Crate training is an all-out wonderful concept. Every puppy should be crate trained. There, I’ve just put it out there without any diplomacy. On this issue, I don’t think I need to play that diplomatic card and worry about offending anyone because crate training is a simple, benign concept.
Crate training provides your dog with his own home, his own room. It provides you with a safe place to put your pet should the need arise. Here on the Cape we are planning and discussing emergency shelters. If we ever did have an emergency, wouldn’t it be a small comfort to know that your pet is used to a crate and won’t be freaking out at being put in one? And whether or not you can admit it, not every person visiting your house likes dogs, even the friendliest of dogs. A crate is the perfect solution to having those friends over that don’t love your dog.
Crate training should start when you first get your puppy. Ideally, the crate should be just big enough for the puppy to sleep in, so if you have a growing pup, you will need to switch crates as he grows. Avoid the “getting the next size up in case he grows” thought. If a crate is too big for the dog it will defeat the purpose, which is to convince the puppy that this is his home. Instinctively, dogs do not like going to the bathroom in their sleeping area. If the crate is just big enough to sleep in, then he won’t want to go potty in it. This also highlights the concept that crates serve as excellent house-training tools. Just remember that once that crate door is opened in the morning, immediately put your puppy out to potty. To this day my dogs still go from the crate to the back door.
Entice the dog to enter the crate with treats and a command, such as “Kennel up,” or “Crate.” We actually tell our dogs to go to their house. Don’t use the crate as punishment, sending the dog to the crate when you are mad. After awhile, they will actually head to the crate on their own when in trouble. Remember, it is their safe haven. Your puppy will probably make some noise or scratch at the door of the crate for a few nights. Don’t let him out! Do leave the door open to the crate during the day and encourage the dog to spend some time in it with toys or treats.
My dogs love their crates. I know some customers who say that their dogs really ignore their crates after awhile, and that is fine. At least the dog has the concept of the crate. Because we use ours every day though, the dogs really do see them as their safe spot. If the kids are being too rambunctious and Pecan gets a little scared, he will seek out the safety of his crate. As Scout gets older and has more trouble jumping up onto our bed, she ambles into her crate for a snooze instead of trying to get on the bed. We leave their crate door open during the day and at night we close them in (remember, I’m the one who can’t stand sleeping with my dogs!).
Another bonus to the crate? We don’t have the dogs deciding when we get up in the morning. Our dogs actually continue sleeping or hanging out in their crate until we open the door, even if the time varies from day to day. My father-in-law’s dog gets him up every morning at 5 whether or not my relative is ready. Would that happen with crate training? I can only speak from my own experience: the five different dogs that we have crate trained stay quiet until we let them out.
Yet another positive to the crate? Last night, Pecan started his whole throw up routine. Very commonplace in our house, so we didn’t fret over the vomiting, but we did worry about our babysitter scheduled to arrive that evening. She shouldn’t have to clean up dog vomit on top of watching our cherubs, so we put Pecan in the crate. Was there a chance that he would throw up and we would have to clean him and the crate? Sure, but we like our sitter and decided that was preferable to losing her because of our throw-up king. (Parents out there can understand the fear of losing a valued sitter!).
On that kid note, crates have given our kids some really cute moments with their puppies. The mantra in the house is that the crate is Scout and Pecan’s home, so we’ve tried to teach the kids to respect that. However, when they were smaller, they would sometimes wander into our room in search of the dogs. We’ve found Colby asleep with his head on Scout’s belly, half in the crate, half out. Before Pecan arrived, Delaney would bring her books and her blankets into Scout’s crate and read to her. And our dogs have the best decorated crate in town. The kids draw pictures and tape them to the crate, or, if Scout is in an “eating paper” mood, we will tape them to the walls around their crate. As the kids have gotten older, they are starting to respect that when the dogs are in their crate and the door is open, then perhaps they need a little time out from us.
To me, there is no downside to crate training, except the fact that crates really do make horrible additions to your decor, particularly if your dog is the size of a small apartment! Then I might reconsider crate training! However, I know that when I leave my house, my dogs have the opportunity to be safe in their crate. They don’t mind ever mind being put in the crate, so when the rugs are being cleaned or we are having people over, we are comfortable and more importantly, our dogs are comfortable.