Cyrix Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Hello, My partner Claire is a member on here so I thought I should sign up as well. We recently got our husky (willow) and an looking for some advice on crate training. When left in the crate for a long period of time, overnight or when at work more often than not the cage turns into an absolute mess, i'm sure you can imagine the scene, which is odd as we have tried to make sure it goes toilet outside before it goes into its crate. We do have some puppy pads in the house, but have so far not managed to grab it before the event happens. Just after some advice on how to stop the dog fouling in the crate really, I apreciate its still very young (8 weeks) and can't expect miracles but I would like to at least start to encourage the dog in the right direction Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewbacca_&_me Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Do you and your partner both work all day? Seems like an odd question, I know, but I thought Id ask. My second question is "how big is the puppy's crate?? If the crate is too big for the puppy then the pup will continue to potty inside the crate while you are away and when you cannot let him/her out. Do you have your puppy on a feeding schedule? Sometimes it can help to have them on a strict eating schedule and limit the amount of food and water you give them when you cant be there to let them out. I would be glad to give you some very helpful advice on crate training, but I can help alot more if you can give me some details about how your and claire's day works. If you get up and go to work everyday and have to leave the pup in the crate alot, there are a few adjustments you will have to do for the pup, but he/she can be stopped from making a mess of the crate. Let me know, and Ill write out a routine for your puppy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 That's a great offer Erika...added to rep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 this is how we done it, bear in mind kira was about 8 months when we decided to crate her the crate should only be big enough for her to lay down, turn around and spread out comfortably. you can get one that will be big enough for when they're fully grown but you'll need a divider, this works out cheaper usually. there should not be enough space for bowls or a toilet area. dont leave any food or water in the crate overnight or while they're in there, puppies cant control bladder or bowel movement and cant hold much in there, so you dont want them eating or drinking while in the crate. make sure you have a set feeding schedule, feed at least an hour before going into the crate so the pup has time to eliminate before it goes in, limit water intake during this time aswell pup the pup out to toilet immediately before and after going into/coming out of the crate with a small pup at that age you want to be letting them out every 30 minutes to an hour, they cant hold it well. as it gets older you can start extending that time. make sure your pup's comfortable being in there, it may be messing the crate because its distressed, give it a few days to get used to it, put it in there for 5-10 minutes at a time, then take it immediately to the toilet area. this worked for us and we've had no accidents, but like a said kira was a lot older so had a bit more bladder control good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claireyfairy31 Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Thanks for your responses to Chris' post. You may have guessed I am Claire Our crate is rather large, infact I think it is too large after reading what you have been saying. She can easily move around, jump, stand up on her back legs etc. etc. We were leaving water in the crate during the day but think she is knocking it over. We are unsure about how to train her to do her business on the puppy training pads as so far we haven't managed to grab her and move her in time to get to them! Any advice? At the moment our routine is that I get up very early (5:15am today!!) take Willow straight outside and then come back in and she has her food, she is then free to run around and play for around 2 hours before either of us go to work! When we come home she is let out and taken outside, sometimes she does not do anything when we go outside and as soon as she is brought back in she does it on the carpet! She is then fed etc. and kept out until late that evening when we go to bed. Obviously we cannot walk her at the moment as she has not had her injections (first one tomorrow evening), and she will not let us get out of sight outside or inside the house. Thanks again, Claire and Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 are they scented pads? if not yu can get spray thats attractes them to the pads, guess it smells like pee lol. if they are try moving them to her top places to pee. try staying out side with her until she does toilet, praise her loads while shes doing it, afterwards give her a treat. and while shes doing it say something like 'go pee... good girl!!!' its working for kira, she now pretty much goes on command :ran_biggrin: try keeping her on a lead when shes at home with you, this way your always close enough to pick her up during, and it will teach her some basic lead manners for when you go outside when you catch her in it say 'no, bad girl' not loudly but in a low voice, and take her either outside or to the pad. btw dividers are only about a tenner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claireyfairy31 Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Great, I will try some of those tips! I am off work next week so i'm sure it will be easier when I am spending more time in the house with her. We have just bought a new crate and will be picking it up tomorrow, hopefully that will help a bit! I think the pads are scented, but not to the human nose! My whole house is scented at the moment - of pee! nice huh! I'm sure she will learn and I can try keeping her on her lead in the house so that I am always there, she can't hide from me!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Great, I will try some of those tips! I am off work next week so i'm sure it will be easier when I am spending more time in the house with her. We have just bought a new crate and will be picking it up tomorrow, hopefully that will help a bit! I think the pads are scented, but not to the human nose! My whole house is scented at the moment - of pee! nice huh! I'm sure she will learn and I can try keeping her on her lead in the house so that I am always there, she can't hide from me!! having the lead on is really good for teaching basic obedience, you can teach things like leave and toilet training, as well as heel and to sit when you stop walking etc. it'll also get her used to it, 1st time we tried to take kira out she put the brakes on, she'd never been on a lead before! