hello everyone! We just picked up our 8wk old gsp 6 days ago and have been crate training. He does fine in the crate if someone is sitting right next to it but as soon as we get up to leave he stands up and starts whining and crying. I’ve been letting him out at night to go to the bathroom then I’ll sit next to the crate for a few minutes until he falls back asleep, am I creating a dependent puppy who will never be able to be in the crate alone? Another thing is he will lay down to nap on the floor but as soon as I pick him up to lay in the crate (door open) he wakes up and walks out. I have the crate in a general area where we spend lots of time. I’ve put toys and treats in there but he’s just not interested. Any suggestions or is it just going to take time? Thanks so much!
He's only been with you for six days after 8 weeks of the constant companionship of his dam and siblings so it is a massive change for him. Can I ask, what is your ultimate aim with the crate? For example, is it for overnight, or is it for time away from home?
That’s true Chris thank you, everyone keeps telling me that I guess I just want to make sure that I’m not doing it wrong. My husband keeps reassuring me we have taken him away from all that he knows so everything is a huge adjustment. For now the main purpose of the crate is mainly for housetraining and overnight. We don’t really want him roaming the house at night being able to chew and use the bathroom anywhere he pleases. As well as being able to put him in the crate for short periods of time while we are away (an hour or two at most while he’s still so young)
Do you have room to put the crate near your bed? The quickest way to make it feel like a safe place, is to have it near you. Then, if you wish to, you can move very gradually so that he gets used to being away from you a little at a time
For the first few weeks I always had mine in big cardboard box beside my bed, so they could hear and see us, and could hang my hand nearby to reassure them if need be, I also put in a worn t-shirt/jumper to help them get used to my scent. Alarm set for every 2/3 hours for first week, working time up till they would whimper if they wanted to go. When they whined to go to the toilet it was a swift, out of the bed, outside for a wee/poo, No playing or fussing or anything else. During the day I use baby gates and closed doors to keep the pup in the room with me so I can play/train/ and take them outdoors regularly.
I don’t have it near my bed because I thought it would be helpful to have it in the common area of our house where we spend the majority of the time so that he feels comfortable to go in and out as he pleases and get used to it (although he doesn’t really do that)....
Once he settles down by my sitting next to the crate he’ll sleep for about 2 hours then start crying so I’ll take him out immediately no fuss or anything he’ll go pee then I have to put him back in the crate sit next to it for a few minutes then he’s asleep. But he won’t fall asleep unless he knows I’m there. Maybe I will put an old shirt with my scent. Good idea thanks!
Hello Tami, welcome to Breedia to you and your new pup Tikva sleeps in her crate at night. Her crate is in my bedroom and she tells me when she wants to go to bed, even though she had been zonking out on the couch after her evening meal. She asks to go out for a final pee, comes in and waits for her tether to be undone, and shoots through the bungalow into my bedroom, waiting for me to open the door of her crate, which is in my bedroom. But apart from the first few days when I brought her home, far too young, I had her on [in?] my bed - my previous two having always slept on my bed with me. Tikva was diabolical [she was much too young and I did need some sleep] so it was in the crate [which had a worn shirt of mine, plus a couple of toys] she went. Yes, she did eep regularly because she was being hand-reared and bottle-fed so her eeps woke me when she wanted feeding. But during the day she had a small dog bed in my salon which she soon learned was for day sleeping, just as her crate was for the night. And with no interior doors she frequently got lost in the bungalow... usually under the refrigerator. But I cannot really compare a three-week old puppy with your new GSP but as @Chris B asked in her message #2, is your aim for him to be in his crate overnight, or is it for time away from home?
I would like to use the crate primarily for sleeping in at night. Especially while we are potty training. I don’t really want him roaming the house just yet when I can’t keep an eye on him.
Is this just until he is house [ie potty] trained or do you intend to use the crate permanently at night? Tbh I cannot imagine a large dog in a crate all night. Tikva is only small and loves her crate, but it is her night bed and she curls up on the soft sleeping mat at the end of it, even though the crate has a full size soft pad on it as well as the sleeping mat at the end. So it is comfortable for her and she is happy in it, but she is still only small at three-years-old, so I cannot imagine how a large dog would cope with being in a crate at night when fully grown.
Yes this is just until he’s potty trained. we won’t keep in a crate all night as he gets bigger. I personally don’t think that he’ll fit comfortably all night in a crate. He’ll have a bed near ours where he can retreat to once he’s sleeping through the night and not wandering the house