The first evening I brought Sammy home, I tried to put him in a crate. I had soft music playing, comfy pillow, toys, kong in there and he was NOT having it. He threw his body against the wire door so hard and frequently, frantically pawed at the door and just went so nuts, I was afraid he was going to seriously hurt himself. So, I made the (huge) mistake of taking him out and letting him sleep with me. He has been my bed mate ever since.
Sammy absolutely does not like being confined in a crate and I still think he would hurt himself, if put in one. He is very upset if left in a room, with the door closed. I have only left him in a room by himself for maybe 2 minutes ( unless we were training, we got up to a 20 minute stand/stay but the door wasn't closed. He can only manage 3-5 minutes now).
Prior to covid and my daughter moving in, he was okay with being left in the extra bathroom, when i went to work. We had a schedule. I was able to come home 3 hours after leaving for work, spent 45 minutes with him and back into the bathroom he went. My son was available 2 - 3 hours later to spend time with him. I say he was okay with this because he didn't cry, scratch on the door,just went to sleep on his dog bed.
Since covid and my daughter and her dog moving in, Sammy has never been left alone.
In the future, I would like to be able to travel. My mom recently bought a condo, on the beach, in Hawaii. She offered to send my family for a paid vacation ( last year) and I didn't go because I cannot imagine Sammy in a crate for the plane ride. I have not done a lot of things because Sammy is not crate friendly.
Is it too late to try to teach crating? I have tried the one minute, enticed into the crate with a treat, and he just will not enter. I could toss a new york strip in there and he will not go into the crate. I had a really big crate from our aussies that I went into and tried to get him to join me, and he just whined and pawed frantically at the bars/open door. I think he was worried I was in there and was trying to save me.
He is a really confident little guy. We began agility right before the closures and he went threw the tunnels/shoots easily, but only after he scoped them out and saw there was an exit.
Anyway, should I try again, at this older age, to get him accustome to a crate? I worry that it may be necessary in his life, at some time, and I don't want to be continously limited in what I can do because he cannot be confined.
Any suggestions as to how to try this with a dog that is not very food motivated?
Sammy absolutely does not like being confined in a crate and I still think he would hurt himself, if put in one. He is very upset if left in a room, with the door closed. I have only left him in a room by himself for maybe 2 minutes ( unless we were training, we got up to a 20 minute stand/stay but the door wasn't closed. He can only manage 3-5 minutes now).
Prior to covid and my daughter moving in, he was okay with being left in the extra bathroom, when i went to work. We had a schedule. I was able to come home 3 hours after leaving for work, spent 45 minutes with him and back into the bathroom he went. My son was available 2 - 3 hours later to spend time with him. I say he was okay with this because he didn't cry, scratch on the door,just went to sleep on his dog bed.
Since covid and my daughter and her dog moving in, Sammy has never been left alone.
In the future, I would like to be able to travel. My mom recently bought a condo, on the beach, in Hawaii. She offered to send my family for a paid vacation ( last year) and I didn't go because I cannot imagine Sammy in a crate for the plane ride. I have not done a lot of things because Sammy is not crate friendly.
Is it too late to try to teach crating? I have tried the one minute, enticed into the crate with a treat, and he just will not enter. I could toss a new york strip in there and he will not go into the crate. I had a really big crate from our aussies that I went into and tried to get him to join me, and he just whined and pawed frantically at the bars/open door. I think he was worried I was in there and was trying to save me.
He is a really confident little guy. We began agility right before the closures and he went threw the tunnels/shoots easily, but only after he scoped them out and saw there was an exit.
Anyway, should I try again, at this older age, to get him accustome to a crate? I worry that it may be necessary in his life, at some time, and I don't want to be continously limited in what I can do because he cannot be confined.
Any suggestions as to how to try this with a dog that is not very food motivated?