my dog HATES her crate. She is with me almost ALL day. I take her with me on errands, she is loose in the house while I work. She is only in her crate at night and when I go somewhere I can't take her (i.e. at most 3 hours a day - sometimes only half and hour).
In addition, I walk her twice a day and she has a nice fenced in yard. WHICH BRINGS ME WHY I WANTED TO SCREAM LAST NIGHT! Ahem,I'm feeling better...anyway, when I let her out before bed last night she would not come inside b/c she knows I'll crate her. She ran and hid and wouldn't come in when I yelled FRONT! (She is trained and knows this term). I didn't want it to be a game so I didn't chase her (not that I could even try to catch her). I've tried treats, I've tried to not put her in her crate right away i.e. folded some laundry or watched the news but she is so smart SHE KNOWS and gets all weird and wary. I reward her and give her treats inside. She isn't food motivated like a Lab.
I don't yet trust her out of her crate at night b/c she chews shoes, etc. Also, it is nice and roomy - it used to my our labs who was 30 pounds bigger.
We've used it since we got her at 8 weeks. we've never used it as a punishment. She has not spent excessive time in it. She has toys and a pad to sleep on. she does not bark or whine - she just runs away when she knows it is time for bed - it took me twenty-five minutes to get her in last night - she runs away she grips the sides of the crate with her nails and arches her back and we have to drag her in. I cannot play this game every night - my neighbors had quite a sight of me in my bathrobe looking deranged. How do I get her to willingly go in the crate? I used it for my lab until she was 3 also b/c of chewing.
Sounds like you need to make her crate fun. Keep doing what you are doing. Let her out then bring her back in. Don't mention the word crate at all. And don't put her in her crate right after brining her back in.
How about putting the crate right in a busy area? Then, leave the crate door open. Don't force her in it.
Throw some treats in it. If she's not food motivated, get a special "crate toy" that she is only allowed to have when she's in her crate. Let her go in on her own terms.
My dog is the same way, she doesn't dislike her crate, she just doesn't want to go to bed. For my dogs, I always give them a snack before bed. I pick up a treat, tell them it's bed time, then they run downstairs, get in their crates, and wait for me to give them their treats.
All dogs are not the same as I have mentioned before. I used a crate when I had weimeraners. Each Weim became a 'trusted' dog at a different time or better put a different year. My current dog, a boxer, broke all records for good behavior and became a trusted dog in about a year. I could not believe it. So, what I am saying is that maybe your current dog needs to be trained differently. If the dog can get your shoes at night then place the shoes out of reach. If the dog gets into the garbage at night then when you let the dog out at night take the garbage out as well. The dog should have been fed and watered well before bedtime so hopefully no accidents. What you are working towards is getting that 'trusted' dog. A dog that can be left out and will not poop or tear into something when you go for milk or go to work or go to sleep. If that does not work for you. Did you ever think that moving the crate into your bedroom might help show the dog that all you are doing is sleeping? Also be careful when giving commands. If you went through all the training to teach the dog "FRONT" and now the dog will not do it, your training is in jeopardy.
How do you know if you can trust your dog? Do you test it for small periods of time or set it up and try to "catch" it being bad so you can correct it? I am afraid to even leave her for 10 minutes because she is such a chewer - my husband's cashmere jacket, my daughter's shoes (3 pairs), my kitchen towels, socks, throw pillows on the sofa, a telephone, trees de-nuded in our yard.....all are victims. She is of hunting stock so is very "mouthy".
She has no issues with elimination so that is not a concern.
She will only not "front" when she KNOWS (she has ESP - I swear I have never owned such a smart, intuitive dog. I can act like I am reading a book, on the computer, etc. and she will not come near me at bedtime b/c she KNOWS!) I am putting her in the crate.
So what is your suggestion of what I can do? How to get her to that trusted stage? I know that by a certain age she will out-grow the chewing and I won't have to worry but what about NOW?
That stage all depends on the dog. Sounds like your dog is just not at that point yet. It took several years for me to get to that point with my first dog. But as bocch said, it all depends. My younger dog I never keep out of my sight. Just keep things like shoes, socks, garbage, out of reach. But you still have a puppy, I think you'll be waiting for a while yet!
There is a very common saying when people have a new baby in the house or a very,very young child in the house. the term is 'baby-proof' or 'child proof' your house. For all of us puppy owners we have had to 'puppy-proof' our homes. That is one thing you MUST do. If your dog was to swallow a small child's sock it can mean an expensive trip to the vet. If your dog chews and swallows a small type of electrical cord, it can mean a trip to the vet. Next, do not buy dog toys that look like shoes or some toys like that. Making sure your house is puppy-proof is needed and will help in the long run. There are small electronic devices that can help you train the dog when you are out of sight. these devices set off a spray of compressed air or a loud buzz or a loud bell. As you can see loud noises affect a dog more then it does people. I suggest that if you use the noise type devices that you use them during the daytime. Couple that with leaving the house to go get mail or walk around the yard. Small periods of time at first then eventually lengthen the time. I believe there is an indoor device like the electronic outdoor fence. You might want to look at that for bedtime confinement.
Some of the things you mentioned seemed to do with the dog being bored and getting into trouble Some types of dogs bred for hunting might have a high energy level and you will need to burn that energy off. Hunting dogs were meant to run in a field for 2-3 hours, chasing birds or small furry animals. If you take the dog for a 15 minute walk it might not be enough exercise. Look into playing frisbee with the dog and or soccer. During this time of year an evening playtime might be what is needed.
