HELP!!! Worlds noisest puppy has moved in!

[HazelN]

Hi,
Am new to the forum and thought I would ask for some advice if anyone can help. We have just adopted a 6week old golden lab cross from dog's trust. He came home last Thurs and we are really struggling with getting him to settle in his crate. We had a black lab before but she was crate trained when we got her at 4 months, so this is all new to us.
We have tried giving him lots of praise when he is quiet in the crate and giving him bits of chicken to reward good behavior.
We would like him to stay in the crate when we are in bed, because he's a chewer and we are worried about him hurting himself when he's left out, but I'm so worried about the noise he makes when hes alone in it, I'm sure we're going to get an ASBO soon!! My poor neighbours!

Can anyone offer any advice? It's much appreciated, Thank you x x x

[Lisa/Colin]

Hi we have a 2 year old Great Dane Hektor and a 5 month old Staffie pup Millie.

We crate trained Millie from 6 weeks and luckily had no problems. I am no expert but I would suggest every time he goes into his crate give him a treat or chew, then ignore him/leave the room. You need to ignore him if he is making noise or crying and only let him out his crate when he is quiet. We also fed Millie in her crate so she would associate it with good things. You need to be quite hard I think, he will soon see his crate as his den and not mind going in, it just takes a bit of time and patience. Start as you mean to go on and I am sure he will eventually get the hang of it, good luck!

Lisa

[Ross/Ali]

Hi Hazel, I agree with you it is heartbreaking to stand back and listen to them crying and scraping to get out of the crate (or prison as I am sure they initially believe it to be).

We have Giles (2 years) and Holly (12 weeks) both of which were introduced to the crate from 7 weeks. Like Lisa, we have been fortunate enough not to have had many problems.

Ross first moved our crate into an area of the living room where Holly could see everyone and like Lisa and Colin we feed Holly in her crate the majority of the time.

When she isn't in the crate the door is left open so she can go in and out as she pleases and quite often the cats take advantage of a cosy bed!

Giles learned to love his crate and seen it as his private space (as long as a cat didn't get there first). In time it was no longer an issue and when we got the little one we were worried about how he would react to being promoted (given the run of the house) and the little one stealing his crate!!!!

It's hard but persevere he will get the hang of it but in the meantime wear a pair of earmuffs or put the TV up loud!!

Alison
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[Ian Paterson]

One piece of valuable advice is never use the crate as a means of punishment. Defo use treats when they go in when you tell them to, this is what I do with fred and he is more than happy to be in there when we are not about.

I am sure if you have a quiet word with the neighbours they will be more understanding of the noise.

[Alan and Lynsey]

I Agree with Lisa, we have meg (2) and bella 6 months, we feed both dogs in there crate. When i leave the house in the morning i will put both in there crate and when they go in i give them a treat.

like Iain said never use the crate for punishment.

good luck.
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Cheers,

Alan, Lynsey, Meg, Peanut and new arrival Bella

[kerry]

when we got Luna she did the same thing, but as she was so small when we got her she actually slept in an overnight carry box for t he cats, seemed to settle her as there was less room for her to move around in , she just settled down and slept. I dont know of you are already doing this or not, but depending on how big the crate is, we started to partition it off, giving her more room as she grew. Seemed to do the trick,and now she loves her crate more than our other dog
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[HazelN]

Thank you all so much for your great advice, we are getting there, but it's taking time. Alfie's been going into the crate by himself and we've been giving lots of praise, just need to get him to feel comfortable in it when we are upstairs now. Sure he will settle soon,

Thanks again for taking the time to reply to me x x

[Suzanne H]

We kept the crate in our room for a few days, then moved it to the hall, then down stairs.

Put the pup in there when you need a break or to have a nap....they soon get used to it. A kong with a wee of dog food/peanut butter/cheese in it also distracts them and they associate the crate with that.

Also don't go back in if the pup is making a fuss...wait until there is a break. They soon learn that noise = you coming to get them.

They do get used to it....they are creatures of habit so if you keep the routine consistent, they learn where the crate fits in that.

Partitioning off a large crate also helps with toilet training.

[HazelN]

Funny you should say that, he's been sleeping great through the night in the crate in our room for the past 2 nights, think will do the same as you and move it into the hall tonight or tomorrow night, then downstairs after that. When do they stop having to get up to go to the toilet during the night?!!
Thanks for that x