Written by Joe Nutkins
Travel Crate at Crufts 2024
So how are dog crates and Christmas linked?
Firstly, we need to understand when we talk about dog crates and crate training we are meaning in a positive way whereby dogs and puppies view the crate as a calm and safe space, not as a place for punishment.
Crate training, using a puppy pen, having a baby gate up on the doorway are all things that can be very very useful when we have a puppy, when we have a rehome dog or when we have a rescue dog. They can be a controversial topic as many people who have never used a crate etc view them as negative but for dogs they can provide a safe space, an area to go to for peace.
How are Crates and puppy pens useful?
Using crates, puppy pens, and baby gates from when we get a puppy or a new dog into the family it’s beneficial for us humans as well as for our dogs. Once dogs have been introduced in a positive way, they can view their space as somewhere to retreat to when they are tired or purely when they just need a small rest. This helps dogs who don’t naturally switch off learn how to have some quiet time, which is essential to have a healthy body as well as a healthy mind, particularly in developing puppies.
It can help dogs feel more confident when they are separate from their family such as when people need to go to work or school or just when someone happens to be behind a closed door taking a shower or overnight. When dogs have a place or space that is familiar to them and where they feel comfortable, this can help them say settled while they are separate from their human family or from other dogs or pets in the household.
Often puppies can experience times where they are overtired but don’t recognise the feelings as needing to take a nap and instead they fight against it which often results in mouthing or play biting, jumping at people, racing around the house, barking or tearing up items. When we have a puppy who is comfortable being in a crate or a puppy pen they can have a chance to learn so when they feel tired they will actually start to put themselves to bed rather than fighting against it.
With a dog who is rehomed to us or if we bring a rescue dog into our home having a crate or puppy pen or an area with a baby gate can help a dog decompress in their new environment and have a chance to assess their surroundings without people or other pets being too close to them; crates and some puppy pens don’t just provide a boundary for a dog, but also for everyone else in the household to see what space they need to give the dog or puppy.
Puppy Pen shortly after joining our family
How do crates fit in with Christmas?
So let’s apply crate training to Christmas time. Let’s say we’ve trained a dog in a positive way to enjoy being in the crate or in a puppy pen or in a room with a baby get across and our dog takes themselves in here when they want to have a little rest,
or take some toys in there or perhaps a dog chew etc. Now let’s imagine it’s the beginning of December and we’ve started to decorate the home so there’s a Christmas tree appeared which has got smells of its own plus there’s lights, there’s ornaments, there’s all sorts of candles that smell of every fragrance you can imagine. Not only could be overwhelming for a dog, but if they’re inquisitive, they’re often told to leave it and don’t touch that or to get away from there and suddenly these items can cause stress for our dogs from their perspective even though we are trying to keep them safe they might not realise.
We also have potentially Christmas presents coming into the Home and then being wrapped up, Christmas cards coming through the letter box so more post then usual and again lots of new smells, sounds; potentially rustling of bags, you might even find you’re leaving the house more or that people are coming and going more than usual, so then we have routine changes as well. So before we even get to the actual festivities of Christmas there are a lot of things that are changing for our dogs and where there are a few things that stay the same such as where they live and what they have for their meals their crate or puppy pen or the room they sleep in at night tend to be something that stay similar and familiar.
Do always make sure your dog has access to that puppy pen or crate or the room that they use so that they do know they have their own safe space, somewhere they can go to and no matter what else is happening they can go and it smells of them and their things. They can take a toy in one or one of their chews and they can just rest or relax.
So now come closer to Christmas itself and potentially we have visitors who maybe just dropping off presents and cards, maybe dropping in because they’re visiting family and thought I’d come and say hi while they’re in town or it might be visitors actually coming and staying for dinner, staying overnight or coming to stay for the whole of Christmas. For some dogs this will be very exciting and of course this can lead to jumping up taking things from the visitors, trying to get in bags and potentially this could be undesirable for the visitor or they might be fine with it but then your dog is trying to get on the dinner table while you’re trying to eat or they are pestering people while they’re trying to put their shoes on, etc.
