Agility and crating?
Has anyone been able to get their dog to understand it's okay not to be together ALL the time? We can not start agility unless she can stay in the crate. |
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This situation is one of the reasons why every dog should learn how to be crated, even if you don't use it on a regular basis.  Very essential if you were in a situation (bad one), like they became sick and needed to be at the vet for days, if you had a fire/flood, etc and your dog needed to be kenneled; or in this case, if you want to do fun things! I would start her out like a puppy and start crate training at home, then start bringing the crate places and using it there. We also do that with foster dogs...start crate training as if they were a pup. Most do well, especially once they make the connection it leads to fun activities. One example is our Riley. He's 5. He was crate trained by us as a pup. He tolerates it, but that's about it. Pouts, cries, all that. Last year I decided to try rally with him. I got him a folding wire crate and new bed for using at shows. Total new dog - he LOVES it! Yes, she needs to be quiet and respectful in her crate at class. There is one guy with 3 min schnauzers and his little yappers are a nuisance. Totally pisses people off.  Another friend has a high drive Briard who needs to be crated out of sight from the excitement - his crate sits out in the training center entryway. At trials she crates in the furthest corner from the action, and he comes out just for his runs. Not the ideal situation, but it's how his owner has chosen to deal with it. All our dogs are crate trained, and know how to relax in a crate for as long as needed. It's considered a basic skill around here. Even the fosters, the adult dogs we've adopted...all of them. Don't let her behavior stop you - crate training is a great skill to have, and you will be glad of it in all the years to come! |
| Well, if you want to compete with her, now is the time to teach her the whole crate is OK thing. My rescue dog has separation anxiety, so for her this is a hard thing as well. Start small. Does she have a crate? If so, what type? Does she ever spend time in a crate? If yes, at least you're a step ahead of the game. If no, you need to teach her the crate is a nice, restful den (which is what it serves as at class and trials, especially) Before you get to the restful. can you feed her in there? Leave the door open if she's really not good about crates yet. If not, close crate, let her eat, let her out. Other thing I do to teach dogs to go in without argument is toss a cookie in there. They follow cookie in. Close for short time if she's hysterical about it (or not at all if she's really hysterical) Otherwise, increase time spent in there very gradually. If she doesn't have resource guarding issues, another good thing is to shut her in her crate with her favorite chewie. Whatever you do, try not to let her out until she is QUIET. Steel yourself - most dogs quickly learn a crate is a GOOD thing. Some owners think it's torture and don't think for one second your average OES won't pickup on that and exploit it. Make it comfy. If she's past chewing and peeing stage, put a nice blanket or dog bed in there. Some dogs like this. Some don't. If she kicks it aside to be on the bare floor of the crate, chock her up as a "don't like blankets, thank you very much". Apologies if you've already done all of the above. Bottomline is I teach my guys to tolerate, even enjoy (my guys rush into theirs at trials and so on) crates at home first. At class you may need a blanket to cover the entire crate. Some dogs cry or bark if they see their owners or a dog friend run. This is exceedingly annoying to everyone else so I really discourage it in my dogs. Rescue dogs isn't there yet and needs to be blanketed AND someone needs to be there to make her be quiet from time to time. She may always be a pain in this way and will be hard to trial for this reason. Also, once my dogs are reasonably mature I transition them to soft-sided crates as these are bigger (mine are at any rate) and lighter to carry than your average wire crate. Dogs with separation anxiety or other issues may never be able to graduate to such a crate as they are too easy to destroy and get out of. It's nice if you can do this, though. Even though my (other) guys like hanging out in their crates as that gives them some privacy and down time in the company of other dogs - when you're there all day with hundreds of other dogs it does get hectic - I still put blankets over their crates at trials to make it snug and den like so they will rest and not spend the entire day gawking at other dogs and people and so on. You can technically get through training without using a crate by having dog with a really good down stay or someone there to hold the dog for you. But if you ever want to compete the dog is going to have to learn how to be crated anyway, so I do understand why the instructor is requiring it. Plus, it's hard to teach when people are being distracted by their dogs. Better to be able to put the dog in a safe and secure place so you can focus on what the instructor is telling you, or on walking a course and so on. In beginner classes the dog typically spends very little time in a crate anyway as you are often working on obstacles which means very little wait time which in turn means it doesn't makes sense for people to have to run back and forth to get their dogs from their crates. So you can build up to it gradually with her if she will at least tolerate it with some decorum? Kristine |
| Thank you. We had started when we first got her, 10 weeks, with the crate training using most of the techniques mentioned above. She never did well in the crate except when it was time to sleep. She would go in after much coaxing and sleep in the crate on the floor of our room. She always did fine when confined to a room through gates so we just switched to that. I now regret it. Chowder is not a huge fan of food so food in the crate doesn't work. She likes treats and some people foods but she hates the crate more so those are enough to get her in. Our plan right now is put her bed and a chewy bone in but we will most likely have to force her in. Should we close the door? Keep it open? how long should she be in there? Does any one have ideas other than the norm as nothing seems to be good enough to coax her into the cage? |
| I don't know if I got really lucky, or if what I did was right. Simon started out in a crate from day 1. It got to the point of just saying "crate" and he went right in. He knew if he didn't go, he would be put in there anyway. At class, he knows when he goes in is when he gets his treat. At class, I could just let his leash go and he would go right to the crate, I don't but I could. Get a crate thats big enough and light enough to haul around. Set the crate up at home and find a good yummy treat, one that really stinks and has high value. I used and still use...hot dogs. The boys love them. Have Chowder see you throw that treat inside, throw it all the way into the back of the crate, say crate, and walk away. If its good enough that treat will disappear while you are not watching. Do this several times a day for a few days. When he/she is comfortable doing this, throw the treat in, say crate, and stand there while he/she eats it. Do this for a few more days. When that is comfortable, throw in a treat,say crate and close the door. When he/she is done eating the treat, open the door and let them out. Do this for a few days. Do the above but extend the time in the crate from a few seconds after eating the treat to a few minutes. Going for a longer time can be tricky. I would get a good bone, one with marrow in it to help them settle. It won't be easy, he/she probably will fuss. Putting something over the crate at class so they don't see whats going on will help. One thing they will learn is that fussing will not get them out of there. For some this will take some time and an iron will from you. Hopefully that bone you left in there will help take their minds off it. Hope this helps... |
Simon's Mom wrote: One thing they will learn is that fussing will not get them out of there. For some this will take some time and an iron will from you. The hardest part of the whole crate training process was me not caving in, but I am so happy that I didn't cave in on this. It didn't take long at all for Mady to get used to her crate. Now I just say 'crate time' and in she goes. Often, when she has had a particularly busy day and needs a proper sleep, she will go in there on her own. It has been so handy during sheep herding, and when we have stayed in hotel to have her be comfortable in her crate. Good luck, I hope it goes smoothly for you! |
| When we were crate training, we left the crate with the door open during the day. Found that eventually, the dogs would venture inside themselves for a nap. Getting to that point was not so difficult. We started by putting them in with the door closed for small periods of time...coaxing with treats and then treating once inside. A tuffed Kong helps while they are in there... Big trick is to have them associate the crate with a happy experience and not as a punishment... |
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