German Shepherd Kennel

Crate Training Puppies – Make Yourself at “Den”

Crate training puppies is a very effective technique for housebreaking your puppies and providing them an instinctively natural “den” to call their own.

Dog crate training uses your German Shepherd’s natural instinct to not use the bathroom where it’s going to have to lie down and sleep.

This is the most natural and effective way to quickly break your dog of using the bathroom in the house.

To start, you must never use the kennel crate as a form of punishment.

Upon first buying and bringing the crate home, introduce it very slowly, and remember what we talked about here regarding a large dog crate.

First, just let your german shepherd walk in by throwing a few of their favorite toys inside, or even a treat.

Do not close the door at all the first several times your puppy or dog gets in their new kennel crate.

They need to know it’s their own safe haven, but not a prison or a place of punishment and confinement, or they could develop a fear and anxiety issue associated with the crate, leading to excessive barking and all sorts of other problems.

Once you’ve led your dog into the kennel crate, sit at the door and have fun playing while your dog is inside.

If they know any tricks, get them to perform them inside, all while being playful and positive about the experience.

Try not to let your dog out during this playtime by gently blocking the doorway and remember to use distraction instead of pure force.

If your dog goes to leave, pick up another toy or treat to get their attention and continue playing.

After several sessions just like this, start to gradually introduce the concept of closing the door.

First, close the door slowly, but never while your dog is looking away.

He may try to exit as you close the door, so try to continue playing by holding a treat or toy through the cage at the same time, as long as they can still see the door closing.

The first time you close it, only leave it closed for a few seconds while still remaining playful, then open it up and continue your play session, keeping the dog in the crate.

During the next session, repeat the same process, but leave the door closed for about a minute this time.

Try to distract and limit whining, but don’t scold.

Continue this process for as many days as it takes, until you can comfortably close the door and leave the room for several minutes.

At this point, transitioning to longer and longer alone times will become normal for your german shepherd.

It may seem like a lot of work and much easier to just toss the dog in and slam the door, but this little bit of patience and initial work up front will pay huge dividends when your dog learns to love and enjoy their crate kennel for the rest of their life.

Your dog should naturally let you know when they have to use the bathroom, so be sure to be around or within earshot for the first several days or weeks of leaving them in the kennel for extended periods.

If you have any questions about choosing the right German Shepherd kennel or crate training puppies, just leave a comment below.

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Jul 30, 2010 | 11 | crate training puppies