Outwest, I disagree 100%

To ignore the dog when you are near by will NOT work... You are 100% incorrect our trainer many years ago suggested to spray the dog with water, it's the same method if your dog is doing something you don't want him to do... HE IS A PUPPY he doesn't know any Better, and your logic of "if your in a crate and someone was to spray you " that logic has so many holes in it I dot even want to begin to tear in to it...

Fact is I will bet you 100% if he starts to cry, firm NO followed by a spray bottle...

But again I've done this with my golden and he never cried nor had a issue with his gate; to ignore the dog is not easy and he will keep crying...


What harm will it cause If the spray bottle was used?

Nothing, I see no harm


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I didn't think I would survive our current pup during the early days. Now, at nine months, she is wonderful. Try to survive until about four months or so. House breaking can take much longer then that.

But by four months you (hopefully) will have the pup in puppy school, he will be able to walk longer and you will be sleeping at night. Maddie slept through by the end of ten days.

It seemed to me that around three plus months things started evening out. Thanks to bitter apple, our furniture was saved. We had her shots so we could take her more places and get her exercise.

She had a better understanding of her place in the family. By four months we were getting chewed a lot less.

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Maddie (Essex Mountain Madrone) CGC Born April 17th, 2012

[QUOTE=Jtpllc;2061586]Outwest, I disagree 100%

I'm editing my post because when I wrote it I had come home from a bad days work (lost a co-worker to a heart attack) and was not in the best of moods.....sorry

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Marigold (Buttercup's Janedear Wildflower)

To each their own?

I personally had a puppy who whined and cried in the crate for the first few nights. I ignored him each time. Each night his whines lasted less and less until he never whined again (unless he needs to pee). I personally would NEVER spray a dog with anything if he was already experiencing fear or anxiety over the situation b/c imo that will only exasperate the situation. As Bear ages if he sees me from the crate he will whine because he would prefer to be out with me. I will look at him and tell him to knock it off, which normally settles the matter. But with a puppy who doesn't understand that you want him to be quiet in this strange, uncomfortable contraption using water to shock him into being quiet can breed distrust and further feed his fear and hatred of the crate. While, a member may feel Outwests' analogy has many holes, i think it provides the gist of what she was trying to convey.

I wish you the best luck in your endeavors and hope you find the best solution that works well for you that you are the most comfortable with.


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If you spray your dog in the crate you are risking the pup associating the crate as a negative thing. That's the last thing you want.


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Honestly, with our first few dogs we never did much to stop the whining/crying in the crate the first few nights, we just ignored it (although it broke our hearts to hear them- and they were always kept in our bedroom so we didn't sleep at all either). With this last little guy, we tired him out really well before bed-time that first night, then when he started crying my husband got down beside the crate and comforted him through the bars. I really thought that would just make it worse, but the little guy quieted down and slept for a few hours, so....? I think you have to play it by ear with every puppy, but you set yourself up for success if you make sure he's tired when you put him in there. Also, try to be really conscious of your emotional state when you put him in his crate. If you are feeling nervous and anticipating his crying and another sleepless night, or if you are feeling 'sorry' for him, he may be picking up on those emotions. He doesn't know the reason your feeling tense/anxious/sad, all he knows is that when you approach his crate, your emotional state is negative. Dogs have survived and evolved as our companions due in large part to their ability to 'read' us and our body language, so you may be supporting his dislike of his crate unintentionally.

I think the best thing you can do for that particular problem is to just tire him out, make sure he's 'empty', and just matter-of-factly put him in his crate like it's no big deal. Sit at the door (with it open) and just hang out with him until he's calmed down, then shut the door and try to ignore the noise until his bathroom-break time. I personally don't put toys in with them, as I want them to know that it's not time for play, it's time for sleep. But to each their own, right?

It will get better. Eventually. I mean, he's only been alive for two months at this point- he's growing in leaps and bounds everyday. One day you'll be sitting around and suddenly notice that you haven't cleaned up an accident in recent memory, or been woken up at night in a loooong time. This is the toughest time in your dog's life, in my opinion.

Ok new experience- he went to the potty 35 mins ago (#1 & #2). We had to run to the store. He is sitting on my lap in the passenger side and just sleeping away. Then I feel something warm on my leg. He never even woke up- and just peed all over me?! Normal or not?!


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Yeah...I don't know. BUT my current puppy pee'd in his sleep while laying on the couch. He was about 9 weeks old then. So I wouldn't say 'not normal'. And don't worry, my puppy is totally housebroken now, so this is not an indication of things to come. It'll be fine.


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I wouldn't consider it "normal" but not "not normal". During sleep, a puppy will lose rigidty of the muscle controlling his bladder and may without realizing it, wet himself by simply allowing those muscles to relax. If this keeps up, though, I would recommend checking him for a UTI.

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Ohmy!!! Your furbaby is beautiful and you sound just like I did when I got my little Penny! I think I cried for the first month from lack of sleep she got up in the middle of the night, every night...I felt like I wasn't doing anything right. Rest assured, it's all perfectly normal! With the chewing, I would take washcloths and knot them up, get them wet and freeze them. They provided lots of chewing entertainment for my pup! Best wishes for your happy family!