The noises he makes !!!!!

[Hazel]

Well finally we have bought Easy home and he is every bit as special as we knew he would be. So now we are trying to crate train him....I know you will all have been through this before. Last night I let him sleep on the sofa next to me and then today, every time he falls asleep I put him in his crate. He also gets fed in there and has a kong so he doesn't mind being in there at all. The trouble comes when I close the door - he has a total fit!!! The noises he can make, I have never heard such things before. It really sounds like he is talking and the howls he makes has us in fits of laughter - we just can't help it. My question is, do they stop??? in the end I went and laid next to the crate and then he was happy to go to sleep. He is there at the moment fast asleep with the door open. I am just worried that when we start going back to work he will howl the building down for the whole day (we live in an appartment).
Any advice?

 

[Jan]

It will get better, but it might take awhile.

 

[marciafinn]

I was afraid the neighbors would think we were performing a satanic ritual on Mason with the noises he made when we first introduced him to the crate. Mason stopped after about two weeks. Good luck!

 

[BentleysMama]

Bentley hates being confined in any way but needs to be in his crate at night and when we leave the house as he is not yet potty trained enough (4 mo. old). He tries to jump, though he's bigger now and can't get much of a jump in anymore, and he howls and barks. His howling almost always starts with a yawn and ends up in a howl. As long as you don't take them out when they're carrying on like that they do seem to learn that's it's not going to get them anywhere so they might as well just sleep it off.

Almost every time we've come home after leaving him in his pen or crate he's fast asleep though I know he started off carrying on before we left. He is getting better and I'm sure your baby will too.

 

[Mom2tyson]

Tyson used to cry and whine alot when we first got him and we would put him in bed for the night but after about a week or two he was fine. He still doesn't like going in unless he's really tired or getting a stuffed kong but he does it without whining now. Just don't give in to there whining while in there cause they will learn that if they cry enough then someone comes to them and they'll never stop. I also give him some "safe" toys to play with in there (stuffed kongs are great), but don't ever put him in there for anything bad because they can associate there crate with being punished and never like it. It does get better you just have to be consistent and patient.

 

[Bolivian_Box]

Yes it will get better!

The crate is the single best way to house train your pooch. Hang in there. Make sure the doggie has been walked prior to crating. And then ignore the whining.
Our 7 month old puppy has come to love his crate (I would love it too!)

 

[Hazel]

Thank you everyone for the advice - things are getting a little better. He doesn't mind going in his crate - he gets his food and water in there and the best treats. He will sleep in there all night without a worry and is actually sleeping for about six or seven hours now without needing to go to the toilet which is great! The only time he has problems is when we have to leave him which is only about twice a week for about five hours. Then we come home to a dog covered in poo and sometimes sick. I know he will get better, just have to keep holding our noses when we come home!

 

[choppermomma]

Also, when you are leaving the house try to make it as quick and as matter of fact as possible. The more of a fuss you make the harder it will be. When we leave the house, we say "kennel good" and he goes right in. He knows he is going to get a treat and then say a very quick "bye, see you later" and walk out the door. He loves his kennel and with all the commotion in the house, I'm sure he looks forward to the down time.