Crate training dog

Crate Training Your Dog

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Now that we’ve discussed the benefits of crate training your dog and the process of buying the right crate, we can proceed to the last stage – the actual crate training process. Unlike other types of dog training, crate training is fairly fast and you should be able to see results within the first few days.

Crate training your dog can be divided into 5 main stages.

Crate Training Your Dog Stage 1 – Make Your Dog Curious About His New Home

The first thing you will want to do is to make your pet interested in the crate. This can be done by putting a dog snack or a piece of his favorite food inside the crate and leaving the doors opened so that he can access the treat. As soon as your pet enters the crate to get the tasty reward, praise him cheerfully but don’t force him to stay inside. At this stage he needs to feel full freedom.

Crate Training Your Dog Stage 2 – Feeding Inside The Crate

Start feeding your pet regularly inside the crate. Simply put the bowl with water and food next to the sleeping pad and wait for your dog to enter the crate. Do this a couple of times before proceeding to the next stage. At some point your pet will stop being anxious about the crate and you’ll notice that he’s much more confident while staying inside it. When this happens you will know that it’s a good time to move to the next stage.

Crate Training Your Dog Stage 3 – Close The Door

Wait for your pet to get inside his new home and coax him down with a treat. Keep praising and stroking him so that he becomes fully relaxed. You can now close the crate door but don’t leave your pet alone straight away. Play with him for a few more minutes so that he doesn’t focus on the locked crate door.

Crate Training Your Dog Stage 4 – Leave The Room

You can leave the room when you see that your dog is fully relaxed. It is really important that you don’t come back running as soon as he starts whining (and he WILL whine at some point). This would only reinforce the undesired behavior and he could abuse whining in the future to get your attention. Instead, wait till he stops making noise and let him out.

Crate Training Your Dog Is All About Repetition

You will have to repeat this entire procedure every few hours. With the flow of time your dog will accustom to staying inside the locked crate. Not only will it make him feel safe but also keep him out of troubles. As a result, you will not get angry on him as often as before and he will become less prone to stress.

If you’re crate training a puppy, you need to remember that he may be whining because he needs to go to the toilet. So before locking him inside the crate check whether he doesn’t want to eliminate or he may soil his sleeping pad.

Crate training your dog requires you to be more attentive and careful than usually. You need to monitor your pet’s behavior on a consistent basis to make sure that he doesn’t get too stressed about staying inside his new home.

Does Crate Training Your Dog Still Sounds Like Magic?

If you answered ‘Yes’ to this question than make sure to check out our Dog Training secion in the menu bar above to access more articles on this subject.

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