# Crate training and first night question



## MiniPoo (Mar 6, 2014)

You will probably get different kinds of answers on this one. I use 2 crates because it is convenient to do so. I substitute a crate for my side table so I can be close enough to put my fingers thru the side of the cage at nite so puppy can smell me.

I use crates and don't let puppies sleep in the bed until after they are both housebroken and done teething and not so inclined to chew while I am sleeping, around 7 months. Someone in the pf said sleeping in the bed is a privilege to be earned, not given. I have to go along with that.


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## hopetocurl (Jan 8, 2014)

I also have two crates. The first night, do what you can to get sleep. I slept on the sofa with Willow. I spent the next day playing crate games with tasty treats, letting her nap in the crate... I covered her crate and put my fingers in the door wires, just under the cover. I put the bedroom crate in a chair next to me and slept with my fingers in the door under the covers for two nights. Then, I gradually moved the crate away from the bed into the final position. During the days, I put her in to nap and kept it close for the week. Be sure to always give tasty treats when putting puppy in the crate... And give it a command.


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## georgiapeach (Oct 9, 2009)

I adopt rescue dogs and I've found that feeding them in their crates from the very first day helps to make it a "good" place to be. At first, don't shut the door. Slowly, close the door a little bit, then more, until eventually, the door is shut but not latched, in case they panic and want out. Finally, I feed them in their crates with the door latched, letting them out as soon as they're done. To this day, my dogs still run to their crates at feeding time - lol! I also give them a treat whenever they have to go to their crates. Crate time is treat time!!


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## Yasmin (Nov 4, 2014)

OK, will get two, want to make it as easy as possible. I like to idea of keeping the crate in a chair by the bed for the first couple of nights to keep her comfortable too. The first couple days will be interesting.

Now my husband and I go to bed at different times, about two hours apart, will this be a problem for the puppy? I'm wondering if she will wake and have to go pee when she hears him come up.


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

How old will she be when you get her?? Just remember puppies will need to go out in the night, so if you husband comes to bed 2 hours after you, I would have him take the puppy out to pee first, no playing or baby talk, just matter of fact, out of the crate, go pee, back in the crate. This could afford you some extra sleep. As a general rule puppies can hold it 1 hour for every month of life. A little longer over night. But if you get an 8 week old puppy, you will probably not get much more than 3-4 hour stretches at night.


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## dogs123 (Jun 14, 2012)

I agree with all that has been said.

I'm 68 yrs. old and have had many, many dogs in my lifetime.....right now I have 2 poodles, and 2 schnauzers. All of my dogs have been crate trained.

What I have done, is that I spend alot of time in my kitchen, so I have crates in there. Also, I have a walk-in closet in my bedroom, and I have their crates in there for night time. When I get a puppy (usually anywhere from 8-10 wks. old), I have them in a crate (a small crate for a small dog, a larger crate for a larger dog, but not so big they can walk around) on my bed (we have a king-size bed) and put them next to me. If they whine, I take them outside on a leash and check for a potty, then right back to bed. No fuss, just business.
That may be every 2 hrs. until they can finally go longer....maybe at 5 months they can make it frome 11p.m. to 5 or 6 a.m. This has worked for me....what is interesting, is that if I lay down on the bed for a nap...I let them lay with me, but they ALL want under the blanket...like a den....interesting.

Crates are wonderful both for housetraining, separating the dogs when they eat, and also they just love their crates for just resting during the day with the crate doors open. They use their crates even for security. Sometimes when my older kids come home, they bring their dogs (french bulldogs, retrievers, and schnauzers) and if my one toy older poodle feels threatened, he goes into his crate in the kitchen and stays there until the other dogs are gone. He is tiny and 11 yrs. old.....

If I have to leave, they just automatically run for their crates...and I just snap, snap, snap the cages shut..and I know they are safe and sound while I am gone...

Best invention ever!


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## Yasmin (Nov 4, 2014)

She will be 8 weeks old. I did not realize that she would need to go that often through the night. Its ok though, we will work through it. So how will I know? Just when she wakes and starts fussing?


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## hopetocurl (Jan 8, 2014)

Maybe the breeder will keep her until the puppy is 10 weeks old...if it us a toy.


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## Suddenly (Aug 8, 2013)

Not sure. I haven't had a puppy in ages, but 2 crates sounds like the way to go.


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## ericwd9 (Jun 13, 2014)

Some dogs crate well. Some don't crate at all! and everything in between. Make the crate a pleasant place to go for a treat and a sleep.
Eric.


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## cmarrie (Sep 17, 2014)

Wrex came to us at 10wks and, fortunately, was familiar with sleeping in a crate. We got some tiny training treats (or you can use your kibble) and used the keyword, "bedtime". It's the same now as it was then: If we help him into the crate, no treat. If he goes in under his own power when we tell him "bedtime" he gets a couple nuggets. He is 5 months old now and he always goes to his crate at bedtime. 

We are not dogs-in-bed kind of people. We are very protective of our personal space. The crate has always been in our living room, he can hear and smell the kitchen, see the dining room and down the hall to the bedrooms. Our family room where we spend most of our evening/weekend time is downstairs in the basement. I've always let him crash for naps on my office floor (spare bedroom where I work most days) or down in the family room if that's where we are. That was hard for him to do when he was really young, (he would pace and pace and not be able to settle himself) so we'd bring him up to the crate for a couple hours. These days he will rack out on the floor near wherever I am. Taking his crate blankets and laying them where I want him to sleep in certain rooms helped him identify that space as restful.

We never had any problems with whining or crying, so I guess we got off lucky. He does, however, make these weird loud yawning noises as soon as he sees I'm up until I let him out. He did whine this last weekend when we stayed overnight at a friends house. That may have been because we took him away from his fun dog friends and because we were somewhere weird. We ignored him, walking around getting ourselves ready for bed and he calmed down pretty quickly.

As far as overnight, I would take him out on my way to bed around 11 or 11:30. If my husband was up really late, he'd take him again, then he'd go out when we woke up at 7am. The only time we had mistakes in the crate was if I forgot the 11pm outing. These days, we usually skip the late night break, unless he's restless when we go to bed, and I'm able to sleep in until 8 or 8:30 on the weekends. 

It all takes time, though, and seems impossible. But for us, it was really just about 1.5-2 months before he got to a less demanding place.


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