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How to crate train your adult dog

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Now that your crate is set up and you’ve marked your calendar, it’s time to start crate training your dog. Remember that not every dog responds the same way to a crate, so you’ll want to monitor their body language and adjust accordingly. If your dog starts to get anxious at any point, cut the session short and revert back to earlier steps in this guide.

1) Introduce your dog to the crate

Introduce your dog to their crate with a loose leash, a high-pitched “happy voice,” and lots of treats. This should give you a feel of how your dog reacts to the crate. Look out for any signs of distress like a tucked tail, flat ears, or whimpering.

If your dog pulls on the leash, step away from the crate and then call them to you, rather than forcing them closer. You can also briefly break from the crate training and give them a command you’ve already been working on, like “sit,” and then reward them for doing it.

2) Games and treats in the crate

Remember, you’re trying to build a positive association with the crate. What better way to do that than to incorporate fun games and yummy treats into your training?

  • Fetch. If your dog is a fetch lover, then try tossing their favorite ball or plush toy into the crate. They may be tentative at first, but keep at it until they learn to go in and grab the toy, then bring it back.
  • Chew toys. Place your best friend’s favorite chew toy inside the crate when you want them to go in. They’ll begin to learn the crate is where they go to satiate their appropriate chewing needs.
  • Treat puzzles. In addition to helping develop a positive association with crates, treat puzzles are mentally stimulating Trusted Source VCA Hospitals Community of veterinarians with up-to-date veterinary information. Go to source and provide dogs with a tasty reward! These can be a Kong filled with peanut butter or a more interactive search-and-find for biscuits.

👉 As you use treats and toys to get your dog comfortable with the crate, consider introducing a command that can be used every time you want them to go in, like “crate” or “kennel up.”

3) Feeding in the crate

If your dog is food-motivated, feeding your dog their meals in the crate can be a particularly effective method of getting them comfortable with it. Start by placing your pup’s food bowl outside the crate but close to it. Each day, you should move the bowl closer to the open crate door (make sure to secure the door so it doesn’t shut on them).

Eventually, you can place the bowl right inside the crate so they have to go inside to eat from it. Once you have achieved that, you can start shutting the door behind them until they are done. If at any point your dog is tentative about eating their food, move the bowl back away from the crate and start this step over.

4) Gradually increase time in the crate

As with all dog training, teaching your furbaby something new can take a while. The average adult dog can be in a crate for six to eight hours max, but you shouldn’t start with too much time off the bat. Instead, be sure to slowly increase their time in the crate with these milestones along the way:

  • Crate them while you’re home. Start crating your dog in short time intervals of 5-10 minutes while staying in view of your dog, then move to another room once they’re comfortable with that.
  • Crate them for a short errand. After they’ve proven they can handle short periods, you can start running quick errands with your dog crated, ideally under 30 minutes.
  • Crate them overnight. Eventually, your dog can start sleeping in their crate with a sheet or cover over it to keep them from waking up in the middle of the night.

5) After crate training

Once your dog is comfortable with the crate and not whining when left alone, then you can consider them crate-trained — congratulations! Time to party!

Hang on though – the journey isn’t quite over. In order to make sure their training sticks, you need to continually ensure they always associate their crate with safety and not fear. Every time your dog obeys and gets in the crate without “back talk,” reward them with positive reinforcement Trusted Source American Kennel Club (AKC) Registry of purebred dog pedigrees. Go to source .

You can switch it up between treats and petting, but you don’t want to stop encouraging them. As for letting them out of the crate, don’t act too excited because it could intensify any anxiety they feel. Instead, opt for calm praise. It goes without saying that you should never use crates for punishment.