[np2305]

I just bought a 9 week old male puggle yesterday for my three kids. He is adjusting well and we have been taking him out every hour and we have not had any messes in the house. The problem im having is he kept me up all night lastnight screaming like someone was killing him. Everytime i put him in the crate he did this non stop. Any suggestions on how to help him adjust to the crate? I am going on 3 hours of sleep! SOMEONE HELP!

[StarfishSaving]

The single most important thing for you to remember is this: Do NOT EVER get him out of his crate when he is screaming. Make sure he stops first, so he will start to get the idea that he is only going to get what he wants for being calm. Do not reward the crying behavior by getting him out.

Puppies that are young are still used to being with their mom and littermates. If they get separated from their family, they cry and fuss until they are reunited. It's time for him to grow out of that a bit, because you aren't going to always be around when he wants you there.

I would not punish or correct this behavior because at his impressionable age you can actually cause him to have a negative association or even fear with his crate.

He's new to your house and home, so it might take a while. Out of curiosity, where is your crate? I have had many fosters who threw an absolute fit when crated downstairs, but if we crated them in our bedroom, they relaxed because they knew we were still around. If he's IN your bedroom and doing it, I would suggest moving his crate to another part of the house, somewhere that you cannot hear him quite as easily so that you can get sleep! As long as you make sure to get up a few times overnight and take him out, you should be able to do this until he gets the hang of sleeping in the crate. It might take a few days but he should start calming down rather quickly once he knows that the fussing isn't going to work.

To help make the crate a fun place take treats, his food, or favorite toys and put them in the crate for him to retrieve on his own. I would do all his mealtimes in the crate- at first with the door open, then by closing the door, then locking him in it, etc, so that he learns it's not the end of the world to be in there.

You could also leave a toy or even a puppy Kong filled with something yummy (frozen canned food and yogurt maybe) in with him overnight to distract him.

You know a "puggle" is a pug and beagle mix, so you have to understand both breeds that contributed to his genetic makeup. Beagles are highly vocal creatures- it's how they hunt and how they live. If they see something that they want but can't reach, they howl and bay. If they find something that really interests them, they howl and bay. It's in their nature. So work with him now to learn that only being quiet and calm gets him what he needs and wants.

[Tulip]

Starfish has just given you excellent advice. It's how I trained my 8 week old pup to sleep in his crate after a week of having him on the sofa with me, and now he's 3 months old and sleeps in there very happily. When it's sleeping time, try leaving a CD on and putting a blanket over his crate so that you don't have to creep about when he's in there in case he sees you.

You stated you have been taking him out of his crate every hour... I'm guessing that isn't the same arrangement overnight though, correct?

Perhaps working on lengthening his crate time a little during the day will help him relax during the night as well. And really, he's just a baby so I wouldn't expect him to be quiet for the entire night in a crate anyway- what do you consider that, several hours?

[Adrian]

Crate training in my opinion is by far the best method, with it tho is required some patience and some hard choices. I know that when you here your pup going of all you want to do is run and rescue it...it natural..but one must resist this, they will get used to it.

As advised above, use treat, toys and chews to make the crate more appealing and homie. This is needs to be a place of safety for them to retreat to as well, they are den animals after all and that is natural for them.

And PLEASE..remeber to never..ever...ever..ever...use the crate as a from of punishment, I have had to help people that have done this and it makes it even harder to re-train after.

Good luck
Adrian

[StarfishSaving]

Oh! I forgot a really important tip:

MAKE HIM TIRED! Really exercise and wear him out mentally and physically before bed, and he will sleep easier.

[ilovelabs]

Our 12 week old puppy will only sleep in his crate if the doors are left open we placed it in the hall where it's a bit cooler than the rest of the house,when we first bought him home he wouldn't sleep over night in it and we took his bed & blankie upstairs in our room and he sleeps there at night has done since day one.Last week we tried to see if he would sleep over night in his crate and he cried for us i can't leave him crying so gave in lol.
My hubbie says he's ok in our room that way we all get a good nights sleep,apart from two puppy toilet breaks in the night which is not to bad for a small pup.
So he just uses his crate in the day.
He is such a pampered pooch we love it that way.

[Tulip]

As long as you and the pooch are happy, why not? I wish I could have Freddy sleeping in my room, but my mama won't allow it. He sleeps on my giant bed at my dad's house with me, and I've never heard a peep! Wakes he up in the kindest way possible - ears thoroughly licked.

Originally Posted by ilovelabs

My hubbie says he's ok in our room that way we all get a good nights sleep,apart from two puppy toilet breaks in the night which is not to bad for a small pup.
So he just uses his crate in the day.

That's also what we did with our dog Lucy. She has slept in the bedroom since day one without any adverse effect- not on the bed but on her own beside ours. Actually when she was a wee pup, she used to sleep under the bed. It was just like when the kids were babies and feedings were every couple hours 'cept in Lucy's case, it was potty breaks haha.

[PeytonsDad]

It's an old trick that actually works. Put an alarm clock in the crate that you wind up and ticks. The tick tock is the mothers heartbeat. It sounds odd I know but it actually has worked for me.

If the puppy does not like the crate, like others have said, make the crate a "good" thing by letting the pup retrieve treats and toys with the door open. Soon the word kennel sends them into the crate with "joy" on their mind. Toss play toys in, praise like crazy, clicker, treat, when they go in and come back out. If you have a mesh crate, feed them from the back of the crate some kibble or something they really love.

I always put my dog in the crate when I take a shower. I did that a few times and now, I turn on the shower and she goes and gets in her crate without me saying a word.

If the crate is open on all 4 sides, try covering the top and sides, more like a real den and they might feel more secure. Make sure the crate is not too large, just enough room to lay down, stand up and turn around. Stuff it with pillows bit make it cozy.

Yelping should never get them what they want, so learn to sleep with the noise, or move the crate to another part of the house. Puppies have tiny bladders so make sure they have completely eliminated before bedtime and don't feed or water two hours before bedtime. Longer for older dogs.

Dogs need a schedule for all things, including bedtime. The sooner the pup accepts it's bedtime and the crate is the place, everyone will sleep better.
My pup goes to bed on her own now. When it's bedtime she is already in there, all I have to do is close the door without saying a word. As a matter of fact, when I get in bed, she get's in her crate without a command at all.

You can get there too but if your dog learns that yelping will alter your plans, you'll have your ear plugs in for sometime.

Crate training at first is all about very short durations. Seconds, then minutes and work up to hours. Do mental exercises with your puppy before bed. It's hard to wear out an active pup physically, but give them something mental to do and it makes them sleep through the night.

Someone wiser than me once said" If you want to make you dog not chase squirrels, you have to be more fun than a squirrel." Make that crate time more comfortable than sleeping in the bed and you'll have a dog that goes to the kennel rather than the bed.

One thing, when your feet hit the floor, take the puppy out. Let them know there is a time to sleep and a time to be in the crate and they WILL get out but it's in the morning not when they yelp.