Being able to put our dog into somewhere safe like a crate or a puppy pen while we are doing things like having dinner, opening Christmas presents, or other activities they might find exciting makes the household safer for our dogs and calmer for all the people.
Alternatively if your dog is shy or nervous about new situations, anxious with people, or maybe has been unwell or is in season then their crate or pen provides them with an area to feel secure in. You don’t need to be on full alert checking if your dog is stressed or keeping an eye on guests to check they are not trying to fuss your dog who is petrified of people or just isn’t feeling too good and the neighbours friendly children are trying to put a Santa hat on your dogs head! You can enjoy the day more, your dog can enjoy their day more and spend quality time with you later once it’s calmer again.
Consider; does your dog really want to be involved or do we just feel bad that they are ‘left out’?
Should we wait for Christmas to use the crate?
However, waiting for Christmas day / Christmas time and having guests and lots of new things happening isn’t the best time to do the training for your dog: ideally start sooner so now is a great time. Get started by doing small sessions; just a few seconds long or couple of minutes and gradually buildup. You can do lots of sessions in the same day or in the same evening and it doesn’t have to take weeks and weeks but what you do need are lots of very small sessions.
For the actual Christmas day / Boxing Day / that funny time between Christmas and New Year when no one knows what day it is having the crate or the puppy pen or using the baby gate for a room can be beneficial as it gives our dogs and puppies some time out when there are lots of things happening around them. Having some time out isn’t a punishment, it’s a chance for them to just rest and when they rest it helps them with any kind of stress or worry that they might be experiencing. Remember what our dogs may find stressful won’t necessarily be what we would find stressful although to be fair a room full of people talking about Christmas I would find quite stressful myself!
Boundaries are not just for Dogs.
It’s important to let everyone in the household know that when your dog or puppy is in their crate, puppy pen or behind the baby gate that it’s their space and they shouldn’t be interrupted or interactive with. The reason for this is we want our dogs to feel they have their own safe space where they can relax and if they put themselves into their pen or their crate even with the door open if they then find that someone’s crawling after them, leaning over the side, putting the hands through the mesh, chatting into them or trying to wake them up, trying to stroke them, etc they’re not going to feel that that is their own safe space and then they haven’t got anywhere. If your dog is tired or feeling overwhelmed and they haven’t got somewhere they can go to safely be on their own you may then find that overwhelm turns into frustration or even cause a dog to feel “I need to tell off whoever won’t leave them alone”. This might be barking, an air snap or growl which are also simply warnings at this stage – but we shouldn’t put our dogs in a position where they feel they need to warn when they just want some time out.
So ensure the whole family members including the children and any guests or any visitors and members of family that are staying over – everybody – knows if your dog is in the crate or the puppy pen or behind the baby gate in another room that’s the dog’s space. If they want to go and visit they should check with you first and you will assess to see if the dog is okay to have that interaction but if they look like they need some sleep just let them sleep.
I did write a few tips for Newsweek recently on crate training and you can see the article and what it was linked to here
https://www.newsweek.com/goldendoodle-owner-crate-trained-dog-sleeps-tiktok-1993462
Choosing the right crate:
When you’re deciding on a crate or a pen for your dog have a look at sizing and assess if your dog will be able to stand up, lay down and turn around; as long as they can do these then the pen or the crate should be a good size for them. If you have a young puppy and they are a larger breed you may find you start with a smaller size crate or puppy pen but have to get bigger. Perhaps you could talk to some friends who are going to be getting a dog or see if you can borrow from someone with an adult dog a smaller size crate for now and then have a larger crate for when your dog is bigger.
