Home alone training

RenaBella · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:13 am Post subject: Home alone training

I need your advice guys!

Benji isn't learning how to stay home alone, at all.
Yesterday before we went out, we took Benji on a LONG trip to the dog park where he gets to run and play with other dogs. We were there for longer than an hour and usually, Benji passes out right after. So we put him in his crate with a few safe chew bones and he quietly got to chewing and we left.
When we got home about an hour or so longer, he was crying.I don't know if he was crying the entire time or if he heard us pull up or something.

We've been putting him in his crate often, when we clean around the house and to run out for quick errands and usually he is asleep when we come back. We always put him in there after some exercise so he would sleep but he wants to sleep all the time anyways!

We put him in his crate twice two days ago, and he cried when we got back then and the second time that day, he escaped and was sleeping on the couch.

I've even changed his crates. I brought his overnight crate downstairs (which has a different door opening mechanism, HA!) and removed his downstairs crate. He seemed to like this crate better anyways. I slept downstairs on the couch and left him in his crate downstairs right in front of me all night and he woke up crying at about 5am. Usual for him, normally he sleeps in my room in the same crate but wakes me up around 6am, like routine.

What's going on here? How can I train him to stay alone better? Maybe he just doesn't like the crate? He is almost 4 months now!

HELP!

Jager08 · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:17 am Post subject:

How do you react when you get home and hear him crying?

weimarmom · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:21 am Post subject:

Miley does not like the crate at all. She's been in a crate when we leave since she's been 8 weeks old. she barks and whines in it. whenever we get home, she is standing up, doing circles and trying to push the door open. I think she can hear the garage door open. Fooky on the other hand, goes in his crate and lays quietly. He doesn't mind being in there. I think it's more the dogs personallity then actually "training" them to be in the crate. Fooky walks right into his when we open it and Miley has to be walked in. She's been crated for 6 months now and she still doesn't want anything to do with it.

Cal · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:24 am Post subject:

We crate trained Huck by putting him in there while we still at home doing chores around the house (half hour, an hour at a time), just so he saw that it was alright to stay in there... at night, we would sleep, with him in his crate, and I would sleep on the sofa for a few nights. If he started to cry, no matter the time (puppies that young can't hold it THAT long), I would take him outside, let him do his business, and come right back in the house, no funny stuff, then right back in the crate and back to sleep we went.

After a few days of no crying, and as he got comfortable in his crate, I would go back to my bedroom and he would stay in the crate, and we continued the same routine. Same for when we went to work, and I would come home at lunch and let him out for an hour or so, then back in the crate.

The crying is normal, and they should eventually get used to their crate and GASP even like it!

Huck is now 9 months, and he is now out of his crate full time!!! Yippie! Good luck, and feel free to PM me if you need more advice.

Cal

RenaBella · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:24 am Post subject:

Cal · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:33 am Post subject:

[quote="RenaBella"]

mazzywest · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 12:03 pm Post subject:

it sounds like you're doing all the right things. are you also feeding him in his crate?

I agree this is fairly normal behavior that should taper out after a while. Pip wakes me up like clockwork at 6:30 everyday crying. We make a point to always ignore the cries and wait until there is a lull in the cries to give him any attention or get him out. I never look at him when he's crying. I try not to let him see me when he's crying.