Is it Separation Anxiety already?

[Sue and Cash]

I did a search and didn't find much to relate too.  Cash seems to have issues with crating already.  My fault (isn't everything) that I didn't use it enough in the first few weeks now that we have him.  He only needs to be in one a couple hours a few days a week.  Of course I blew it somehow along the way because everytime we leave him in there, he screams and barks and carries on for the entire time.  It's making me feel badly and breaks my heart.  Dublin didn't have problems with this, so I have forgotten how to deal with this.  Cold turkey, tough love I expect to hear back from you.  Short intervals like I tried today and he still was so upset that he literally whines and sobs in my arms for a half hour upon my return.  I am a wimp!  I melt at the sight of him.  He knows it!  Now while we are home, he will go upstairs and be by himself for a short time to play with a toy or even sleep upstairs while I cook.  But if I go in the basement to do laundry for a brief few minutes he waits outside the door upstairs and cries.  Is this normal puppy stuff?  Do I have to send him to boot camp????

[lyn hathaway]

hi susan i think cash is the boss lol no seriously i think he will grow out of it in time and with your persevirance with the crating issues.
weve been lucky as we are with layla 24/7 so never had to use one

[Sue and Cash]

And blessed she is to have you Lyn! This guy goes all over with me too when possible. My husband starts later two days a week and is off on Wed. so I work around his schedule since this is my slow time for work still spring. I sure hope this doesn't last. I should say that both my boys are spoiled too. I can't help myself.

[lyn hathaway]

i hope i didnt offend you susan when i said laylas with us 24/7 .i wernt meaning anything and was not implying anything .im laughing here cos i know how much you are spoiling cash with your blogs and i just think hes twigged on if he cries then youll see to him.
with layla been like she is i wouldnt dare leave her alone and shes the same what ever she wants she just yaps and weve to jump.they have got us wrapped around their paws
lyn

[Sue and Cash]

Of course you didn't offend me. I totally understand why you can't leave her alone.

[Sue and Cash]

He screams in general even if I am in the room. I am using one of those kennels, plastic and more enclosed because my metal crate is great dane sized and his little paws can get entrapped if he really tries hard to dig out. I wish I could try the larger metal one because it is more open and has more room. I am determined to make this work so today I will start putting him in the small one and perhaps put it next to the computer and just work away and ignore him. And I have waited till after puppy class when he is exhausted or already asleep and moved him inot the kennel and he totally goes bonkers. I mean a fight from hell with this guy just to load him in, he is fast and slippery. If I sit out in front of the house I can hear him screaming that is how I know he doesn't stop for up to two hours. I thought it was unsafe to leave him with a bone in there due to choking harzards. I was thinking a kong stuffed with peanut butter but don't they get quite thristy from that? And no water then?

[ursula wilby]

If you get a big enough bone that he can not choke on, he will be fine!
I would not put any water in, but that is up to you...

If he screams for two hours, all I can say is that he has had a lot of practice...meaning he is used to you obeying...eventually you went and let him out and (as I understand it) held and comforted him. He is waiting for the same treatment...and getting louder and more intense as you are not doing as you are told Susan.

If you do want to teach him, dont let him out until he is calm, just like Susan Stone said!

[ursula wilby]

Oh yes...you will get the "cold turkey"-part from me Susan! :-)

If you take him out of the crate when he is yelling (as you are) you are teaching him the best way to get out whenever he wants to.

First of all get him tired! Play games with him and let him use his nose and brain...hide stuff he has to find etc.
THEN put him in the crate with a favorite chewing-bone.
When he discoveres he is in the crate, he will probably yell.
IGNORE...IGNORE...IGNORE...!

[Sue and Cash]

If I was good with cold turkey this might never have happened! I will just keep at it. I need to work more hours and that still means he would only be crated at this age two hours at best a few times a week, as he gets older the longest would be four hours two times a week. To me that is certainly acceptable considering once March hits, he will get his two hours of hiking and dog park times daily.

[ursula wilby]

If you were good with "cold turkey" it would not have happened, Susan! :-)
There is no "might" about it!

[Susan Stone]

Well, Susan, seems you have tought your little fellow very fast that as long as he whimpers, wines, shouts, screams he will get what he wants! It works for him so why should he not do so???

I suggest the same as Ursula, but I would pick a time to train him when you are in no rush and no stress at all. Put the little chap in his crate, shut the gate and sit down in full view of your pup to read the paper. Any sound from pups you neither look nor speak nor move - just read your paper, showing hmi you are completely relaxed never mind what he does;-)) He will go through his whole repertoire (see above) and probably even increase the behaviour he has shown so far by clawing, biting the cage, going berserk... YOU SIT STILL AND IGNORE HIM!

When (and he will!!!) Cash relaxes with a sigh and decides to go to sleep, that is the only moment you may open the crate door again. Do NOT make a fuss of him. After all, whats the big deal? Certainly not the crate and definitely not the dog...

Persevere and start to think like a dog... Dogs always work out what is best for them.

[Sue and Cash]

I know Fran after you mentioned the jaw caught I refuse to even attempt to put him in the metal cage and told my husband not to either. We borrowed on of the travel type kennels but large enough for him to fit into for a bit of time. Maybe a month if lucky. By then I hope he can safely be in the large crate. Be careful with the cloth crate though because I was warned at another forum how the puppies can scratch at it enough and tear them, then get out while your gone! So I didn't buy one of those for that reason. Our breeder started crate training when I took Cash home (9 weeks) and she told me the same thing, she sprays them with a shot of water and tells them to shhhhh. One thing that I feel is very positive in all this is that he tends to go upstairs to nap if we are downstairs, or vice versa. So he is comfortable not being in eye shot of us. He actually prefers to be left alone when he is tired. And wants a dark, quiet place away from the TV etc. So I felt maybe that means he won't have seperation issues later on if I get cracking on this now. I took him for a short 20 min. dog park visit today to show him off to the ladies and unless he got frightened by something like a large dog wizzing by, he wandered away from me to visit everyone and greet other dogs, he doesn't seem fearful in the least. Rather bold actually which is also a good sign that I can correct this.

[Jeanette Lilja]

Hi Susan,

I bought a puppy from Ursula last summer and have followed her tips, and also some tips from dog behaviour litterature, and it works. If the dog behave in a way you feel is uncomfortable for yourself then the best tip is just to ignore the dog. When he behave the way you want him to, give him attention, but in a balanced manner. You have to see the relationship with the dog in a longer perspective than just the puppyperiod, and if you do that I think it´s much easier to ignore bad behaviour.

I put Malte in a big crate the first night with us. He got a bone and when he finished it he fell a sleep. Of course he had a good play and run in the garden before. He slept all night and woke me up at 4. I took him out to pee and then put him back to the crate. To me it was a bit early to get up. Oh yes - he wined for about 20-30 minutes, but I followed Ursulas tips - ignore it, and suddenly it was quiet and he fell a sleep again. After that he never yells in the crate, simply because it doesn´t give him any advantages. I used the same strategy when I learned him to relax in the carcrate. I did it in three steps. The first time I had the crate in house, gave him the bone, closed the gate and then waited. I knew he would yell when the bone was finished, and I ignored it. He fell a sleep, and while he slept I opened the gate. Same procedure but in the car, without driving. As he started to yell I left him with boot lid open, but the gate closed, and went back short after he stopped yelling. The same procedure after a short drive to a wood area, where we, after he stopped yelling went for a walk. It´s all about to show the dog which behaviour gives the advantages they want!