Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cratetraining

Crates vs. baby gates.

SkylitDrawl — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 11:13:11 -0800

After doing tons of breed research and visiting shelters and rescues, I have finally found the write dog for me. I purchased a miniature dachshund from a reputable breeder in my hometown. She is only three weeks old right now, so I have five weeks to prepare for her arrival in my home. I do have a few questions that I hope Mefites can help me with. I will be bringing my miniature dachshund, Josie, home to my (large, one bedroom) apartment in about five weeks. This will be my first pet that I have ever brought home as an adult (I am 25) and I have spent a very long time thinking about whether or not I am ready for her. I think that I am. I am really excited to bring her home and plan to spend the next few weeks puppy-proofing my apartment and buying all the necessary supplies for her.

Right now, my big dilemma is about what to do with Josie when I absolutely have to leave the house. I am a grad student who works part time, about 20-30 hours per week. I am lucky in that my schedule is very flexible, so in the early weeks of Josie's time in my home, I plan to spend as much time with her as I possibly can. However, I will have to be at work for a minimum of twenty hours a week. I usually work in the mornings on Mondays and Thursdays, from 10AM-2PM and on nights on Tuesdays and Wednesday from 3PM-9PM. I have the entire weekend off, except for two Saturdays a month, when I go to class from 8AM-4PM. I have arranged for someone to come sit with Josie during the Saturdays that I have class and for a dog walker on Tuesday and Wednesday nights to come play with her and let her out, but I am unsure on what to do on Mondays and Thursdays.

I personally want to crate train her to aid in the process of house training, and so I can safely contain her when I have to be out of the house and/or someone cannot be with her. I have read during my research that most dogs love their crates if crate training is done properly. However, my family members and friends seem to advocate for me putting her in my tiled kitchen or bathroom with a baby gate up to contain her and pee pads on the floor to catch any accidents she might have. They argue that a baby gate/pee pads will be cheaper than a crate and that Josie will be uncomfortable and cramped in a crate. Josie is a small dog who will weigh < 11 lbs at the most at adulthood. I don't know what sort of dangerous capers Josie could get into if she had the run of my kitchen, but I definitely know that I do not want to leave her alone and free to roam in my small bathroom. I don't want her to be expose her to chemicals and I don't want anything to fall on her while she is exploring. I'm also concerned about her getting too acclimated to pee-pads and being difficult to house train because of it (can a dog get so used to going on pee pads that they do not want to go outside? I feel like it would be inconsistent of me to let her pee on pee pads when I'm out of the house and then expect her to magically want to go outside when I'm there). Is it safe to leave her alone in the kitchen sealed off with a baby gate for 4-6 hours? I really feel that it would be safer to crate train her, but I'm just not sure. Also, what size of crate would be best for her and do any Mefites have crate recommendations? I appreciate any responses!

Bring home an 11-week old Weimaraner puppy?

reeddavid — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 11:12:17 -0800

Is 11 weeks too old to bring home a Weimaraner puppy? We've talked to the breeder. We asked her a lot of questions about why she breeds dogs, how they were brought up, etc. We're satisfied with all the answers.

The puppy we're interested in bringing home is the last pup in the litter to be spoken for. She's 11 weeks old and currently living with a couple other litter mates that haven't been picked up yet.

She told us that the pups were brought up indoors in her house at first, then lived in a 10x20 ft area with a doggy door that opened onto some grass. She said the puppies were exposed to several family and friends. It sounded like more kids than adults.

I've read so much about how removing a puppy before 7-8 weeks is too soon for many dogs. But I've also read so much about how 8 weeks is the beginning of an extremely important socialization period that only lasts a little bit longer.

We'd like to crate train our puppy and help her get used to all the people, places and noises that she'll encounter in a busy life of exercising around our city.

How big a deal is it for a puppy to spend weeks 8-11 with her doggy family and breeder instead of her new home? Are we going to have trouble crate training, potty training, and socializing? Or is this no big deal as long as we introduce her to new people and places right away?