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewbacca_&_me Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Ok much love hun...but forget the pads...puppy pads are basically useless, I detest the things myself. lol. Ok Id like to suggest that you get some "simple solution" pet cleaner from amazon. It really works and i swear by it. Once you get it spray out her crate with it...to eliminate the old smells in there. I think leash training while you are there will be a great help, and when she goes out she needs to go to the same spot in the yard...every single time. You should not let her back in the house in the evening when you take her out, until she does go potty...she will probably give you a tough time at first but just keep at it. This teaches here that there is only one place she is allowed to potty. Also, since you must leave her crated in the daytime she should only be getting 1/4 or 1/3 cups of food and water before you leave. This will help her hold her bladder/bowels a bit longer because she has not over-eaten and gorged on too much water. This helps to lessen her urge to potty. I assure you she will be ok. Dont leave puppy pads in the crate at all, this encouages her to think its ok to potty in there...and using potty pads in the home just teaches them the same thing but about the rest of the home. She needs to know that the home and crate are for rest, eating, playtime, and protection, but not a place to potty. You may also need to set alarms to get up 2 to 3 times a night to go out and potty so you can teach her that she shouldnt potty in the crate at all. Itll be a bit rough but in a weeks to 2 weeks she should stop so that you can sleep all the way through the night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 good advice erika rep added we did use the puppy pads but missed out the vital step of putting them outside so tried crating instead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewbacca_&_me Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 Thanks Sid&Kira, and thanks to everyone else too. I lost a bit of confidence there for awhile due to some "big time" trainer dude who was cyber stalking and harrassing me. He all but ruined my rep here in hawaii, and people stopped listening. Im am glad to post anything helpful here, because there are many husky babies being born in hawaii in the last several months and Im sure more of them will find the way here to the forums looking for help. Thanks for being supportive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 new one on me 'cyber stalking'! whatever next! how did he ruin your rep?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewbacca_&_me Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 He basically said I was a fake (or loser trying to make a name for myself)...In hawaii its easy to loose ground in this way (training) because locals already have very little confidence in anyone who isnt hawaiian and they prescribe to dog whispering techniques alot here, so common sense training is not widely accepted. I dont really have any wish to become a professional trainer, I just like to help out if I can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 20, 2009 Report Share Posted October 20, 2009 same here, i'd never be a trainer lol, but i like to give advice on things i'v done before Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damrod Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/cratetraining.htm http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/our_pets_for_life_program/dog_behavior_tip_sheets/crate_training.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edyna Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 We used to have the same problems with Leo, with the difference that I was not leaving him in the crate for more than 1,5 hours and always after a long walk. Our biggest problem was that he was not only fouling but also eating the poop and always trying to find a way to escape. Soon I realised that he is doing this even if I will leave him in the crate for 10 minutes. In our case this was his reaction to the stress of being alone and closed. Everything have changed when we started to cover the crate with a blanket. I cannot believe this is the same dog. Now I can leave him for 4 hours without any problems. He will sleep quietly there he feels like in a den probably. And, yes, the crate was too big for him at the beginning and all our attempts to separate it were unsuccessful, He was destroying everything while in the crate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrix Posted October 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 Well, came home from work today, the dog was calm, the cage was almost clean and it went toilet as soon as I took it outside! maybe it's been reading t'internet while i've been out! We picked up a smaller cage on ebay cheap so will give that a go, I had the crate covered with an old duvet since getting Willow, we have always done this for the cats (who are in the cage most night, unless Beavis is being too cute and he shares the bed with us!) and it seems to work really well. Thanks for the advice so far, been really helpful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sid_Wolf Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 thats good, shes getting better then hopefully it'll just keep improving from here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 oh that's great news - glad there's been an improvement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewbacca_&_me Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 wow, I see theres a few of you who have been reading the other thread and finding it helpful, thats great! I am glad that all your pooches are starting to relax about crate training. Often pups just get really stressed out because they can see you and the house and so dont want to be left in the crate. Its very normal for them to be upset with their owners if they feel you are locking them up so they cant be close to you. Using a blanket makes it dark, private and quiet for them, in the same way as it would for birds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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