Crate Training A Dog
How Difficult Can It Be?

The success to crate training a dog is to not to rush - take it slowly!

If your Cocker Spaniel has never been in a crate before, you'll probably need to begin his crate training from scratch.

The same will apply if your pet has had any previous unhappy or frightening experiences in a dog crate.

Depending on the circumstances, crate training your dog could take several days or it may take a couple of weeks.

Take each step, one at a time, and move on only when you feel your dog is ready.

Don't rush your Cocker Spaniel, allow him plenty of time to get used to his crate.

It should be noted that the rules for crate training dog are very similar to those for crate training a puppy.

Before I begin to explain how best to crate train dog, I heartily recommend that you read the essential rules of crate training to give you a bit of background information and an idea of how to approach the training.

Crate Training Your Dog - Give Him A Room With A View!

It's best placed in an area where he can see what's going on, but not so noisy that it would disturb him should he want to sleep.

An ideal place for his crate would be in a quiet corner of the room and away from any draughts.

Placing his crate in a corner will make your Cocker's space feel cosy and den-like.

If it's not possible to place his crate in a corner, the next best thing would be to drape a towel over it, leaving the entrance open.

Crate Training A Dog - Step 1

Ask your dog to sit by his new crate.

Your dog may automatically step inside; if he does, praise him and give him a treat - it's looking good!

If he appears wary of the crate, place a treat on the floor at the entrance and another just inside and let him take them both.

Your objective, when crate training your dog, is to help him to recognise that good things happen to him when he's in or around his crate and that he has nothing to be afraid of.

Next, throw a couple of treats into the back of the crate so that he must step inside to reach them.

If he goes inside the crate, praise him.

Don't close the door at this stage otherwise you may startle him and undo any progress made so far.

Call your dog to you and as he comes out of the crate, praise him and offer him a small treat and lots of cuddles.

Repeat this a few times until your Cocker Spaniel seems at ease with going in and out of his crate.

At your next session of crate training your dog, place some more treats into his crate to tempt him back inside and as he's finishing his last treat, call him to you. (He was probably going to come out at that point anyway, but this way your dog is responding to your command, ie. doing things on your terms, not his.)

Praise him for coming to you, but this time don't reward him with a treat.

At this stage, treats should be reserved only for going inside his crate.

If your dog leaves his crate without being asked, don't praise him.

One of the benefits of crate training a dog (as opposed to crate training a puppy) is that he'll probably understand the basic puppy obedience training commands such as Sit/Down/Stand/ etc. which can be useful at this stage of crate training.

You may like to try using some basic commands while he's inside his crate.

Rewarding him with a treat after each successful command will not only reinforce the obedience commands but will teach your dog that his crate is a good place to be!

Try using the 'stay' command when he's next in his crate.

Ask your Cocker to 'stay' for 30 seconds or so and then release him.

If he stays as requested, reward him.

If he doesn't stay put, he's not ready to move on any further.

You may have progressed too quickly and will need to go back and repeat the previous sessions of crate training your dog.

When you believe he's ready, you can try again.

Gradually increase the length of time you ask your dog to stay, but take it slowly - crate training a dog takes time and patience!

Crate TrainingA Dog - Step 2

When your dog is happily entering and leaving his crate in return for treats and/or praise, begin using the words "into bed" (or whatever words you feel comfortable with) as he enters his crate.

As with most training, the timing is crucial - voice the new command just as he's entering his crate.

This will help him associate the words "into bed" with going into his crate.

After a few training sessions where you ask your dog to go into his crate using the new command ("into bed"), drop the use of treats.

You now want your dog to enter his crate because you've asked him to, not because he's been 'bribed' with a treat!

If he doesn't do as you've asked, just wait and see if he eventually goes into his crate - if he does, reward him with praise to let him know that he did exactly what you wanted him to do.

If he doesn't enter the crate, end the training session and try again later.

Never try to force your dog to go into his crate.

When crate training dog, you must have patience and take things slowly!

Repeat the above training a couple of times each day and your dog will soon be trotting in and out of his crate on command.

Crate Training A Dog - Step 3

Your next dog crate training exercise will involve closing the door for a few seconds while your dog is inside his crate.

Scatter several small treats inside the crate and give your dog the command to go inside.

As he does so, close the door behind him.

The treats will keep him occupied for a few moments. As soon as he picks up his final treat he may turn around and move to leave his crate. If this happens, open the crate door.