I am getting tired of cleaning poop off the carpet!

triggerfinger — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 07:08:41 -0800

Dog training, crate training question. I got a new rescue dog a couple of months ago. He is an adult dog, but was never potty trained or socialized. I took the first week off of work to be with him and potty train him. To potty train, I used crate training and the umbilical cord method and it worked really well. I think he caught on pretty quickly that he needs to go potty outside. I felt confident enough that I didn't feel I needed to keep him in the crate during the day anymore within a few days of going back to work.

He was really good and didn't go in the house when I was at work. He kept this up for the most part for several weeks. However, three times in the last week, after I've taken him out, he's run back in and peed and pooped on the carpet immediately. He is getting top the point where he is pokes around outside and doesn't really go potty. At night, it's not as big a deal as I can take him out again an hour later if he doesn't go the first time. During the day I can't do that. I know I should crate him during the day while I'm at work but I am gone for nine hours and I feel super reluctant, like this is too long for him to be confined to a crate. I know he can hold it for that long, but if he doesn't go outside when I take him out in the morning and then is in a crate for 9 hours, he will be going on about 18 hours since he last went potty by the time I get home. This seems cruel?

Another complicating factor: I pay a dog walker to come during lunch time and take my other dog for a walk. She would LOVE to take my new dog as well, but he won't let anyone but me put his leash on him because he was never properly socialized. He also won't let my roommate do it, otherwise my roommate would take him out. We are going to classes for fearful dogs, and he is getting better - he will accept treats from people and even let some people pet him - but it's taking some time. He's not aggressive-scared, just unfamiliar with new people. He's curious and I think he wants to go to people, but is just not sure yet. It is theoretically possible for me to go home during lunch, but I would be pushing it to get home, take him out and get back to work, time-wise. Taking a little more than an hour once in a while is generally not a problem but I can't do it every day.

I am feeding him once a day, at dinnertime, and then I take him for a walk around 8pm so I know that he is able to have a good poop and get it all out of him. He has no other food at other times. I would like to be able to feed him twice a day, in the morning and at night, but with his unpredictability with going potty in the morning, I feel like I can't take the chance that he decides not to go outside and then is left alone all day.

So, two problems I guess: 1) Dog won't go potty outside in the morning and lately has been running right in and going inside. I am thinking of crating him during the day but is nine hours too long to not only be cooped up in a crate, but also to hold his bladder, considering he didn't go outside? 2) Dog won't let anyone else put a leash on him to take him out, so my ability to get help on this is limited.

It should be noted that I do not have a fenced in yard so he needs to be put on a leash and taken out by a person. There is no possible way for another person to just let him out passively (without touching him).

Finally, if I do start to crate him during the day and he catches on quickly and starts to do well with going potty outside, at what point can I leave him out of his crate? How long do I need to do the crating while I'm at work routine? I would obviously prefer to leave him out because I'm gone for nine hours and he and my other dog like to play with each other.

Thank you for your help.

Roommates dog craps in my room - roommate doesn't care.

isaynay — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 15:57:19 -0800

How can I convince my roommate to put her dog away when she leaves, especially when it isn't potty trained and craps everywhere? Ok I did a bit of searching around in old posts and didn't come up with much, so here goes.

I live with three generally good roommates. One A, fostered a dog for six months before another roommate, C, adopted the dog. When the dog first came into the home she was not house trained and would be put in her crate when no one was home and if I came home first I was happy to take her out to potty and scoop the poop. Eventually A became more lax and started just closing the dog in her room. It's her room, whatever.

Recently though, now that ownership has transferred to C (who is very inexperienced with dogs), the dog is just being left to roam the house because "A said it was ok." The dog is still not potty trained, so this means that I usually come home and she has pooped/peed in the living room or in someones room. I generally kept my door closed because my own foster dog, who is potty trained and stays in her crate when I'm gone, was crated in there. She has since been adopted so I now leave my door open occasionally.

I have made it clear that I take no responsibility for the dog. I'm not responsible for feeding her or taking her out. I only feed her if I am asked, out of politeness, take her out if I know she's been trapped inside all day, and make sure she goes to the bathroom if I am the last to leave. These are favors, not obligations. I do, however, put the dog away in her crate if I am the last to leave and she had been left out. I do this out of consideration for everyone in the house, because I assume they do not actually want the dog crapping all over the floor.

