Crate Training
Crate training, when done properly, gives your dog a safe space in which they can relax. Dogs that have been properly trained often grow to love the crate, seeking it out on their own. The benefits of crate training are numerous: helps new dogs or puppies slowly learn the rules of their new home and keeps them out of trouble, great for helping with house-training, gives you an option if you need to take the dog with you somewhere that free roaming is not acceptable (family members’ home), and it gives your dog a place all their own!
Types of Crates
At the shelter, we typically provide a plastic crate as these are safer for use in the car and easy to clean in case of accidents in the crate. Metal crates are generally collapsible and able to be easily transported without taking up much space. Plastic ones, although they can break down into 2 parts, take up more space when transporting. Some dogs will prefer one or the other and it is hard to know what the preference will be.
Generally, your crate should be just big enough for the dog to stand up and turn around in. If you are working with a puppy, you can get a larger crate and block off space as needed with a box or divider. This allows your pup to grow into their crate.
How long can a dog be in a crate?
Many dogs are crated while their owners are at work for 8-10 hours. This can work for lots of dogs, but there are some things to consider.
Dogs should always be left with water. If you are concerned the dog will spill it, there are bowls that can be attached directly to the crate.
If you have a smaller dog, or one that isn’t quite house trained, know that a mess is likely if the dog is crated for hours. Until a puppy is old enough to learn to hold it, it’s simply up to us as pet owners to have some understanding. Puppies have to learn to hold it the same as our kids have to; so we should be able to accept the mess during that process if/when it happens. Ideally, you would keep your puppy in a larger area, like a puppy playpen, and not in a crate, if you were going to be gone longer than they are able to wait between potty breaks.
Puppies should spend no more hours in the crate than their age in months.
A 3 month old pup should be out of the crate every 3 hours for potty break and exercise.
A 4 month old pup should be let out every 4 hours for potty break and exercise.
A dog should not be expected to spend a full day in a crate and then be expected to sleep in the crate overnight. This is far too much time in a small space and it is likely that at this point, some of the mental and physical needs of the dog are not being met.
How to crate train
Crate training can take quite some time and you should be prepared to move slowly through the training process and accept that every dog adjusts at their own pace. As long as you keep the process slow as you progress through the steps, and consistent with all family members on board, then you are likely to see a dog ready to be a happy and positive family member with their own special little spot! Go slow. Be steady. Then I bet Rover will be ready!
Getting started
Step 1: Introducing the crate
It is important when introducing new equipment to a dog that you do so gradually and reward heavily for interactions. This goes for harnesses, basket muzzles, service vests, and even things like a hiking day pack or life vest.
Place the crate somewhere the dog can check it out and you can be nearby to help encourage the interaction and reward it. Don’t place it in a back room, laundry room, or room in which you will not be able to see the progress.
Anytime the dog goes to the crate or sniffs, reward that by speaking in a fun pleasant tone and perhaps using a high value reward (little piece of hot dog, lunch meat, or cheese). As the dog begins to see rewards coming, you can encourage him to slowly place feet in the crate by tossing treats inside, and keep tossing further and further into the crate. At no point should you shut the door and trap the dog at this stage. We simply want to build a positive association.
Sometimes even tossing toys into the crate for the dog to retrieve can be a good motivator for the dog to enter all the way.
Do not move to Step Two until your dog can easily walk in and out, all four paws, of the crate for treats without hesitation. Remember: every dog goes at a different pace so be patient!
Step 2: Build a positive association
One of the best ways to build a positive association between the dog and the crate is to give them things they need and want in and around the crate.
Food is the biggest motivator for most dogs, and even some of us humans! If you want to build a good relationship with the dog and the crate: feed them in the crate.
If your dog still is a bit hesitant or anxious around the crate or entering the crate, just place the bowl next to the crate.
If your dog is confident and easily goes into the crate for treats and toys, place the food bowl inside the crate.
Each day you want to move the bowl further and further back in the crate until the dog’s whole body is in the crate when eating.
When the dog has a few successful days of full body in the crate with the bowl at the back; gently close the door.
Open the door of the crate immediately after the dog has finished eating for a few days.
After a few successful days of full body in the crate with the door shut eating; let the door stay shut for a few seconds after they’ve finished eating.
Increase the length of time the door is shut after the dog is finished eating. Remember: Go slow as you increase time!
If your dog starts to seem anxious or cries at any phase along the way, you may have progressed too quickly and should go back a step. The slower you go, the less risk there is of the dog getting anxious and scared.
Step 3: Building time in the crate
If your pup seems to happily eat their food in the crate without stress you can move on to crating the dog randomly for short periods of time while you are at home.
First time you crate the dog without feeding just encourage him to go into the crate with a treat then shut the door and just sit right there with him for a short time. Once he seems calm and ok, get up and walk to another room where he cannot see you. Wait for another short while. (5 or so minutes to start) Then go back and let him out.
Keep doing #1 and increase the length of time you are out of sight. Do this multiple times a day for multiple days. The goal is to get pup to be quiet and calm for 30+ min with you out of site. Once he’s got this, you can then start to kennel when you leave the home for errands or a short while or overnight.
Make sure that you are pairing your treat that you give him when he enters the crate with a queue word like “crate” or “kennel.”
When you start to leave your dog in the crate as you leave the home, try to make sure that you’re not crating them in the same sequence in your getting ready to leave routine.
If you always put on shoes, grab keys, then place him in a crate – try every once and a while to do crating, then keys, then shoes!
This helps your dog so they don’t associate the crate with you leaving every time.
It can even be beneficial to do your ‘get ready to leave the house’ routine and then… not leave. Just crate the dog and do other things around the home.
Sleeping in the crate
If you decide to do overnight in the crate, make sure that you keep the crate near you at night for a while so it doesn’t induce any anxiety or panic. Eventually as they adjust to sleeping in the crate, you can move the crate to your preferred location.
Remember: if you intend on keeping your dog crated for hours during the day while you are out or at work, it is best not to also crate at bedtime.
Crying and whining in the crate
Ah yes, the #1 issue with crate training; crying and whining. If you are following the slow, steady and then ready method then most whining you experience will likely be signs that you’ve progressed to the next step a bit too quickly. The solution here is to just go back a step or two and keep moving slowly and making sure you are rewarding each positive step forward.
The other most common reason why dogs will cry or whine in their crate is for attention. We call this an Attention Seeking Behavior. For a dog, any type of attention is what they are after. So if you are yelling, banging the crate, staring them down, then you are giving them attention and inadvertently rewarding that behavior. Anytime we reward a behavior we tell the dog that behavior will get them attention. In this instance, you may ask the dog if they need to eliminate (Do you need to go potty?) and if they react positively, you may try to take them out to potty but not play. If they do not respond or eliminate when outside, keep them in the crate and be resolute! Don’t let them out until they are calm. If you do give in while they are still crying, you’ve rewarded that behavior and there is a high chance the dog will continue to cry next time they are in the crate.
Please note, if your dog is truly panicking in the crate, you have likely moved too fast with the training and they are not yet ready to sleep, or spend as long as you are asking them to, in the crate. Go back to the beginning of the training plan and spend more time building a positive association, or seek the help of a qualified trainer (of email the foster team if this as a foster animal).
Additional Resources
Videos
How to Crate Train a Puppy by Zak George’s Dog Training Revolution
Crate Games Video Series by Susan Garrett