There are so many different types of crates, puppy pens, etc and I’ve got quite a few different styles myself. I have metal crates, I have soft crates that are mesh with a metal frame, I’ve got puppy pens which are again canvas with a metal framing inside and I’ve got wire metal frames to make up puppy pens where the sides link together. I haven’t found that only one of these is the best overall as I tend to use different styles for different situations. It depends on what space I have, where I am, how many dogs I have with me and why I’m using it too…
Decide what’s working for you do you need to have a ‘roof’ over your dog’s head to stop them climbing out or to stop children dropping things in or can you have an open style pen? Do you need a crate? Do you need a crate that has a cover again to stop things being dropped in to stop your dog reaching out? Do you perhaps need a soft crate or is your dog a big chewer and are they likely to chew their way out?
Setting up your Dog’s safe space:
Once you’ve chosen what you’re going to use, bring it home and put it up in the room that you’re going to be using it in and make sure your dog is there with you because if they see it going up, it’s less daunting for them. Also, if it is a metal crate or the metal sides of a puppy pen, they will get to hear the sounds and again it’s less worrying for them. Let them investigate; let them go in and out freely, make sure that any doors are wedged open or tied open so they don’t close and worry your dog during investigation. You can provide their meals in there again with the door open, you can have treats and toys in there. If it’s a puppy pen you could even get inside with your dog and have some playtime in there, some fusses or if they’re tired go in there with them with their bed and let them fall asleep in there. We want to make these places nice for our dogs so they feel they want to go in them more and get good use from them.
Gradually you can start asking them to go in push the door shut and open again straight away and then just get on with what you’re doing; it might be you’re playing with your dog or you might be getting on with some work, etc. Ideally don’t make a big fuss of your dog when they come out because we don’t want them thinking that coming out is better than being in otherwise they want to get out all the time. So when they come out, they just come out. They don’t need a big praise or a fuss for leaving a crate or a pen as I’m pretty sure they can do that reasonably easily. This also applies to putting up a baby gate and teaching your dog it’s okay to be in another room of their own accord.
Gradually increase the time the door is shut. This might be a few seconds, build up to a minute, then a couple of minutes, then 5 or 10 minutes and gradually building up more and more. At this point stay next to the crate or the pen or next to where the baby gate is so your dog can see you and we don’t have to add in separation anxiety issues because you’re too far away.
While you’re increasing the time you can of course have a toy or a suitable chew in the crate with them. They might not be interested but at the same time they might and it all helps towards making it a positive experience.
When you’re doing these small graduations these can be done in an evening or a weekend; you can do a few sessions with the door shut then open the door and get on with your day. Maybe an hour or two later do it again; shut the door for a few seconds, maybe a minute, let them out and carry on with the day.
Once your dog is looking comfortable and are happy to either lay down or have a sniff about inside their crate or pen or the room then you can start moving away. So at this point you might have your laptop with you and be doing some work, you could be reading a book or you could be on the phone. But gradually now start moving away so your dog can see they’re not missing out because you’re busy doing other things anyway. If you’re sitting there just literally watching what your dog is doing they’re going to sit watching you in return. However, if they can see you’re busy, they are more likely to look for other things to occupy themselves which may include laying down and having a nap.
You’ll find when your dog is fully crate trained or trained to associate being in a puppy pen or a separate room with having a nice place to be they will opt to go here if they find that room has become too busy or noisy or if they’re just feeling a little bit under the weather in the future, so it’s not just for Christmas but these kinds of skills are great for dogs throughout their lives. My dogs use their crates and pens for all sorts of things: they have them at home sometimes in the form of kids tents but also actual crates and puppy pens and they are very comfortable using them and actually choose those over other beds they have in the house. It also means if they ever need a vet trip they are absolutely fine with being in the crate at the vets and doesn’t phase them being separate from us which can usually be big stressors for dogs while they are also feeling poorly. If we’re away somewhere for example if we’re camping or staying in a cottage or visit someone we know we can take crates and play pens and we can use them at any time if we want to for our dogs so it’s basically a home from home for our dogs to use and give them somewhere that is their own space.
between training sessions – giving them space to rest
Help with Crate Training:
Do you need any help with crate training or any other types of training with your dog following a positive and reward based style? Please do reach out and let us know and we wish you a very Merry and safe Christmas.
Contact us:
Joe@dogtrainingessex-suffolk.co.uk
What’s App 07809 117912
