Crate Training

[candacejaydee]

I have had my yorkie for 2 weeks now and I am just starting crate training tonight. This is her first night sleeping in it and so far so good. Any tips or comments? I can use all the help I can get, this is my first puppy. She is 8 weeks old.

[Hrossen11]

Since your pup is so little you will probably have to get up several times in the night. A puppy that small has an itsy bitsy bladder and can not hold it for very long. I waited until my pup was 4 months old before I began crate training. He was in a puppy apartment before that so I didn't have to wake up every couple of hours. He is now 9 months old and rarely has an accident in his crate. Sleeps all night soundly.

[AngelFae]

I started crate training Blazer right away (I also brought him home too soon, he was just over 7 weeks.) The first two or three nights he woke up one time to go out and potty and after that he slept through the night (but would wake up earlier than I was used to, around 5:30 instead of 7.) He doesn't potty in his crate ever and now he will sleep until 8 unless I get up. He will be 1 year at the end of May.

[candacejaydee]

She did good lastnight. I put her in it at 9 and she whined a little then fell asleep. She woke up once through the night, and then wokeup at 7 this morning. She didn't pee in her crate, she got out and she peed and pood on the floor, unfortunately. I had pads all around the house, but I knew the accidents will continue for a while.

[spiritwings1202]

I used an ex pen so that I could put a pee pad in it. I set it up the elongated way and had her bed at one end food and water in the middle and pad at the end where the gate was. This worked great for me.

[kimp5]

I too have a longer version of a puppy apt. Its from richell. She now has somewhat free roam when Im home but runs to her pad inside the crate to pee or poop..
She stays in it when we are gone but it has room for a bed, food and water and a little play area. She walks through a door to go potty on the other side. It has a wire top and side so she cant get out when we arent home..its safer for her....

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by candacejaydee

She did good last night. I put her in it at 9 and she whined a little then fell asleep. She woke up once through the night, and then woke up at 7 this morning. She didn't pee in her crate, she got out and she peed and pooed on the floor, unfortunately. I had pads all around the house, but I knew the accidents will continue for a while.

My Bella had to get up once in the middle of the night (around 2 AM) at 8 weeks of age. Now, at 13 weeks, she doesn't need to be let out until 4 AM.

I kept my potty pad inside a cage that is exactly the same size as the potty pad and set her in it so she HAD to go on the pad. After she used the pad, I took her out and praised her and gave her a treat. The potty pad cage I use is a standard 8 panel x-pen, but I disassembled it and reassembled it to make two 4 panel cages, and they are the exact size as the 22 inch potty pads! If you do it right, one of the small 4 panel cages will still have the door on it. After two or three weeks, she would walk into the cage with the door open and potty on her own without being set inside.

[Renee Pingel]

I've had my Molly since she was 12 weeks old - she is now 6.5 months old and still hates her crate. She barks and flails around for about 10-15 minutes everytime we put her in it. I have tried leaving the light on and putting a nightlight in the room with her. I even put her crate in our room next to our bed and she barked until my DH moved her back to the bathroom. I don't know what else to do for her. If I put a blanket down she pees in it but if I leave nothing down she doesn't pee in it. Strange little girl I have. I do have an expen for her and put a washable pee pad down in it and she still pees on the floor. Uggg babies... I'm affraid to leave her in her expen at night because she does jump pretty high and if she got out I don't wan to think what my house would look like. I have ordered her a cloud9 bed and hope to put that in the expen and move it to our bedroom to try but lord only knows.

Any suggestions?

[juliegibeault]

I found crate training to be extrememly helpful. I was always one of those people who never wanted to put my dog in a crate at night. I wanted him to have free range of my bedroom. So for the first few nights of having him at about 9 weeks old, I just let him sleep on a dog bed and gave him access to his crate if he so chose to do it.

That didn't last long because I found he seemed to get anxiety with so much freedom. He would throw up in the mornings and pace around and generally seemed uncomfortable. So I talked with a german sheppard breeder who highly recommended putting him in his crate. At first I felt guilty, but he didn't seem to mind it too much. He seemed to like being in his little den and I was able to rest better without worrying about him all night. He stopped throwing up in the mornings too! Weird I know..

I would definitely crate train until they understand that bed time is bed time. Mine is 8 months old, and I am just allowing him to sleep out of his crate again. He doesnt walk around or pace, and when the lights go out he just goes to his doggy bed and sleeps until I wake up.