Crate training

[cadman]

This is Bear's first winter, he was born last winter but didnt get outside but a few times. Anyways he loves the snow but heres my delema:
I've always had him goto his crate as soon as the front door opens, and he does this everytime and stays untill i say "OK", then he come upstairs. Now with winter here along with the mudd and snow i dont like him tracking all this mess down the steps to his cage. Should i get him to stop at the top of the steps so i can wipe his feet? Should i let him do as he's always done, and just deal with the mudd?
What do you people do?

C.

[Patty1231]

I'm a foot wiper. Brush off the snow and wipe the mud off the feet.

[Canadianrotti]

We have a laundry room to go through before we enter our place (the joys of living in a basement). If we need to, the dogs get wiped down before we go any further.

I find it much easier to wash a couple of old towles in this crappy weather, then clean my place every few days because I let the dogs in while they were wet and dirty.

You could always move his crate to a more convienient location to "hold" him while you do your thing. I don't think he will care where the crate is, as long as it is his.

[SonnyRott]

We enter through the garage, wipe the paws with babywipes, then enter through another door which leads indoors.

Babywipes are not just for babies. I use them all the time!

[dmoniz]

I lay a towel down on the floor, let one dog in at a time and wipe their feet while they stand on the towel. Dog designated towel of course!

[StephanieandToby]

I make a "trail" of towels or bedsheets along the route my dog usually takes when he first comes into the house...(to the food bowl) By the time he's there his feet are dry and the schmutz is on the towels....then I just scoop up the towels every couple days and wash....if his feet are extremely muddy I dip them in a bucket of water I keep by the back door and the dirt just floats away.

[rottnkidd]

I'm a paw wiper, too! In fact Diva has learned over time that when it's raining, snowing or we've been hiking in muddy conditions, that she has to stand inside the doorway and get wiped down. Then we play a short, but sweet game of tug with the towel, and it's downstairs until she's dryed out completely.
Another clever thing about her is she knows what "shake" means, so before coming in from outdoors, I tell her to "shake" and she does! It's that much less wetness to deal with!
kathy

[tugger5000]

We have a deck that the dogs must sit and wait on until they are released to come inside with an "OK". While they are waiting, I tell them "Paw" and wipe the front feet with a doggie towel that I keep by the door.