Help with crate training, its breaking my heart!?

Question

I have a 10 wk old boxer puppy and we are working on crate training. I left him over the weekend for a couple hours, he was fine, laid right down. I have him go in there, give him a treat, etc while we are home so he knows that his "spot" and a good one, not a bad place to be. Today i went home at lunch to play with him, and put him back in to come back to work, gave him a treat, usual routine. He was crying SOOO loud i could hear it outside. Is this normal? If so, when will it stop, or how can i help it stop? I feel so cruel and can;t even focus on work now! Suggestions please! :)

Answer 1

IGNORE IGNORE IGNORE.. the more attention you give the longer it will go on. The dog thinks that screaming and crying will bend you to give him attention. If you do then the dog will never stop. Invest in some ear plugs and let him cry it out because even giving him eye contact is going to make it go on forever.

Answer 2

Your dog is lonely and wants someone or something to play with and entertain him. I don't know about this crate training, a beautiful boxer doesn't really fit the mold of crate training. Can the dog go to doggie daycare? Do you have a friend with a pet that he could hang out with during the day? Are you in an apt and don't have room for the dog to play outside? These might be questions you should have asked yourself before getting a pet.

Answer 3

I recently went through this myself. I have a 6 month old Rot puppy. She did the same thing. They only are looking for attention, by going back to the crate your teaching your dog that that crying is ok. It took me a long time to figure this out. She grew out of it after about a week when she realized she wasn't going to get her way. It also helped that I would wear her out as much as possible before putting her back in her cage so that way she would just want to nap and not cry. Keep up the good work with the treat technique. My dog now goes to her cage when I ask her because she knows she will get a reward. It sometimes comes in handy when company is over and you dont' want your dog all over them.

Answer 4

Believe me, I know how you feel. I aam crate training my new chihuahua and you would not believe the set of lungs on that little 2 pound dog. It made me sick to hear her cry so much. She cried for hours it seemed. It will get better and he will stop over time. Be strong and dont give in. He will learn that the crate is his spot....and that you will always return to him. I know you mentioned work....but perhaps you have a friend or relative who can look in on him occasionally just at first. He just wants to be sure you will return and maybe at first, the friendly reassurance of friends and neighbors will hep with the transition to you being out during the day. He will adjust...just be patient and keep up the routine.

Answer 5

It's normal at first. We just brought home a puppy a couple of days ago. He will eventually stop. He's lonely and wants to be near you. Of course, you can't always be near the dog, so he's freaking out. But as he gets older, he will eventually adapt to your absence. Yes, the yelping/howling sounds pathetic, but try not to respond to him every time he does this. Otherwise, he'll have you trained instead of the other way around.

Incidentally, crating a puppy is highly recommended by almost all the "dog" experts. You're doing the right thing.

Answer 6

You are doing fine. You have to ignor it. Eventually he will stop. Just don't make too much of a fuss leaving. Act like its nothing. Desensitze him by not paying attention 10 min before you leave. Place him in there a a little bit before you leave. This way he doesn't associate the crate with you leaving right away. The times you are home have him in the crate a times so that again the crate doesn't equal you leaving.

Answer 7

When you are home leave his crate open. Put a few treats inside and a blanket is great. They usually come to think of their crate as their den, their personal space. At first they do not like it. You have to hang tough. When you put the pup in the crate to leave be very matter of fact. Do not make over the pup, sympathizing. Long good-byes just makes them notice your absence more. Put him in the cage, close it, pass in a treat and leave. Here are three websites on how to crate train a puppy

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~rc207100/info-pub.htm

http://www.inch.com/~dogs/cratetraining.html

http://www.planeturine.com/pettips/dsp_crateTrainPuppy.cfm

Answer 8

Be Strong!!! it will stop and he will get the hang of crate training!! It is one of the best forms of training and I have used it on all of our dogs that we have had!! I know it is hard when they cry but be Strong and everything will be okay!! We had one Rotty that would scream so loud our neighbor called animal control one day because they thought we where kill our dog!! When the animal control officer arrived I told her to come in and she could not believe the racket coming from our 9 week old baby!! I know it is hard but be Strong you are doing the right thing!!!

Answer 9

be patient it takes time for them to get accustomed to the routine of the crate training issue. My chihuahua had trouble at first but now he goes right to bed when it hits 10 o clock and he does not get up again untill 5. it will get easier just hang in there. good luck.

Answer 10

Hello love, it is heart breaking but it will stop - honest! Have you loaded his crate with toys and playthings - a puppy kong toy stuffed with peanut butter would keep him amused for most of the afternoon! He's only10 weeks he will get used to it, don't fret too much and just give him lots of cuddles and praise when you get in at night. You might find as he gets older you won't even need the cage.