Crate training

When you are thinking about crate training your dog, it is essential to be aware of a variety of important facts about your dog. These include knowing that your dog will become frustrated, destructive, noisy and very unhappy if it is left inside a crate all day then allowed to roam freely for a few hours and then returned to the crate for the night. Crate training should not be attempted in the night.

For effective crate training, you need to place your puppy inside the crate when you are not with it. This should be done for the first three to four weeks that you have the puppy. Ensure that the crate is not too large and ideally limit the size to the size of the puppy's bed as this will help to prevent the puppy from using its bed as the toilet as the puppy will not want to ‘go' where it sleeps. Crate training is a slow process but can offer great rewards if you are patient with your puppy.

If the puppy begins to turn in circles inside the crate, you need to take it to the garden to do its business. You need to take the puppy out after every meal too. After a good few hours in the crate, the puppy will need to be taken out for a long walk to alleviate boredom.

This process is a great way to housebreak the puppy. After about five months, you can stop taking it out so frequently. Until this time however you will need to be understanding and expect that from time to time the puppy will have a few accidents and occasionally need more attention.