Crate Training Your Dog - Easy Steps for Success

Crate training your dog is not, and should never be seen as, a way to punish your dog. Rather a crate is a safe haven for your dog that should be available whenever they want to use it. Crate training is a great way to house train your puppy and keep your dog and yourself secure when in your car.

There are many types of crate available. Some are made of cloth, others wood, some even made into items of furniture. The most popular are plastic airline crates and wire crates. Irrespective of which crate you buy, you need to make certain that it is the proper size for your dog. It should be big enough so that your dog can stand up, turnaround and lie down comfortably, no bigger, no smaller. If you are buying a crate for your puppy that will fit it when fully grown, you should use a divider to decrease its size, increasing the space as your puppy grows. If the crate space is too big your dog may use one area to sleep in, and another to urinate and defecate.

Put the crate where you want your dog to stay, usually where there will be people close by. Place your dog's bed and a few toys inside and leave the door open. For a couple of days do nothing further, just let your dog be around the crate, able to come and go as they want.

Start feeding your dog by the crate and bit by bit, over several days, move their bowl nearer until it is finally inside the crate. Once your dog is eating with their head inside the crate, move the bowl further until your dog is inside when eating.

You can close the crate door once your dog is willingly going into their crate and is happy eating in it. Initially close the door for only a short time, bit by bit increasing the time until you can be in a different room while they are comfortably in the crate. If your dog becomes anxious or distressed, immediately open the crate and let them out. Return to a stage where your dog was at ease and resume training at that point. Eventually you will be able to leave the house for several hours with your dog happily in their crate.

Crate training is appropriate for most dogs. The majority of dogs enjoy the comfort their crate provides, but there are some that cannot handle the confinement, or have had bad experiences in the past (e.g. dogs from shelters or puppy mills). They may attempt to escape, possibly injuring themselves badly. Crate training must be a positive experience. Pushing a dog into a crate or leaving them when distressed can cause long-lasting psychological damage to your dog. If you have problems getting your dog to adjust to their crate, you should get the advice of a behaviorist.

Crate training your dog takes time; it is not a quick fix for a problem dog. With perseverance you will find that your dog becomes more relaxed and secure both when you are at home and when you are away.