# My boy hates his crate



## MrsGath85 (Aug 29, 2016)

Hi all,

New to this forum, so here is a bit about our boy...
We brought our beautiful boy Spencer home 3 weeks ago when he was 8 weeks old.
He is our first Vizsla, and we have wanted one for as long as I can remember, and he is everything we hoped for and more.
He tries so so hard to be a good boy and does so well, but sometimes his devilish ways just get the better of him, but on the whole it's just him being a pup and I am sure he will grow out of his naughtiness eventually. Everyone adores him and he has slotted in with family life perfectly.

He has picked up training really quickly, he was sitting on command the first day he came home, and at 11 weeks is already mastering the 'stay'. Toilet training has been really good, just a handful of wee mistakes on our part, not reading him correctly.

Where we live unfortunately parvo is currently a big problem, so we are stuck unable to walk in public till he has had his 3rd vaccination in 3 weeks time. Luckily we have a lot of land so he gets plenty of exercise.
Generally at 11 weeks, what sort exercise and how much did/does everyone give their vizsla?

The only one thing causing us a bit of a headache (other than the biting) is he hates his crate. He isn't in it for long, maximum will be 3 hours, but even after an hour I come home and he has drooled everywhere. As soon as we let him out he is perfectly fine, tail wagging and resumes his lovely ways, but once you shut the door on the crate he just looses it. Won't touch any treats I put in there even bones or kongs. We have done the whole putting him in there for little bits at a time whilst we are in the room etc, but at times i do have to go out and can't take him with me. 
I know it's a case of him just getting used to it, and it does seem to be getting better, I just wondered if anyone had experienced something similar and had any advice or tips?

We just want him to be really happy and content, and I would hate to think that he is distressed.
When he is old enough he will be going to work with my husband, but we really want him to be ok in his crate so we have that option when it's needed.

Picture of our beautiful Mr Spencer :-*


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## Anida (Jun 10, 2016)

Congrats! He really is a cutie  I don't really have any suggestions other than maybe try feeding him in his crate (with the door open) just to get him accustomed to it. When our girl was little like Spencer we had her sleep in her crate but we put it on top of my nightstand so she was right next to me and then eventually moved it on the floor. She no longer sleeps in it but she goes in there when I'm out and settles down after a few minutes.


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## Jrod (Dec 12, 2012)

Hello MrsGath,
Spencer is a handsome boy. It sounds like y'all are in full puppy mode. Shark attacks, potty/command training and all the craziness in between. They crate can be a tricky obstacle in the beggining but here are some things you can try.

Put an old shirt or article of clothing of yours in the crate with him. This will put your scent in there which will help ease him.

You can also put his favorite toys in the crate with him, and Anida hit another great practice with trying to feed him while he is in his crate. One last thing to try is, take a treat he loves, a really good treat he doesn't get all the time and toss it into his crate. When he goes in to retrieve it, give him lots of praise.

The goal of all this, is to relate going into his crate with nothing but positive experiences. It takes time, *patiences * and lots of practice but eventually he will see his crate as a safe place he can retreat to. I hope all goes well.

Jrod


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

welcome to the forum ;D,, have you tried covering his crate with a blanket so it feels more like a den than a crate?


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## MCD (May 4, 2013)

I have tried changing to different types of crates(wire and closed plastic travel.) I tried covering her crate. I left the radio on and the tv.
I tried to bribe her with the best treats. I put her toys in with her. I fed her in her crate at first. I gave her articles of our clothes. We tried just leaving her for short periods of time while we were home. At times it felt like nothing worked. That part I understand completely. Dharma started sleeping in our bed from an early age and things got better but that still didn't fix the fact that she has to go in her crate when we are not at home. At 3 years old she can still be destructive and when she is boarded at the breeder, she is crated with the other dogs. She nests in her bedding so has none, she can still mess her crate sometimes. It is frustrating.... it is for her safety and my piece of mind!!!
In the end she just has a wire crate and the tv gets left on. She gets a treat in her crate too. She gets out for a good walk or time in the backyard before we leave. She goes in her crate willingly. (That doesn't mean she likes it though!).
We also feel that we still have to come home and rescue her from her crate if we have been out too long. We also try to take her as many places as we can and try to include her as much as we can. It will get better, I promise. Just give it time and be consistent. Good luck with what ever you figure out.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Some people even put an old time clock right outside the crate. You know the ones that tick. They say it can remind the pup of a heartbeat. 

My dog Cash decided last year he would destroy anything we put in his crate, and bark his rear off. Mind you he was 6 years old and crate trained since he was a puppy. 
It doesn't stop me from putting him in a crate. As a hunting dog crates are a must when traveling. 
I've started to think, the more I learn, the less I know.


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## Anida (Jun 10, 2016)

harrigab said:


> welcome to the forum ;D,, have you tried covering his crate with a blanket so it feels more like a den than a crate?


haha  we tried this thinking it might help. It resulted in the sheet getting pulled into the crate and completely shredded. So if you try this, use a blanket/sheet you don't care if it gets ruined.


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## Rbka (Apr 21, 2014)

Not sure if it's recommended but I used to hide treats in Nico's crate when he wasn't in it. That way he would find them when he went in on his own and wouldn't associate me *placing* the treat in his crate with the reward. Just a thought! Good luck, Mr. Spencer is a cutie


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## hecallsmebama (Mar 31, 2016)

We did crate games with Amos. I was very nervous about the crate and desperately wanted him to like it so I read a lot ahead of time. I know it depends on their little personalities but I think it really helped de-sensitize him to it. You can google crate games but we would generally mix it in with "sit," "stay," "on your bed," and then "crate." He got treats through the process of course, zipping around place to place anxious for the next command. Then we would command a "stay" once he was in the crate, leaving the door open. Then we worked up to a "stay" followed by closing the door and eventually opening the door, waiting, and then releasing him from the stay. Playing these games helped us. He soon associated the crate with games, treats, and a guaranteed release. It's worth a shot.

I should add that we used a different approach for acclimating him to the crate at night that I just posted about on another thread. It was more specific to our situation but the crate games I would think could help anyone.


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## MrsGath85 (Aug 29, 2016)

Sorry for the delay in responding, thank you all for your helpful suggestions.
Just an update, Mr Spencer is now perfectly happy in his crate.
I started work so we got to the point of ' no alternative' and he seemed to understand.
The crate is in the lounge, so we went back to basics of popping him in there whilst we were all in there, and gave him a pigs ear or a chew toy. It took a while but he learn to settle.
Now when i leave for work I pop a Kong in there (frozen) and a handful of treats and he will now happily walk in the, settle himself and chew away without even a second glance at me walking out of the door. 
I also leave the TV on for him as some noise.
No more sore nose trying to push the bars apart, or excess dribble and saliva everywhere, so happy happy days.
We also got a crate for the boot of the car, so when we go for a ride he goes in that, and i think that helped seetle him as well.
Happy Mr Spencer = Happy humans
Thank you again for all of your help much appreciated.


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