I think this is quite generous of me, since not one of them gave a toss about my dog. I took full, 100% responsibility for my foster and we never had a problem. They didn't hang out with her or feed/toilet her. No problem. I therefore expect this other dog to be her owners responsibility, especially since I don't hang out with her. She is out for 15 minutes at the most when I take her to toilet.

But I'm getting fed up. I have asked A and C both to please put the dog in one of their rooms or in her crate when they leave the house because she is not potty trained and I am tired of cleaning it up, yet I am constantly opening the front door to find an empty house and dirty carpet. Today she had pooped in my room, which I find totally unacceptable.

My third roommate, N, argues that *sometimes* the dog holds it so it's reasonable for them to expect her to hold it all of the time. She also argues that if the dog is out when she comes home she has no reason to put her away when she leaves.

A argues that the dog is C's responsibility and therefore, if she is the last one home, she has no reason to make sure the dog has peed before she leaves or to put the dog somewhere secure. This means that quite often C will leave the dog out with A, who loves to hang out with the dog, and then A just leaves the dog out when she leaves. And then the dog poops in the main house or my room because nobody took her out or closed her away.

C doesn't know the first thing about dogs or their training and just forgets a lot. I would never have placed my dog with her, had she been interested, just because she never remembers things like this.

Just now, N came home while I was taking the dog out to the bathroom (after cleaning up the poo in my room). I put the dog in her crate because I did not want to hang out with her and closed myself in my room. N let her out. N then left the house and left the dog out wandering around. I texted her about it and she said the dog was out when she got home and I was home so she left her out. But I was closed in my room, clearly having nothing to do with the dog...

Am I crazy or is something wrong here? Especially since I've asked them repeatedly and they're now arguing with me about it. My boyfriend says I'm being overdramatic, but this has been an ongoing issue and I think I have a right to come home and not have to clean poop out of my bedroom. I have trodden in it in the dark before and am just sick of it. Whatever happened to potty training and responsible pet ownership?

Is there any way I can actually get my point across? I feel a little above leaving the poo in the living room for them to clean up, but I'm honestly considering leaving the crap in their rooms at this point. I'm obviously going to be closing my door all the time from now on. I just really would like to avoid this becoming even more petty.

To crate or not to crate?

kmtiszen — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 13:09:29 -0800

Just got a 6-year-old rescue dog. Is it necessary to crate? We recently added a 6-year-old rescue Shih Tsu to the family and we're having some trouble deciding how to handle him while we're at work during the day.

Here's his story: about 6 months ago, he was found abandoned in a park, tied to a tree with a balloon string. Oddly enough, he had recently been groomed when he was found. Seems like someone cared about him at some point, but for whatever reason, he was left behind and never claimed. He had been living at the rescue (a holistic dog spa -- this little guy was living the life) ever since.

He seems to be housebroken and isn't at all destructive. He was recently neutered, so he marks everything in sight, but he has only had one small indoor accident (seemed like a marking, not a full-out pee) in the 4 days we've had him.

Is this the kind of dog we can just let roam free during the day, or is it still preferable to get him used to a crate?

Why does this dog pee in his crate?

tryniti — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 15:13:05 -0800

How can I keep a healthy, adult male doberman from peeing in his crate 2+ times a day? I'm at my wits end! I am fostering a 3-year old adult male doberman. I have been fostering and rehabilitating dobermans for almost 10 years, but this guy really has me stumped. He pees in his crate constantly. Like, 2 or 3 times a day. I've had him here for about a month, but he was with another foster home before me for about 9 months, so crating is not a new concept to him. He was neutered as an adult, so he is a marker, but otherwise has been given a clean bill of health. I have never in my 10 years of working with dogs had a dog that just couldn't understand the crate training thing. I am all out of tricks here, so I'm hoping someone has something up their sleeve that maybe I haven't thought of.

