Question:He doesn't just whine in the begginning, its all night long. And he absolutely HATES his crate; the second i put him in it, he runs out before i can close the door. During the day, he sleeps wherever, such as the floor, but not in his crate. This is difficult as he is 9 weeks and i'm trying to crate train him. My vet said that if he whines, I should completely ignore him, but is he supposed to whine all night?? And how can I get him used to his crate more, as he hates it now?
Answers:
Proper crate training is very important and smart training for your dog. Are you just shoving the dog in the crate asnd walking away or do you get him to like his crate by putting treats in there??
The way to crate train is to show your dog a treat he likes, place it at the entrance of the crate, every time he goes and grabs the treat that's good. With every subsequent treat you place the treat a little further back into the crate. THIS is not something that usually occurs in one training session. When the dog is going further and further into the crate, than you shut the door behind him and give him another treat. Give him a handful of treats with the door shut... this will get your dog to love the crate. During random times of day when you walk past the crate and the dog is not crated, toss a couple of treats in the crate..this will encourage your dog to go inside and check on things and will get them more accustomed to it.
Do not give in to it's whining or you'll only be teaching it to whine the rest of it's life.
Do remember though a 9 week old pup needs to be let out to potty every 2-2.5 hours. Potty hold time is one hour for every month of life (average) So having a puppy means sleep-interrupted nights of letting puppy out to go potty.
Also, make sure the crate is the right size for the dog. you want it just big enough for the dog to stand in it unhindered, walk in, turnaround and lie down.no biggie. Too big and it'll feel it's okay to potty in there. I recommend getting a crate that is metal and comes with a divider so you can make a small crate for the puppy and move the divider back as it grows and not have to keep buying new crates.
sleep with him he'll love you more for it
try putting a blanket over the crate so it cant see you. When crate training my puppy i had to start out with the crate in my room so it knew i was there and wouldn't really whine but if it heard me get up to use the bathroom it would whine until i came back. Then as it got used to the crate i moved her to the hallway and then to the landry room.
You make sure that he doesn't have to pee before you put him in the crate??He's 9 weeks old, he isn't likely to be able to stay there all night long without having to go out at least once.
Your vet is right, ignore the whining, unless you are pretty sure that he needs to pee.. Take him out to pee, and then back to the crate.. Don't yell at him, don't tell him ' it's okay ' just ignore him.. He'll learn that quiet is the way to go when it comes to the crate, cause whining and fussing isn't getting him anywhere..
Give him a treat when he goes in and then close the door. Whining all night is pretty common at such a young age, both of my dogs did. You should ignore him while hes in there, if you walk past him at night for some reason or another, dont even glance at him, my dog Leo had the same problem. As they mature the whining stops because they realize no matter how much they whine they're not getting what they want, attention. However, if they stop whining and start again, take them out, make sure you take them out before you put them to bed, occasionally they will have to go late at night and make sure you let him out immediately after you get up. Hope this helps you!
He will get used to it.
I would suggest moving the crate to a room where his whining won't disturb you at night, that way it will be easier for you leave him in there.
You can also try the bird cage trick, putting a towel over the crate. We use this tactic when we crate the dogs at the grooming shop I work at if they're being loud. I think not seeing out makes it a little more clear that no one is going to let them out and it makes them settle down.
Also, you want to make sure that he associates the crate with good things, so positive re-enforcement is a ood idea too. Keep treats handy for when he goes in the crate and stays in willingly and for when he's been good in the crate.
Best of luck!
this might sound stupid but when my dog was that old i would sleep by her cage on the floor and stick my hand in her cage and lay dowen entell she fell asleap. and then ever so quietly i wold go crawl back into bead. but most people dont like to sleap on the floor but i recamend it. and also make sure that the dog sees the treat and throw in her cage that way she nows that she gits rewarded when she goes in ther.
take the crate to ur room and have him sleep there. that way he will know u are there and he wont whine anymore.
While crate training, always use the crate. Always.
Unless you are holding the pup or taking out to potty. They like the free roam of the house, and that doesnt help with house breaking, let alone chewing on things that arent supposed to be chewed on. Put his crate next to your bed, when you put him in it, give him a treat, then cover the crate with a sheet. Tell him good night, and go to bed, ignore the whining, I know that is hard, and its hard to sleep with that going on, but he will get the jest of it. Sleep on a blanket that smells of you also helps.
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