Crateing at night time?

[Johnser]

Hi guys,

I have a question about using the crate at night time.

Cooper is 3 months old now, and I would like to have him crated at night. Is it ok for me to crate him for the full 8 hours (usually less). I know the rule is usually one hour per month plus an hour, but seeing as its night time does that rule still apply.

I have been working on crate training for the past week or so and hes usually ok durning the day or so long as he can see and hear you. He has been getting better with the crate, and stays in there fine when left alone. But at night time, he goes mad, and pounds at the crate. Its quite unsettling the amount of power he puts into getting out of the crate.

I have never left him in the crate for a very long time usually about 1 hour is the longest and he has all his toys in there to keep him happy.

Last night, I decided to try putting him in the crate for the night. As usual he went mad when I left him. I went back in after about 10 minutes and gave him a firm NO and knocked on the top of the cage. I repeated this three times and he went quite. I left it for about an hour and went back and had a look at him. He was grand, so I gave him a little treat and a quick pet to make sure he was still talking to me. I listened at the door, and heard him lie down again, and didnt hear anything until this morning.

He howled this morning so I rushed down and let him out. There was no accidents in the cage, just a few spots from the excitement. So we went out the back garden and had a few laps with the football.

Is this ok, or should I give him more time before crateing for the night.

John

[spoteet]

My puppy is 13.5 weeks old and is crated at night and whenever we are not here or can't watch her. She has slept through the night since she was 9 weeks old. She has never had an accident in her crate. We are still coming home at lunch to feed her and let her out but I doubt the potty break is neccessary now. This was the same way when my older dog was a puppy too. I let my puppies out as often as I can but I have found that one hour per month of age thing to be bull.

[RottieGirl86]

I would turn on a radio low and not go back into the room unless the dog is barking or loud.

By going back in there, he knows this gets your attention - it's a kind of negative reinforcement. By coming back in there, he's training you!

Instead, fill a kong with goodies, freeze it, then give it to him at night so he can settle down while you are not there.

[spoteet]

We leave the radio on for the dogs during the day. Now Sajan sings to Roxie and Mora when his favorite song comes on

I also occasionally give them a bone or a kong to pass the time.

Ignoring the cries is hard but you have to if you are certain the dog does not need to go potty. If you don't, you will have a dog that cries for attention it's whole life.

[braxenburg]

Ive been very lucky with my 6 month old, Riga! i crated her up untill she was 4.5 months old now she sleeps right beside my bed. She has never made a accedent in the house or chewed any thing, I guess i got lucky.

[SABELLESMOM]

I've always crated pups at night from the first moment they're home. They'll wake you up once or twice having to potty, but that gets less often with time. Goodness, how did you ever keep track of what he was doing at night? How do you know he's not chewing the electrical cords or eating socks?

A pup does quite well sleeping during the night. In my opinion he needs no toys or kongs to do so. Night time is for me to sleep and I prefer they (all dogs) sleep as well.

As usual, "he went mad when I left him"? And a "quick pet to make sure he's still talking to me"? Who's in charge here, you or the pup? IMHO, you need to stop babying him.

"Quite unsettling the power he puts into getting out..." Naturally. But you did say he settled down and was quiet until morning. You need more of this. Keep working on ignoring him and allow him to settle himself. It's important for a pup/dog to have the ability to calm themselves.