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crate training?
hi all,
we brought home our staffie-hound mix, henry, on friday night, and he is doing pretty well! we went to the dog park twice so far, and he's been fantastic there. at home, he is learning the command "no kitty!" he's curious about the cats (no prey drive issues), but there are still some raised hackles on the part of the cats. they aren't quite used to it all just yet.
we are crate-training him so that he can travel with us, and so that he has somewhere to go that he is safe from the cats' attacks, and they FEEL safe from him as well.
we have him up to a half hour in the crate at a time at this point with no whining, which is great. however, i'm not sure how much whining, if any, i should allow. do i let him whine for 10 minutes? 15? i don't want to be cruel, but i also know i can't let him out WHEN he is whining, because that will make him feel like whining gets him what he wants.
sorry this is so long-winded! and TIA!
Emerald Nuts Midnight Run (4m) 1/1/12
Coogan's Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks Run (5k) 3/4/12
Colon Cancer Challenge (15k) 4/1/12
Purple Stride NYC (5k) 4/21/12
Run to Combat Autism (5k) 4/29/12
RnR Philadelphia (Half Marathon) 9/16/12
Re: crate training?
Yep, totally housebroken. I left the house for about an hour to go grocery shopping when my husband was running late, and he seemed to do pretty well, considering he just joined our home on Friday! We took him out for a pee immediately after we came home, and he's been a doll the rest of the night.
Emerald Nuts Midnight Run (4m) 1/1/12
Coogan's Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks Run (5k) 3/4/12
Colon Cancer Challenge (15k) 4/1/12
Purple Stride NYC (5k) 4/21/12
Run to Combat Autism (5k) 4/29/12
RnR Philadelphia (Half Marathon) 9/16/12
Given that he is potty trained, I would allow some crying/whining. I would also work on making the crate just the funnest place in the world. My dogs get a small treat every single time they go in their crates, even though both have been trained for years.
They also get a frozen stuffed kong every morning when I leave for work. they literally run and jump in their crates when I head for the freezer.
So while I would keep it fairly free of bedding for now, until you see if he will chew it up, I would make it a comfy happy place.
And one last thing we were told was to never punish by putting them in their crates. When my dogs need a time out because of bad behavior, they are put in a bathroom with everything picked up off the floor. Best wishes with you new dog!