Took the pluge and have a pup on the way! Advice needed...

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Originally Posted by Waftrudnir

regarding crates; I don't use one at all. all dogs had free range of the house. however, your home needs to be somewhat pet safe

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This will work fine for many people, but be sure you know what you'll expect of the dog. If you want your dog to travel in a crate or to spend lots of time in a crate when necessary (e.g. hunt tests), then crate training as a pup is essential.

At 6, my dog has the run of the house. But thanks to crate training as a pup I can crate her for hours when travelling or when I need her to be. I can give her the kennel command and she'll hop up on into her crate in the back of the van. (Retriever trainers may have more to say on the importance of that command....) She doesn't mind the crate and if I leave the door open she'll occasionally go in and flop down on her own.

The benefit here is not that it's convenient for me to crate the dog. Sometimes you need to crate a dog. And a dog that's crate trained is not stressed when you crate it.

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Originally Posted by welsh

This will work fine for many people, but be sure you know what you'll expect of the dog. If you want your dog to travel in a crate or to spend lots of time in a crate when necessary (e.g. hunt tests), then crate training as a pup is essential.
......... The benefit here is not that it's convenient for me to crate the dog. Sometimes you need to crate a dog. And a dog that's crate trained is not stressed when you crate it.

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X's 2!

Dogs love a den .... and by crate training early in a pup's life, this also gives the dog a space of their own particularly in a busy household to curl up and snooze!

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Originally Posted by bellerivercrossbowhunter

Good point.

One thing I didn't mention is take your dog with you everywhere you go if possible. I have been doing this since she was a pup & she is very well behaved in the truck now. She either sleeps or stares out the window. I only crate when I am @ work & @ night so I can sleep & so she doesn't fight with the cat all night long... LOL

A friends dog get's sick in the car & high anxiety becaue they alays left her @ home. They can't take her anywhere... :(

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I disagree with that....I've seen too many pups squashed by owners who "took them everywhere", but were distracted by other goings-on and weren't paying attention to the pup.

Sure take your pup along - but only if you can give it your undivided attention when its outside of a crate.

...Its also my feeling that dogs should be crated when travelling in a vehicle.

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Originally Posted by Waftrudnir

So many have crate training as their top priority?
LOL
Call me selfish, but I want to spend some time with my dog!
Incarceration is not the convenient solution when you got yourself a dog and find out you don't have enough time for it.
Post #10 looks at it the positive way - and that's what it should be and not locking up a dog in a box!

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Crate training is important... and it makes house training much simpler.
My thoughts are, if you can't be in the same room as the pup to keep an eye on it, it should be either crated or kennelled.

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Originally Posted by werner.reiche

Crate training is important... and it makes house training much simpler.
My thoughts are, if you can't be in the same room as the pup to keep an eye on it, it should be either crated or kennelled.

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so why wouldn't the pup want to be in the same room as you?
if you allow the dog only in a certain room/area of your home then the dog is "kenneled" as soon as you leave this room/area and the dog stays behind. so why do you need a crate unless this "kennel" is not safe?
I'm not debating that giving the dog time/room to be alone is both important for the dog and for yourself.
Despite the current pro-crate thinking, I prefer a place command rather than locking up the dog in a box.

This thread is not about crates, but still it appears that this is the most important topic when you get a pup for some and I wonder why. I would have thought there would be a lot more talk about housebreaking, first training/commands, bonding or even how/when to expose them to game/scents.

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Originally Posted by Waftrudnir

so why wouldn't the pup want to be in the same room as you?
if you allow the dog only in a certain room/area of your home then the dog is "kenneled" as soon as you leave this room/area and the dog stays behind. so why do you need a crate unless this "kennel" is not safe?
I'm not debating that giving the dog time/room to be alone is both important for the dog and for yourself.
Despite the current pro-crate thinking, I prefer a place command rather than locking up the dog in a box.

This thread is not about crates, but still it appears that this is the most important topic when you get a pup for some and I wonder why. I would have thought there would be a lot more talk about housebreaking, first training/commands, bonding or even how/when to expose them to game/scents.

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"so why wouldn't the pup want to be in the same room as you?" Because he's exploring the house on his own, chasing cats, etc.

"Kennelled" is outdoors, in a kennel, and when he is kennelled, he's not crated.

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Originally Posted by Waftrudnir

This thread is not about crates, but still it appears that this is the most important topic when you get a pup for some and I wonder why. I would have thought there would be a lot more talk about housebreaking, first training/commands, bonding or even how/when to expose them to game/scents.

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Well, housebreaking is easy, bonding is a given, and exposing the dog to game is months off.

Crate training makes housebreaking easier and is part of your first training. It's also something that people mess up. So it's a natural topic of discussion.

Another good reason to give your dog regular crate experience is because if the dog gets sick , it well may spend overnight etc. in a crate at the vet's. You don't want that to be your dog's first experience with crating , he'll be stressed enough.

PS As soon as my JRT sees me putting on lipstick , he goes to his bed/crate. He's only 2 and I would never leave him out when I'm gone. The house would be destroyed when I came back. :)

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Originally Posted by Sharon

Another good reason to give your dog regular crate experience is because if the dog gets sick , it well may spend overnight etc. in a crate at the vet's. You don't want that to be your dog's first experience with crating , he'll be stressed enough
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Certainly a good reason. And again, training your dog to crate and locking it up for most of the day are two very different things in my books.
In the end, your vet may commend you, but they don't need to (and unless they know your dog well, might not take the risk to) rely on your crate training. They have other reliable means to keep your dog "happy".

I don't think anyone is recommending locking the dog up for most of the day.

Something to remember with young pups is that they tire quickly and spend a lot of their time sleeping. You have the pup running around for an hour, he gets tired, you pop him in the crate, he sleeps. He wakes up, the first thing you do is take him out to pee. Rinse, lather, repeat: crate training and housebreaking all in one, without incarcerating a dog who wants to run around and play.