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No pet-lover would want to groom an ill-mannered pet that destroys household items.
Dogs that tears up household items are burdens to their owners, thus, learning how to properly crate train a dog is important for all dog owners. This article will teach you all you need to know about crate training a dog.
What’s crate training?
This is the educative method of teaching your dog to find solace in a small comfy crate, when the immediate environment is unbearable for your dog.
There are several reasons for crate training a dog but its major reason is to restrain your dog’s movement within the household in order not to destroy household items.
Crates are durable enclosure to transport your pets while in a car.
Types of crates
There are different types and sizes of crates out there in your local pet store.
You should ensure the crate you’re about to purchase serves its purpose of purchase and gives comfortability to your dog.
There are majorly three types of crates which are: plastic, collapsible or rigid fabric crate and collapsible metal crates.
Make sure your preferred crate is appropriate for your dog. See how wireless dog fences can help you put up boundaries.
A growing dog would need a big crate to accommodate its growth in size.
How to properly crate train a dog?
A lot of patience is required to crate train a dog it might take weeks, month or days, it all depends on you and your dog’s intellectual ability.
Don’t rush the process, you have to take a step by step approach to crate train your dog successfully. Always associate the crate with pleasures like, dog treats or dog’s toys.
If you want to properly crate train your dog you should follow the step by step process below.
Get the right crate
After purchasing the right crate that’s appropriate for your dog, you should introduce your dog to the crate.
Open the crate and make it comfortable for your dog by using a dog bed or blanket in the base of the crate to serve as the floor mat for your dog. Allow your dog to enter the crate at will also allow it to familiarize with the inside of the crate at will.
Most dogs after familiarizing with the crate, makes it their natural habitat, but if your dog doesn’t naturally like the crate, you should throw some dog treats inside the it, this will encourage your dog to familiarize with the crate, never force your dog inside the crate.
Change your dog mindset
Associate the crate with relaxation, this will encourage your dog to see the crate as a habitation and not a punishment cell.
Feed your dogs while they’re in the crates. When you feed them consistently in the crate, it’ll change their mindset and they’ll begin to associate the crate to a safe haven.
If your dog does not enter the cage readily, put the meal at the extreme of the crate and when they go inside close the door, immediately they’re done eating, open the door so it doesn’t seem as a trap to them, continue to vary the time of closing the crate’s door until they begin to stay inside it longer than ten minutes.
Practice crate games
Your dogs should always see the crate in a positive manner, ensure you play games with them in the crate, allow your dog to go pick treats or balls in and out of the crate, this kind of game associate happiness with the crate.
Practice crate commands
When your dog is no longer scared of the crate, start to practice crate commands. Call your dog to the crate, give it a command to go inside the crate. You can help them by pointing towards the crate.
If your dog goes inside willingly give it a treat and shut the crate’s door.
Stay around them for about ten minutes then move away for a while then come back to sit and stay with your dog for five minutes, then let your dog out.
Repeat this drill five times everyday.
Pet your dog to bed in the crate
Ensure your dog is free from collars, tags and leaches while inside the crate, in order not to injure itself while it stays there.
Always crate your dogs at night, let your dogs go to bed in the crate.
Also, place the crate near you, so your dogs doesn’t feel you’re neglecting them. Do not shut the crate’s door so they can go out freely when they want to pass out waste. Dogs don’t like messing their habitat.
Precautions
Using a crate to train your dog isn’t a silver bullet to solve all your dog’s bad behaviors, but there’s always a huge difference if they’re crate trained properly, these are some things you shouldn’t do with the crates.
- Don’t imprison your dogs with their crates, it shouldn’t serve as a correctional facility for their mistakes because they’ll begin to hate the crates.
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- Don’t crate puppies that are less than six months old for too long. Young puppies should stay in the crate maximally for 3 hours.
- Crating your puppies for long would deprive them of strength they draw from playing and walking around, also puppies can’t hold their waste for long, keeping them in crates would force them to mess their crate which isn’t good for their overall health.
- Don’t crate your adult dogs when they have learned how to behave inside the house.
- If your dog no longer display destructive behavior allow them to move freely around your house, but keep an eye on them.
Conclusion
Crate training a dog can take quite some time. Don’t rush the process, take it slowly with your dogs and exercise patience with them. You should anticipate a six months regular training process before they’ll get to like the crate and understand how to behave inside the house.