Crate training

[Dog Mad]

Hiya,

We are hoping to get a cocker spaniel puppy early next year and have started to do our research now.  Although we have had pups before (six years since my last one!) I have never used a crate to help with toilet training as I have always paper trained them.  

So this time I am thinking of using a crate but have a couple of questions:

Do you crate your new pup overnight?  Some people seem to but then I have read that they shouldn't be left for more than a couple of hours in it.

Does this mean that you would have to let it out every couple of hours during the night, and if so how long would you continue this for?

How long would you expect it to take to toilet train him?  We both work and will each take two weeks off work when we get him (so a month will be spent with the puppy) and then it will be left for a maximum of two three hour periods a day, 4 days a week.  I would hope that after this month that he should be able to hold it all in for the three hour period which we will be away!

When we return to work after the month I would probably leave him in the kitchen un-crated to be with my other two dogs (this would obviously depend on how they get on together).

No doubt I will think of more questions, but any advice will be gratefully received.

Thanks

Debbie, Tara & Bailey                    

[PennyB]

Some pups housetrain really quickly and others it can take up to a year to completely housetrain! With my 2 it took Ruby about 4-5 months as you'd think she was OK and realised she'd lulled me into a sense of false security while Wilf was housetrained in a month with a few odd accidents here and there. Each dog is different and while you may be lucky at first the pups can often lapse as the message needs to be reinforced a lot (especially as they have small bladders and short attention spans as pups).

My only fear with leaving with two adult dogs alone is that accidents can happen. I never left my two alone if I was out even though Ruby was fine with Wilf but she played roughly with him and could've so easily hurt him by accident.

I think leaving in a crate at night is fine but you will have to get up quite early just to let them out. Problem arises if people are leaving in crate and night and during the day so they're always in it. I had a few panels I got from croft online and attached them to the crate during the day so pup had more freedom but were secure.

Crates are not just for housetraining at night-time as you've also got to keep letting them outside during the day so they get the message. Crates can also act as a secure place for pups so they don't ge tunder your feet if your doing something whereby they could get injured (I don't have separate rooms downstairs so it was a godsend especially doing things like cooking or ironing which pups always like to help with).