How To Turn The Mini Jail Crate Into Your Dog's Natural Den


by - Date: 2007-07-01 - Word Count: 831 Share This!

Many people see dogs being locked in crates as inhumane and cruel. They just don't understand why dogs should be kept under lock. But to an experienced dog owner, crate training is essential for every dog out there. Done the right way, it keeps the dog secure, safe and at ease. It is also one of the smartest way to potty train your dog.

Getting the Right Crate Size - An ideal dog training crate should be large enough to allow your dog to stretch out without hitting his head and allow him to be able to turn around easily. The crate is too big if your dog can relieve himself in one corner and move to play and sleep in another. If your puppy is still young and not fully grown, try to block off certain section of the crate with cardboard or wooden boards.

Critical Crate Training Rules - You must introduce the crate slowly to your dog when you begin crate training. Crate him in short intervals, about 10 minutes, and gradually increase the duration over time. Your dog needs time to get used to being crated. Never crate him for more than 30 minutes or longer the first time you put him into the crate.

It is not advisable to crate a young puppy for long periods of time. Your puppy should have the chance to exercise and urinate before being crated. Dogs are fastidious creatures and have no desire to soil the surroundings of their private spaces. However, he might be forced to relieve himself if you cruelly lock him in for longer than he can hold it in.

A good way to remember the maximum length of time a puppy should be crate is to add 1 hour to his age in months. For example, a puppy who is two months old must not be left in a crate in excess of three hours.

It's normal for dogs to kick up a fuss, bark and moan while in the crate. If these things happen during crate training, do not give him any attention! Yes! Do not even look in his direction.

Dogs are intelligent animals. Don't let him know that he'll get your attention when he kicks up a fuss. Simply ignore him. Reward your dog with a little treat or praises only when you find him behaving well in the crate.

Offer a treat or toy to distract and calm your pup down if necessary. No matter what you do, you must not let your pup out of the crate, this is a very critical moment where you must not give in.

If you notice that your dog displays hyper active behavior as compared to before, you might be crating him for too long. If your dog starts to chew on himself, let him out immediately and consult a trainer or behaviorist.

Here are some tips to help introduce the crate to your dog:

1. To make his experience pleasurable, play with him there or spend time watching TV there or reading as he gets busy with chewing a toy. If he is there all by himself, he begins to associate the area with isolation and may resist being there at all.

2. Begin crate training at dinnertime. Give him his food, one piece at a time, by throwing bits of kibble in to the crate and making him search for it. This is one of the many ways that you can do to make crate training fun for him.

3. You can place his favorite toy, or even surprise him with treats hidden in the crate for him. To surprise him, you can even hide a biscuit in the crate - that's fun!

4. It is not advisable to keep him in the crate for long periods until he is pressured to relieve himself. If you are gone for long periods each day, you should consider a larger confinement area such as an exercise pen or a small room.

5. The best place to place the crate would be where your puppy can see the environment and family members, hear and smell you, the owner.

6. Never use a crate to punish your dog, it will backfire. If you introduce the crate to him in a fun way, your pup will take to crate confinement quickly and without much fuss. The crate is suppose to be your dog's natural den where he feels safe and comfortable, not where he'll be punish and associate it with "bad things".

7. Crate training is not a long term solution to keeping your dog safe without supervision. Puppies should not be left alone for extended periods in their crates. If the puppy soils the crate, this can slow down your training by weeks.

To conclude, crate training is a very valuable and useful obedience training lesson. Its main purpose is to provide security, safety, reduce potentially destructive behaviors, add to the ease of traveling and protection for short term confinement, whenever the owner needs it. It is one important lesson all puppies should learn from day one.

Related Tags: puppy crate training, dog crate training, crate training tips, canine crate training, crate training puppies

Moses Wright is a dog lover and owner of Dog Obedience Tips site. He loves to help dog owners with their dog problems and do so by consolidating his years of dog ownership experience into a free book filled with simple yet powerful dog training tips: Free Dog Problems Book

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