Jul 26 2009

Puppy Training Tips On Effective Crate Training

by Geraldine Dimarco

Want to hear something crazy? People need vacations. Have you ever had a crazy day wherein you simply wanted to leave everything and spend some time alone to revive yourself? You probably have a boss who begrudgingly gives you only the weekends to relax. What if one day he decides to personally plan a vacation for you, will that help you appreciate him? Don’t you agree that retreats actually help the person live a fuller and a more stress-free life?

Canines operate in a similar fashion. They need to find a secure place to nest in once in a while. It is a deeply primal instinct that goes back several decades, even centuries. A masters responsibility is to lead them into things that we know are good for their well-being. This is an article that aims to do just that with puppy training tips on the often misunderstood but terribly useful crate training.

You hear crate training a puppy and you think it is a cruel and inhumane treatment of dogs. Not really. This is actually a useful dog training method many experts employ. Canines do not sleep in an area which they have previously eliminated on so a crate trained puppy will restrain from soiling himself until he is released from his crate. Make sure the enclosure is small enough. After an hour or two inside the crate, take him out for toilet activities.

Put the enclosure in a room where people gather together. Do not rush the puppy into the whole process; it can be traumatic when done incorrectly. Place his favorite treats and things in and begin to feed him inside the crate. This is your puppy’s special place and you want him to associate the crate with happy and pleasant things. Never use this as a form of punishment.

After a while, he will begin to be comfortable inside. When you feel the time is right, close the crate while you are still in the room. Do not release him the moment he cries or becomes upset. This will tell the puppy that reacting violently will get him what he wants and believe me; no owner would ever want that. Unless he is in pain or wants to potty, wait for the cries to subside before opening the crate.

The next step is getting the puppy so comfortable inside the crate he won’t mind being there alone. Keep his play things inside to occupy him. When you feel the time is right, leave the room for a short period of time and gradually increase it. If you need to leave the house, do not go away for more than four hours. Puppies have not fully developed their bodily functions as well as an adult dog.

Follow these puppy training tips and you will regain a certain freedom most pet owners have forgotten about. A disciplined dog brought up in this method will be easier to schedule for sleeping and potty breaks. Not only that, an actual vacation will be possible now that you can leave your puppy for longer periods of time inside his little nook. After crate training a puppy successfully, you will wonder how you ever managed otherwise.

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