the crate. other things include being crated for a car ride (if he tromps all over the interior of your vehicle), crated for an airplane ride, crated to be in a hotel which allows dogs but only on the condition that he be crated...do you see where i'm going with this?
i crate trained my oldest pup for those reasons, and just recently has she been sleepng back in the crate because i rescued another little girl, and i want to keep them separated during the night.
does he cry in there? and if so, do you go to him? if you do go to him, stop doing so. theyre like kids, they'll cry and cry and finally get over it and fall asleep. otherwise, you're teaching him that crying=mommy comes and lets me out to play!
if you really wanna train him with his crate, place his food dish at the entrance. do that for a few days, getting closer to the entrance, and then start feeding him in there.
i have to run home for lunch, but i have a few more things to add so expect a second continued post!
katiem
04-23-2009, 01:03 PM
I knew a couple who had a Plott hound who was exhibiting the same behavior as your dog seems to be. They also had a travel carrier, and once they switched to a wire crate she was fine. The guessed she was a bit claustrophobic. I'd never heard of that before, but it worked for them so you might just give it a try.
special
04-23-2009, 01:08 PM
I knew a couple who had a Plott hound who was exhibiting the same behavior as your dog seems to be. They also had a travel carrier, and once they switched to a wire crate she was fine. The guessed she was a bit claustrophobic. I'd never heard of that before, but it worked for them so you might just give it a try.
Welcome to pet lovers!
I was thinking she might do better with a wire crate, too. Something with enough room to stand up, turn around, stretch, and lie comfortably.
katiem
04-23-2009, 01:23 PM
Welcome to pet lovers!
I was thinking she might do better with a wire crate, too. Something with enough room to stand up, turn around, stretch, and lie comfortably.
Are you welcoming me special? LOL!;) Kidding, kidding!
I really think its worth a try, if you have the money to invest in a wire crate.
What kind of dog go you have, and what's his name?
special
04-23-2009, 01:25 PM
Are you welcoming me special? LOL!;) Kidding, kidding!
I really think its worth a try, if you have the money to invest in a wire crate.
What kind of dog go you have, and what's his name?
Katie you are always welcome in my book, but the welcome this time was for the OP. :)
_Lisa_
04-23-2009, 02:09 PM
My boxer mix had similar panting & slobber symptoms when in her crate & we used the advice found at the site below to properly crate train her:
www.inch.com/~dogs/cratetraining.html
It took awhile-being consistent is necessary & we had a bit of a tough time with that at first, but its so worth it! My baby loves her crate now! :) We've had both the wire & travel type carriers, but now we've got the one at the link below, and the type of crate didn't make a difference.
http://www.petmate.com/Products/Vari-Kennel-and-Vari-Kennel-Fashion__21700.aspx
Good luck!
dogpastor
04-23-2009, 03:39 PM
Hi --
How long per day is the dog in the crate? That might make a big difference in the dog's attitiude toward it. ALso, is the dog exercized significantly? Just wondering...
Scott
hey, time for part two!
if he shows nervousness while eating in front of his crate, ignore him. praise only when he is calm and unfearful/showing no anxiety. if he won't eat, let him watch you take it away and watch you put it back. don't just leave his bowl on the floor, the floor doesn't feed him, you do!
the next step would be to place his dish just inside the crate. praise only when he is calm and quiet. again, don't just leave the bowl there.
place him in his crate for short periods of time and reward with a treat when he's quiet. if he carries on when you leave the room, start by leaving for short periods of time and return and reward only when he is quiet. he needs to learn in this case (if he's anxious when you leave) that when you leave, it's not forever.
these are only guidelines, there are many sites for crate training on the internet.
oh, and maybe a couple of indestructible toys, like a kong filled with treats, or filled with peanut butter and then frozen. Kye loves that.
nothing that could harm him while you're not watching him though!
i hope it gets better for the two of you!
pupmom
04-23-2009, 10:40 PM
Thanks for all the info. Here are answers for a few questions. Tucker is his name and he is a rescue but I think he very much resembles a Schnoxie (min schnauzer mixed with long haired daushaund). He is not a talker so mostly will bang on crate. We have fed him in the crate and he goes in gets a piece of food and takes it out to eat it. He has never been punished and put in the crate and he is only in it at night and for short periods when we need to leave the house. It is in our room at night so he is not alone. I don't think he has seperation anxiety because he is fine is we just leave him in the bathroom. When we put him in the crate at night he would wake up and bang on the crate several times a night. We would take him out and he would go to the bathroom. Now just in the bathroom he sleeps all night and wakes up early around 6:30 to go potty but no accidents and no other wake ups. We go on a regular long walk everyday so he gets plenty of exercise. I am going to borrow a friends wire crate to see if that makes a difference. He travels in the car with me a lot and is fine lying on the floor. I don't want to just give up but don't want him to be anxious for all his periods in the crate. As I said he is normally very happy, playful but not nervous. In the crate he seems to be hyperventilating with his panting.