Now i know why everyone says crate training is such a lifesaver.

1663 Views 12 Replies 10 Participants Last post by Florabora22, Sep 10, 2009

JakeysMum

Discussion Starter · Sep 10, 2009

Past few nights have been hell with jake, he's been so unsettled, wanting to walk around every room of the house, wanting to go outside 5 or more times a night, me thinking its because he wants to pee so i let him out, but its so he can go to find some poop to eat :doh: He hasnt been going to sleep until about 3AM!

As i write this im on the outside couch prob going to sleep here with him because it seems to be the only place he settles.. he kept wanting to come back out here and im too tired to keep going back and forth (its 2.40am) I'm freezing my butt off but I can't leave him out here alone, On a couch, in a huge backyard.

Crate training went really badly for us, to put a long story short even the vet told me i should just give up on it, but im thinking now he has too much freedom.

Should i just try again and put up with his crying and barking, do you think he will get used to the crate eventually?

This is pretty ridiculous, i love him, but geez!!!

Oh and guess what he's asleep now, dont golden retrievers feel the cold? lol

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BJSalz

· #2 · Sep 10, 2009

I don't know what I would do without crating. I've tried only once to let our pup sleep outside his crate in our bedroom. He kept pacing not knowing what to do with himself. I only let it last a short time and put him in his crate and he was asleep within minutes. My dog doesn't mind his crate.

Not letting him out when he cried was key though.

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Cam's Mom

· #3 · Sep 10, 2009

What was the problem when you tried crate training?

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mdoats

· #4 · Sep 10, 2009

If you don't want to try the crate, I'd suggest gating him in one room rather than letting him roam the whole house. Rookie is 2 1/2 now. I don't crate him at night at home, but his bed is in the kitchen and he's gated in that one room.

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timberwolf

· #5 · Sep 10, 2009

mdoats said:
If you don't want to try the crate, I'd suggest gating him in one room rather than letting him roam the whole house. Rookie is 2 1/2 now. I don't crate him at night at home, but his bed is in the kitchen and he's gated in that one room.

My thoughts exactly. When we had a few really hot nights we started leaving Timber gated in the kitchen/back hall. It gave him more leg room and he was able to lay on the cool ceramic floor.
Worked great with him, he hasn't slept in his crate since.

Do you have any baby gates that you could use to keep him contained in 1/2 rooms? You may have to listen to him cry for a bit when you gate him in for the first few nights but he'll get over it.

Good luck!

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goldhaven

· #6 · Sep 10, 2009

How old was he when you got him? How old is he now? What do you do when he cries? If you pick him up and comfort him you might be reinforcing this behavior. He needs to learn to self soothe. It sound like he is very anxious. You might want to consider a really good training class or a dog behaviorist. If you don't have the time or money there are a lot of good training DVD's or TV show. Animal Planet has Good Dog U and from underdog to wonderdog. They sometimes address the issues that you are having. Good luck.

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jwemt81

· #7 · Sep 10, 2009

Don't give up on the crating. Tucker is over a year old now and we STILL use the crate and probably always will. It's also a safety issue. He won't be able to get into anything that is potentially harmful to him or to your house when you are not watching him if he is crated. I am amazed that your vet told you to give up. Of course, he is going to whine and yelp like you are killing him by putting him in the crate the first several times, but he WILL get over it. I would try crating him some during the day while you are awake to give him a chance to adjust to it. When he starts throwing a fit in the crate, IGNORE HIM. Do not let him out until you have had a solid couple of minutes of quiet. Don't even look at him while he is yelping his head off. If you do, he will very quickly figure out that all he has to do is make all kinds of noise and he will get attention and be let out. After he has been barking and whining for a while, he will eventually tire himself out and give up and will be just fine. You will be very thankful that you did this once he gets used to his crate and doesn't mind being in there. Crates are a lifesaver!

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goldhaven

· #8 · Sep 10, 2009

Right now he has a bad idea about the crate and in order to crate train him properly you are going to have to reintroduce it. If you do this properly the crate will be his safe haven and he will want to go in. First, do not simply put him in there. He needs to want to go in on his own 4 feet. Throw in his favorite toy or a treat and say "kennel" or whatever command you want to use. When he goes in, you want to praise him. Put a bed or towel in there to make him comfortable. If he is still a pup, you want to make sure that it is something that he can chew up because he might. Don't close the door right away. Keep playing the game where he will go into the crate, get a treat or praise and then come right back out. After he gets used to the crate, leave the door open, but give him the stay command and make him stay in there for maybe 30 seconds. Tell him what a good boy he is and then let him come back out. This needs to be done several times a day for about 5 to 10 minutes each time. Slowly increase the amount of time you require him to stay in the crate still leaving the door open. This usually doesn't take a very long time for the dog to get used to a crate but because your dog already has negative feelings about the crate it might take you a little longer. Also, you have already given in and he has already won the crate battle so be very patient. If he doesn't already know them he also needs to know the sit, stay, down, and quiet command. These will help you with the crate training. Good Luck and let us know how it works out.

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BJSalz

· #9 · Sep 10, 2009

I wanted to mention too - I have crate rules that I have my family follow..

*At night (bedtime), our pup doesn't get any chews/bones/toys/etc. It is sleep time. He gets his blanket and stuffed bear.

*During the day when he is in his crate because I'm busy (shower, laundry room, etc), his blanket and bear come out of his crate and he gets a marrow bone to entertain him.

I think that is why my pup doesn't mind his crate; he's comforted when in there - during the day he gets a nice bone and at night he gets his blanket and bear.

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goldhaven

· #10 · Sep 10, 2009

Those are some more great ideas

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iamswiss

· #11 · Sep 10, 2009

Bailey is usually in the crate when I leave the house for 1-3 hours during the day and I always give her a stuffed kong or treats when she goes in there, so that keeps her busy for a while. Usually when I return she's sleeping. If she isn't crated she usually sleeps on the kitchen floor, she doesn't really go on her own in the crate. We crate her when we eat, as she tends to jump up and tries to bite my sons feet (who's sitting in the highchair). She doesn't like to be crated then and barks all the time during our meal, but I hope she will get used to it and hopefull stop.
At night we haver her in a crate next to our bed and she does really good, we just have a blanket in there and no toys.
I am glad we got the crate, I couldn't be without, I really recommend starting the crate training again.

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pburchins

· #12 · Sep 10, 2009

One thing I did not see in your post is how much exercise is Jake getting and when ? I think you need to give him a good amount of exercise in the evening and where is but out.

If you are not going back to the crate you need to have him sleep in one room. I don't think it is a bad thing to have him in your bedroom on the floor. Jake is still young and wants to be a part of your pack and that includes sleeping arrangements.

I would really focus on exercising him and wearing him out. He will go to sleep if he is tired. By the way, Jake is a cutey !

Good Luck !

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Florabora22

· #13 · Sep 10, 2009

I first would try to figure out why your puppy is so restless! Staying up until 3 and then being antsy the rest of the night doesn't sound particularly normal, although I am not saying your dog is abnormal. I don't think the crate has anything to do with it. I haven't crated Flora since she was about 4 months old because she really disliked it (I swear I could have put a filet mignon in there with her and she would have ignored it b/c she was so stressed.) I agree with the above poster - try exercising your puppy more and see how the nights go then.

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