A lot of individuals normally have the wrong perception when it comes to crate training. This conception leads people to believe that crates are a punishment for dogs, and therefore they won't use them. Much to the contrary, crates are actually one of the safest places you can put your puppy, which also gratifies his natural instincts to situate himself within a den.
If you have a crate and leave it open, your puppy will start to go to it when he gets sleepy or when he gets confused. Although puppies tend to like crates, you shouldn't overuse one by allowing him to spend hours at a time inside of one.
Once you puppy gets used to being in the crate at any given time, you can leave him in there for a couple of hours at a time. One example would be if you were not home, you could keep your puppy in the crate, which will also aid in the puppy not destroying the house.
As soon as you get your puppy and bring him home for the first time, you should already have your crate there and situated where you want it to be. You should set the crate up in a central area, but never in areas that have a lot of traffic. Most people who use crates tend to leave them in the kitchen near a door, so the puppy can go outside whenever he needs to relieve himself.
Now that you have the puppy home for the first time you should have the door to the crate open. You want the puppy to familiarize himself with the crate as soon as possible, it can also help to put puppy toys or even a dog treat to lure the puppy inside. Make sure you reward the puppy when it enters the crate for the first time.
Before you know it your puppy will start to go into the crate on their own, this is a sign that they have a great amount of trust for the crate. When this happens you should praise the puppy and reward it as it is almost completely crate trained.
Now that the puppy is getting used to the crate, you can shut the door and monitor the puppies reaction. Some puppies may start to whine when the door to the crate is closed, this is normal you just have to make sure that you do not let the puppy out just because it is whining, wait until the puppy is calm.
When your puppy is fully crate trained there are many uses for the crate. If you are planning on having family or guests over, or if you plan on leaving the house for a couple of hours you can put the puppy in the crate. If the puppy is fully crate trained he will not have a problem lying around in the crate until you open the door.
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