Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering if I should crate my puppy on his first night home. I read in a book that I should wait until after he has settled in because crating would cause stress. The book suggested that at night I should put some blankets down next to my bed and tie him to my bed with a leash and then crate him later. I wasn't so sure this was a good idea because I never heard of anyone doing this before. And I was concerned about the puppy hurting himself. In your opinion do you think I should do what the book says or just him on his first night?

I would NOT tie him to your bed. He might tangle himself and get injured. Especially if he is not used to being on a collar and leash. You didn't mention how old the pup is. I would crate the pup, but keep the crate in the bedroom and in a place where the pup can see you. The first night we had Cookie, she woke up about every hour and we took her outside everytime (Puppies this young can't hold it for more than a couple hours). The second night, she slept straight through until 5:30. After that, she would wake up sometimes in the night, but only once.

crating is not harmful & if done correctly, a dog will consider its crate a safe haven.

tell us what type of pup you have, name, age, we love to hear all about new pups. do you have other pets?

make the crate very pleasant with soft blanket & put it beside your bed (I've even put crate in bed under cover with 1 pup when it was very cold weather) you might even cover the crate with a light blanket. very small pups sometimes have difficulty maintaining their body heat, cos up until now they had their mom/siblings.

its possible the pup will cry/need to go potty in the night. are you a light sleeper? alot depends on the age/breed, about how long they can hold it. are you taking the dog outside for potty during the day? if you've been successful at encouraging the pup to go by repetition/consistency/praising, then maybe your mid of the night potty won't be too much trouble. Sometimes they need to go more than once, so if you are certain that pup has just finished, then you can ignore the crying.

during the day the pup needs lots of watching, or needs to be in a safe place. Many use a gate or ex-pen.I personally don't care for using a leash inside except specifically for training sessions. You want the leash & the crate to be very positive experiences.

I hope your pup adjusts to sleeping all night, sooner than later, but be prepared to endure with patience if it takes awhile. Let us hear.

>>I was wondering if I should crate my puppy on his first night home. I read in a book that I should wait until after he has settled in because crating would cause stress. The book suggested that at night I should put some blankets down next to my bed and tie him to my bed with a leash and then crate him later. I wasn't so sure this was a good idea because I never heard of anyone doing this before. And I was concerned about the puppy hurting himself. In your opinion do you think I should do what the book says or just him on his first night?

>>>>>>>>>>>

Don't tether the first night. Whether or not to crate depends on his age and experience. If you're getting a pup from a breeder who has already begun the crate training, a crate next to your bed and a potty outing in the middle of the night can be good on the first night. No playtime in the potty outing. Your goal is to wake him up, not have you wake him up, get him out quietly and with a minimum of lights and activity, and then right back to bed.

The age a pup is old enough for crating depends on breed and experience. My last puppy did well at 7 weeks and two days, but she is a large breed (more holding capacity) and her breeder starts the puppies early in crates in small groups. Moving that into my bedroom with me and the other dogs right there wasn't particularly hard for her and she was quiet the second night.

Some puppies may need a very gradual conditioning to the crate in short, daytime sessions including things like having meals in the crate, before you ever use it at night. For these pups, an exercise pen in your bedroom with papers for them to relieve in the night, and you able to reach the pup can be good. Or some people have success confining the pup to a small room with a baby gate on the door, out of earshot and letting the puppy "get over it," in terms of the pretty heavy stress it puts on a puppy to be alone at first. I like the bedroom methods better. But no tethering, at least not at first. Too dangerous.
-----
Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinaryforum.com