Tips for Crate Training Puppies Effectively

Crate training puppies is something that a lot of people are nervous about but that can actually be easier than you think. To your puppy, a crate can be a very pleasant environment, if you make it seem that way. Some puppies are, naturally, a little nervous the first time they get into a crate, but over time they become a quiet, safe, secure and familiar place where a dog enjoys spending time.

Crate training puppies is easiest if you build on your dog's natural instincts - which are to make dens. In the wild, a dog would use its den as a place to go to sleep, hide from predators, and also take care of its family. Yes, dogs still like to spend time running free, but they do appreciate having somewhere to hide out during a thunder storm or if there are other stimuli in the house that they find unfamiliar and stressful.

What Are Crates Used For?

The main reason to use a crate is to help with house training. Puppies learn very quickly that they should not soil their dens. If you can get your puppy to adopt a crate as its den, housetraining becomes easier, and you can use the crate as a way to restrict access to other parts of the house (and to safely transport the puppy by car) while they learn that they should not chew on furniture or tangle themselves up in wires.

The crate must always be a safe place. Do not punish your dog by making it get into the crate and stay in there, and do not keep your puppy locked in a crate all day. A young puppy should not stay in a crate for more than three hours, at most. Puppies do not have good enough control over their bladders to avoid soiling the crate for that long, and they could become distressed or anxious. Older dogs that have not yet been house trained should not be kept in crates for too long either.

Make sure that the crate is just big enough for the dog to stand up in it, and turn around. If the puppy is not yet close to its adult size, buy a crate that will be big enough for them when they are fully grown, and block off the extra space. This will stop the puppy from eliminating in the crate and then simply moving to the other side to avoid the mess.

If you work long hours, and do not want to leave your dog with free run of the house for all that time, hire a dog sitter or take your dog to an activity center for pets so that they have something to do during the day. Keep the crate as a place that they spend time in when you are traveling or if they are nervous around people. Do not let them form negative associations with the idea of spending time inside the crate.