Training
Taught patiently, a crate becomes where your dog sleeps of his own accord, door open. Forced on him, it becomes a prison. It is decided in the first few weeks.
You bought a crate because everyone told you it was "good for puppies". You set it up in the living room, popped the puppy in, shut the door, and he started howling and biting the bars. Or you have an adult dog who is flying in three months' time, or has to stay overnight at the vet's after an operation, and he has never been shut in anywhere. Or you would simply like to eat in peace when you have guests. Taught properly, a crate becomes the place your dog takes himself off to sleep, with the door open. Forced on him, it is a prison he tries to break out of. It all comes down to the first two or three weeks.
Night-time crying in a puppy who has just come home has its own page. This one is about teaching the crate, step by step, at any age.
The right size: he can stand without his head touching the roof, turn round easily and lie stretched out on his side. For a puppy, buy the adult size and use a divider, so he does not wee in one corner and sleep in the other.
A wire crate lets him see out and is well ventilated; drape a blanket over half of it so it feels like a den. A plastic one is more enclosed and is usually what airlines require. Fabric folding crates are fine for travelling with dogs who are already crate trained, but a dog determined to get out will tear one apart in minutes.
Put it where the family spends time, not in a cupboard. Dogs want to be near people: a crate in the corner of the living room gets used, one in the utility room gets avoided. Inside, a blanket or soft mat and a safe chew. Take his collar off while he is in there, because it can catch on the bars.
The door stays open and fastened back so it cannot bang shut. Toss tasty treats in front of the crate, then at the entrance, then inside. He goes in, eats, comes out, and you close nothing. A few short sessions a day, for a few days. Now and then slip treats inside when he is not looking, so he finds them himself. That way the crate becomes the place where surprises happen.
Put the bowl at the entrance first, then in the middle, then at the back. He eats with the door open. Once he walks in calmly to eat, start closing the door while he eats and open it as soon as he has finished, before he asks to come out.
Say "bed" (or whatever word you like), toss a treat inside, he goes in, you praise him and give him another one in there. After a few days, say the word and wait. He goes in by himself and only then gets the treat.
He is inside with a food toy. A rubber cone stuffed with soft cheese and kibble and frozen overnight keeps him busy for 15–20 minutes. Close the door, stay beside the crate and open it after ten seconds. Next time thirty, and a few days later a minute. Always open it while he is quiet, never while he is scratching or whining. If he has started to protest, you went too fast, so make it shorter next time.
With the crate door shut, get up, walk to the door of the room and come back. Step out for a second, next time thirty, and within a week you are pottering about the house for five minutes before coming back. When you come back, make no fuss at all: open the door calmly. He learns that you leaving the room is nothing special.
Only once he is relaxed for 30 minutes with you in another room. Short trips out, a few minutes long, with the food toy. If you want to know what he does, leave your phone filming. A dog who sleeps or chews calmly is on the right track. One who howls, scratches at the door or drools is not ready yet. And if he does the same without a crate, it may be separation anxiety, which is worked on differently.
Once it works at home, use the same crate, or an identical one, in the car, at friends' houses, at the kennels. For a flight, practise with the travel crate for months beforehand, including being moved, lifted and put in the car. A dog who knows his crate is far calmer when kept in after an operation or shut in a vet's kennel.
| Age | In the day, at a stretch | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Puppy of 8–10 weeks | 30–60 minutes | Straight outside afterwards |
| Puppy of 3–4 months | 1–3 hours | Rough rule: his age in months, plus one, in hours |
| Puppy of 5–6 months | 3–4 hours | With a walk and play beforehand |
| Adult | A few hours, not whole days | With exercise, sniffing and people the rest of the day |
At night a crate-trained dog can stay in longer, because he is asleep. During the day the crate does not replace walks, play and company. A dog shut in a crate for eight hours a day, every day, is not well trained. He is waiting.
Puppies. They learn the crate fastest, but they have small bladders and do not cope well with being alone. Lots of short sessions, and every time he comes out of the crate, straight outside for a wee. For the first few days the crate is next to you; if he cries when you shut him in during the day, you skipped a step. The best sign that he feels it is his is a puppy who falls asleep in the crate with the door open after play.
Adolescents (6–18 months). A dog who had accepted the crate may start protesting, especially if you have often used it "so he doesn't get up to mischief" while you are out. Go back over steps 1–4 for a few days, give him new chews and make sure he gets enough exercise and sniffing before his crate time.
Adopted adults. Plenty of rescue dogs have bad memories of being shut in. Leave the crate open for a few weeks, just as a place where he eats and finds treats. Some will never accept a closed door, and that is fine: at home a pen or a room with a baby gate does the same job. If he needs a crate for travel, start with a plastic one without a door, like a den.
Seniors. A thicker mat, a bigger crate, an entrance without a high lip. Some old dogs who get restless at night settle in an open, familiar crate beside your bed.
A puppy needs one to two weeks before he stays calm with the door shut while you are in another room. An adult with no bad history, two to three weeks. A rescue dog who is afraid of being shut in may need months, or may never accept a closed door; then you use something else.
The signs come roughly in this order: he goes in on his own for treats, eats calmly inside, goes in on cue, lies down and chews his toy with the door shut. And the best sign: he takes himself off to sleep in the crate, door open, in the middle of the day. If you see whining, panting, scratched bars or drool on the blanket, you went too fast, so go back a step.
A reward-based trainer helps you find the right pace for your dog. With separation anxiety, a behaviour professional and your vet work together. A crate does not cure anxiety, and in a panicking dog it can make it worse.
What dog owners search for most often on the internet about this problem, with the short answer.
Gradually, over a few weeks. First toss treats into the crate and feed his meals there with the door open. Then shut the door for a few seconds while he chews a food toy, then a minute, then leave the room and, later, the house for a few minutes. Only open it when he is quiet. If he protests, you went too fast.
During the day, crying usually means you skipped a step: shorten the time, sit by the crate and give him a food toy. Do not open the door while he is crying; wait for a pause, even two seconds. Check whether he needs to go out, too. Night-time crying in a puppy who has just come home has its own page.
It depends on age. A puppy of 8–10 weeks, 30–60 minutes during the day; one of 3–4 months, one to three hours, by the rough rule of his age in months plus one. A crate-trained adult can stay in for a few hours and sleep in it at night. Not for hours every day: a crate does not replace walks, play and company.
He should be able to stand without touching the roof, turn round easily and lie stretched out on his side. For a puppy, buy the adult size and use a divider so he does not make a toilet corner. For flying, check the airline's requirements; a rigid plastic crate is usually needed.
No, if it is taught patiently, used for short spells and at night, and never as a punishment. Many dogs choose their crate to sleep in. It becomes a problem when a dog is shut in for hours every day or forced in. Some rescue dogs will not accept a closed door; for them a pen or a baby gate does the same job.
They often come together: the same causes, plans that complement each other.
His first night away from his mother and littermates, alone in the dark in a box. Crying is normal; how you respond in the first few nights decides how long it lasts.
He howls from the first minute and only goes quiet when you walk back in. That is panic, and panic is worked in seconds at first, not in hours of 'getting used to it'.
You take him out, he stands in the grass for ten minutes, you come in and he goes on the rug. House-training takes set times and a real fuss when he gets it right.
The passport takes a day, but the rabies vaccination needs three weeks before it counts for travel. The order you do things in matters.
In Puppy Class and the basic obedience course these exercises are worked in a group, with real distractions and feedback at every step.