Things I've tried that haven't worked:
- Putting him on a strict schedule for going outside
- Letting him out as often as humanly possible
- Limiting when he has access to water
- Putting him in the smallest crate he can squeeze into (he's currently in a 500-size plastic kennel)
- Putting him in a larger wire crate (disaster - there was pee all over the walls)
- Taking his blanket out (this leads to a dog covered in pee)
- Leaving a blanket in the crate for him (this leads to 3 loads of laundry a day)
- Giving him a specified amount of time outside (ie. you better do your business now because you won't be allowed out again for another few hours)
- Leaving him outside for up to an hour at a time
- Praising the hell out of him when he pees outside

The peeing is not limited to weekdays when I am at work - he will happily pee his crate on the weekends when he's just been out and I am 10 feet away. He doesn't seem to be a terribly stupid dog, and other than the fact that he (and the area around his crate) stinks of pee constantly no matter what I do, he's a really nice dog that I like a lot.

I am concerned not only because it's terribly frustrating to be cleaning pee as much as I do, but this is a dog that needs a home. It's hard enough to find homes for unwanted dobermans - finding someone to adopt a doberman that can't figure out not to piss on himself will be next to impossible.

Other details:
- He is estimated to be about 3 and came from the local animal shelter. He was initially very thin and heartworm positive, so we can assume he was probably an outside dog that received no veterinary care.
- He has been treated for heartworms and neutered
- The amount, color, and odor of his urine seems completely normal
- He is not drinking excessively
- I have 3 other dogs of my own in the house. Initially he was crated in a room alone so I could see if maybe he was peeing in reaction to nearby dogs. Since that had no effect, his kennel is now next to my 7 month old puppy's kennel (who figured out the no-peeing-in-the-crate-thing in about 2 days).

Help!!

Dogs domestication and cats

Mutant — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 05:28:51 -0800

Long time since I owned a dog. This is a two parter. First, is crate training the norm? Second, advise on breed that will fit in with two cats. I've got the blond, the flat, the time and the big ass park across the road. Now all I need to consummate one of my life images is the dog.

First query: I haven't had a pup since I was a kid growing up in the country, and I've read about crate training. Is this the generally accepted way to domesticate a pup these days? What are the pros & cons, and alternatives? I'm especially interested in the views of folks opposed to crate training.

Second query: we've already got two cats. We were thinking of a Labrador as a dog thats good around kids, seems like a pretty docile breed but does anyone have views on the propriety of a Lab pup with two nineteen month old kittens? Would the dawgs sex make any difference in breed?

Crate training a panicked puppy

ohio — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 03:04:09 -0800

Crate training help! We have a new puppy (around 9 weeks) who panics in her crate. I know we have to introduce her to the crate slowly, but how do we do that and also sleep/leave the house occasionally? Please help me not hate the dog. We have had her for a week now. She is a usually a good dog outside the crate and is even making good progress on housetraining. But. She panics-- not just whines, but throws herself around, chews on the bars, howls forever panics- when I put her in her crate and close the door. When the crate door is open she will go in and out and even nap in there. She eats her meals in the crate. If I put her in the crate when she is supersleepy and close the door she will be OK for a while. But if I try to close the door on her while she is awake she goes into full panic mode and I am afraid she will hurt herself. This is true even when I stay right next to the crate. I even put the crate on my bed, and she still panics.

I am trying to do everything that the books say to do, like introduce it slowly during the day and leaving treats in the crate. But I can't be tethered to the kitchen forever! How do I introduce the crate slowly and also sleep, shower, and leave the house every once in a while?

Bedding that a puppy can't eat?

dryad — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 20:07:38 -0800

Is there a good alternative dog bedding that our puppy can't consume? We have a 9 month old corgi, crate-trained, and so far he's found a way to chew/eat whatever bedding we've given him. So far, we've tried crate pad/pillow and blankets. Lately, we're noticing bits of blanket in his stools, and we'd like to avoid the health risks of his basically eating fabric and string. He's not a serious chewer, and we always crate him up with a safe chew toy (usually a "stuffed" Kong). His crate is solid plastic on the bottom, but since he does spend a fair amount of time in there (some time during the day, and all night), I feel bad putting him in there with nothing soft and cozy.

Just got a pup and have a few questions.