Don't forget, you should no longer be rewarding your dog for coming out of his crate, only for going into it and, as you didn't ask him to come out, don't praise him.

After practising closing and opening the crate door a few more times, repeat the exercise but this time leave the crate door closed for 30 seconds after he finishes the last treat.

He may paw at the door or whine to be let out. If he does, feed him a treat through the bars to settle him down and before opening the door.

If you let him out when he's whining, or pawing at the door, you will be reinforcing his belief that whining or pawing will get him what he wants - never respond to attention seeking behaviour - particularly when crate training a dog!

Repeat the above training exercises until you can leave your Cocker locked inside his crate for a few minutes.

Gradually build on this exercise until your dog can tolerate being inside his crate for longer periods of time.

To help you do this, you might like to try feeding your Cocker whilst he's in his crate to entice him to use it more often - simply place his dish inside and leave him to it!

As he goes inside to eat his meal, close the crate door behind him. If he's hungry enough, he won't object, he'll simply eat his meal.

If you think he's uncomfortable and wants to be let out, allow him to come out but remember not to praise him.

Leave his food in the crate, when he's hungry enough, he'll probably go back inside and eat it. Keep an eye on him so that when he returns you can close the door behind him.

This part of crate training your dog may take several attempts depending upon how comfortable your pet is with the crate door being closed.

Repeat the above at each mealtime but leave the door closed for longer each time - if he has a full stomach and is comfortable, he may even lie down and go to sleep - definite result!

Don't forget to offset the treats against his daily food allowance, otherwise you may end up with an obese dog and you certainly don't want that because overweight dogs are more prone to health problems!

Locking Your Dog In His Crate And Leaving Him Alone

However, it's important that your adult dog is familiar and comfortable with being alone, locked inside his crate.

For example, he may need to be taken to the vets and/or left overnight, or you may plan to travel with him by air, or in the car.

Begin by asking your dog to get into his crate, then close the door.

Stay in the same room so that he can see you - cook a meal or read a book, but let him see that you're still home - this may also help to stop your dog associating being crated with being left alone.

If he's comfortable with that, leave the room for a minute or two.

If he stayed quiet and still seems comfortable, praise him and carry on with what you were doing.

If you think it looks like he may want to get out, open the door before he begins to become unsettled or whines to be let out - if you can help it, don't set your dog up to fail.

While you're crate training your dog, you'll need to practice this exercise many times during the day, gradually increasing the time you stay out of the room and he stays locked inside his crate.

Eventually, you'll be able to leave your dog alone inside his crate for a few hours, if necessary.

TIP: If you crate your dog after his morning walk, or after an extensive play-time, he may fall asleep for a couple of hours.

Crate Training A Dog Should Be Fun!

One of the easiest ways of making the training more fun is to make it seem like a game, and make it exciting for him.

You can do this by occasionally hiding a few small treats inside his dog blankets at the bottom of the crate and let him sniff them out.

Placing his favourite toy in his crate or giving him a juicy bone to keep him occupied will make his crate a fun place to be.

When crate training a dog, alway keep your voice light and fun sounding, don't use low tones as he may associate a deep tone with being reprimanded or punished.

I hope this article about crate training your dog has given you enough information to help you successfully crate train your Cocker Spaniel, without too many hiccups!

I used a crate for Max when he was a puppy, and I still use it today but no longer lock him inside as he's fully housetrained and I trust him around the house.

If I need to leave him, I simply put him in his crate (door open) but close the kitchen door and that's where he stays.

He goes into his crate until visitors are settled, then he's allowed to come out to say hello.

He still occasionally uses his crate at night too.

If your Cocker Spaniel is fully housetrained I'd recommend you do the same but don't forget to leave the door open so that he can get to his water bowl should he need to.

If your dog or puppy isn't yet fully housetrained, you can learn about potty training puppy here.

Crate training dog a takes time and patience so take it slowly!

Search our site!

Custom Search

Return to top of page - Crate Training A Dog

More Dog Crates And Crate Training A Puppy

What Are Dog Crates And Why Should I Use One?

How To Choose The Perfect Dog Crate

Benefits of Crate Training A Puppy

Essential Rules Of Crate Training

How To Crate Train A Puppy

Crate Training A Dog

Dog Carriers Are Essential If You're Planning To Travel With Your Pet

Designer Dog Carriers

Pet Travel Crates