New puppy in the house
- Thread starter fishman5
- Start date
To me that's the same as a crate.... just a little bigger, allowing her to toilet in the middle of the night.
I would talk to the breeder about whether s/he's doing any crate training yet. If so, just put her in the crate a few times the day you get her (maybe for the car ride, for meals, and once or twice more with toys), and then let her sleep there at night.
If the breeder hasn't done any crate training (or you get her from a place where you don't know her background, like a shelter....I don't know what you're planning), then spend a lot of time that first day making the crate a lot of fun. Put all her toys in it, so she has to go in to get one. Put a comfy bed in to entice her to sleep there. Feed her all meals and snacks/kongs/whatever you give her in the crate. Then lock her in at night with your earplugs handy if you need them. As long as you completely ignore any vocalization while she's in the crate (if you're in bed, don't even MOVE unless she's quiet), and spend a lot of time during the day teaching her that the crate is good, it should only take a few days before she's perfectly comfortable in there at night.
I would talk to the breeder about whether s/he's doing any crate training yet. If so, just put her in the crate a few times the day you get her (maybe for the car ride, for meals, and once or twice more with toys), and then let her sleep there at night.
If the breeder hasn't done any crate training (or you get her from a place where you don't know her background, like a shelter....I don't know what you're planning), then spend a lot of time that first day making the crate a lot of fun. Put all her toys in it, so she has to go in to get one. Put a comfy bed in to entice her to sleep there. Feed her all meals and snacks/kongs/whatever you give her in the crate. Then lock her in at night with your earplugs handy if you need them. As long as you completely ignore any vocalization while she's in the crate (if you're in bed, don't even MOVE unless she's quiet), and spend a lot of time during the day teaching her that the crate is good, it should only take a few days before she's perfectly comfortable in there at night.
I don't particularly see the reason in starting out in a bigger area only to later move on to a crate. I did just what lizzybeth said, and it worked great for me. I fed all his meals in the crate from the first day of bringing him home, played some games in and around it to get him used to it, gently moved him into the crate every time he fell asleep outside of it and simply lured him in and closed the door the first night I had him. He hardly cried at all, his crate was right next to my bed and he could see me whenever he wanted. He did occasionally make a fuss and tried to get my attention later on to which he quickly gave up on since he didn't get a response of any kind but he was really brilliant in the crate the whole first month of being home with me.
I like to sleep with my pups in the bed the first few nights. If they are already crate trained I put their crate by my pillow. If they are not yet sure about the crate, I tie them to my waist with a short leash so they curl into my belly and sleep (I'm a side sleeper). If they wake up and start moving, the leash wakes me and I take them out to pee. Of course, I'm not one of those heavy sleeping people who might roll over on the pup and smother him :yikes:
In my experience, this is the best way for everyone to sleep those first few nights. Put them in a crate and them may scream all night long, so unsure and stressed by all the changes in their little lives. Put them next to a warm body with a heart beat and they sleep like babies, so do I
In my experience, this is the best way for everyone to sleep those first few nights. Put them in a crate and them may scream all night long, so unsure and stressed by all the changes in their little lives. Put them next to a warm body with a heart beat and they sleep like babies, so do I
This is what worked for us
We just got Sassy 3 weeks ago, a very tiny teacup poodle.
She had never been crated, so I have a fairly large night table by my bed, when I say large, it is big enough for her crate.
I put her about 8-10 inches from my face when I lay down. She can hear me breath and smell my scent. That little lady had never been seperated from her litter mates until the day we got her.
We went to bed at 10:00 P.M. and she did not cry one time and she slept until 6:30 A.M. She has been doing this ever since. I plan to just keep letting her sleep there.
We just got Sassy 3 weeks ago, a very tiny teacup poodle.
She had never been crated, so I have a fairly large night table by my bed, when I say large, it is big enough for her crate.
I put her about 8-10 inches from my face when I lay down. She can hear me breath and smell my scent. That little lady had never been seperated from her litter mates until the day we got her.
We went to bed at 10:00 P.M. and she did not cry one time and she slept until 6:30 A.M. She has been doing this ever since. I plan to just keep letting her sleep there.