TheDude — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 21:14:57 -0800

I rescued my pup from a local animal shelter Monday and I have a few questions I was hoping someone with some puppy experience could answer for me. She seems to be a lab/pit bull mix and the shelter estimated her age at about 4 months. The vet that spayed her says she is probably closer to a year, but her small size (malnourished at 25lbs) and the small size of her teeth make me think she might be closer to 4 months (the vet the shelter was using seems to be a moron, I'll never take my pup there again). More inside.... So we've had her in the house for a few nights now and all is more or less well. She has some behavior characteristics that worry me however. For one, she fights me to eat her droppings. I realize it's only been a few days but I want her to understand that I will clean up after her - there is no reason for her to do so. Even when I pick up the droppings from the grass she will lick the area clean.....by god does that make her breath stink!

I'm trying to get her used to the idea of eating once in the morning, and once in the evening. However, her first few meals she barely ate, tonight was the first night she finished what I gave her. Is this normal? Is she just getting accustomed to the kibble?

I am considering crate training her but we have a laundry room that isn't being used at the house. For the time being we put her in the room when we go to sleep, or work during the day. Could she become accustomed to the room much like a crate, or is that not possible? When I leave her in overnight is it Ok to leave the lights out, or should I leave something on?

If I do eventually get her a crate, would it be too much to leave her in overnight (~7 hours) let her out in the morning for an hour or so then put her back in while I go to work? I can come home on my lunch break and let her out for another hour or so, but then she would need to go back into the crate until I come home. This seems like it might be too much time in a crate, but I've never done crate training before so I am not sure. Eventually when she is older and larger I won't have any problems leaving her in the backyard all day while I am at work, but for the next few months I need a solution....any ideas?

There are some separation anxiety issues with her that I am trying to quell, and I thought I was making progress because she hasn't been yelping or scratching at the door all night. But when I came home from work today she had done a number on the dryer vent and pulled out some insulation/drywall despite the numerous toys/rawhide she has to chew on. Any ideas on how I can stop this? Would it help to get a "baby" fence instead of closing the door so she can see outside the room?

In the few days shes been home with us we have only heard one small bark and some whimpering. She isn't very vocal at all....this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I just wanted to be certain it isn't a sign of something more serious.

Lastly, she has one or two stitches from where they spayed her. I've been putting one of those lamp shade collars on her overnight and while I am at work just in case, and I remove it when I am at home and can watch her. She doesn't try and pick at the stitches at all....am i safe not using the collar, or will she start to notice it as it heals more?

thanks in advance all.

Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together - mass hysteria.

mrhaydel — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 12:02:00 -0800

OK, so no human sacrifice, but a new puppy in an apartment already containing a cat - advice for training the puppy and dealing with the cat? So, the wife and I just bought a brand new puppy 4 days ago - a beagle no less. She's 8 weeks old.

We also have one cat, who can be a bit of a bully towards other cats (from when it used to be her parents' cat and lived with two other cats - that's four cats in one sentence), and aren't too sure how it'll be with a new dog in the place.

And, we're in an apartment with both of us being gone during the day either at work or school. So, I'm looking for any advice relating to both training the puppy and how best to approach the cat situation. I've seen a few other threads, but, of course, nothing quite like what I want.

So far, the puppy has taken well to her crate (we only put her in it at night, door closed, and she hasn't relieved herself in it yet - good sign maybe?), as well as learning to use the puppy pads we placed in our kitchen area (we gate that area for her to have 100% of the time, no exploring the whole apartment yet) while we're gone during the day.

We take her out once in the morning at 7:30 AM (which she seems to understand to potty out there as well), whenever whoever gets home first (roughly 3:30 PM or so), and then at least once more before putting her to bed at around 11 PM.

The biggest issue we have thus far with the puppy is figuring the best way to correct her when she refuses to stop nipping at our clothes, fingers, toes, what have you when we're with her. We understand she's a puppy and is prone to try out her teeth, but when and how do we correct that?

Also, how about when we decide (months, maybe a year down the road) to let her roam in the apartment while we're both there - stuff like transitioning her off the puppy pads to simply knowing she gets about 3 chances during the day to go the bathroom outside.

Oh yeah, then there's the whole cat thing. The cat definitely realizes there's another animal in the house, and that it's not going anywhere, but is there any good way to introduce the two together, or do we just let the cat and dog figure that out for themselves once they start sharing the whole apartment?

I'll watch this thread closely to reply to any questions or give additional information. Anything (books, websites, videos, etc) is appreciated. Feel free to e-mail me at mrhaydel at hotmail dot com should you feel inclined to.