Two quick questions??

[Asella]

I have two quick questions:

1. For those of you crate training, how many hours per day does your pup spend in their crate??

2. At what age should a pup beginning training on the leash??

Thanks!!

[GSD]

Crate training, well that depends on how often you can watch the pup. Anything more than a few hours at one time is getting to be too long. Otherwise when I can watch them they're out, when i can't they're in, seems to work pretty well. And of course at night.

As for the leash training, I would use a long line. they get used to it dragging there and it helps them from wondering too far from you. Just don't expect them to keep a perfect heel till much further down the road

[oc_spirit]

1. As a puppy I don't keep them in for longer than 3hrs at a time because it's unfair to ask them to hold it for longer than that. But as an adult I'll leave him in for up to 5hrs MAYBE 6hrs.

2. At 9weeks old OC already had is first set of shots so I could take him out and I would just clip a light lead on to his collar and we'd follow eachother around, not going anywhere in specific, just walking. If he'd start going somehwre he shouldn't (like down towards the creek, or on someone's lawn) I wouldn't pull him back by the leash, instead I would pick him up and set him down facing the direction I want him to go. But being a pup in the big scary world, he followed me more than I followed him,.

[cookie]

thay should go on a leash at 3months

[Carrie]

I started my pups out the day I'd bring them home at 8 or 9 weeks of age, with no leash and just in the house, maybe a little out in my yard. I'd make squeeky, happy noises and pat my thigh and just encourage them to come along with me. If I was going down the hall to do some laundry, I'd say, "Lyric, let's go!" And he'd come along. I'd praise him and so forth. Then at odd times during the day I'd put a collar and leash on and let the dog drag it around, but ONLY if I could watch him constantly. That can be dangerous if unsupervised, as they can get tangled around furniture and strangle. I'd make it like it was a game and tell him how great he was. I'd just do that for 10 minutes or so at a time.....a couple times a day. Then after a few days, I'd pick up the other end and entice him to come along with me, giving treats and praise. At no time, if he would resist, did I pull or force, just coax and praise. And running a little bit away from the pup, making happy sounds will often get him excited and he'll come along. We'd do this inside where there weren't so many distractions, then advance out into the lawn. After a week or two, he was walking along quite nicely with the leash and didn't mind it at all. Then we worked on refining things. We didn't go out in the big world among too many distractions until he was quite capable on the leash, except when I needed to socialize him. Then there wasn't all that much walking, more stopping at this store or that and just going in to see people etc. But it didn't take long before we could go anywhere walking.

[Kade]

1. Winston spends almost all day confined to his pen. I am either close by, in it with him, or right at the edge tossing toys for him. But as for his crate, he usually goes inside of it only to sleep/ride in the car. If he started reverting with his potty-training, I might consider putting him in the crate more often. He seems to see the pen and crate as undesirable places to potty. I can't think of a time when he's pottied in a single pen setup.

2. Winston started on the leash immediately. He can definitely tolerate walking, pottying, and hanging out on the leash... I am training him to sit at every door and wait for me. We don't go for long walks yet (another two weeks until he gets his third and final vax). What he is terrible about is letting you get the leash/collar onto and off of him. Little monster!

[HersheysMom]

The typical maximum crate time for a puppy is the age in months plus one. So if they are two months, like my pup, they can stay in for three hours. Anything longer and you'll have a mess to clean up. It's important to take them outside for potty before you put them in and immediately after you take them out as well. That way you'll be less likely to have a mess in there and your puppy won't begin to assume it's OK to use the crate as a facility. Dogs, period, don't like to be crated with their own mess so you may end up with mess in the crate with the dog not wanting to go in. Accidents happen but take them out regularly to avoid it in the crate. It shouldn't take too long for the puppy to learn to hold it just long enough for you to take him outside while he's being crate trained.

As for the leash; attach the leash and let him run around with it. Watch out so he doesn't get tangled on anything! Puppies use their mouths to explore so if he chews on it, don't panic, he'll grow out of it, he's just learning what it is. He'll get used to having it on him. I started Hershey on a leash the moment I got him, which was 5wks. I would carry him to his potty spot and give him some lead so he could find the "perfect spot," but I steered away from taking him outside to play on a leash when he's not going to potty. That was my personal way of teaching him the difference between potty and play time. It took him no time at all to get adjusted (to the leash, we're still housebreakig) and very rarely do I have to lock the leash to keep him from running away. If you'll squat down and get animated when calling his name, he'll run right back to you. If that doesn't work, keep the leash tight enough to keep him from going anywhere while you walk to him, take him to an OK spot and praise him when you put him down. He'll come to learn not to go in the places you stop him from going, but don't expect too much too fast!

[Novel]

1. I apply the same rule as Hersheysmom, but without the plus one... so at 2 months = 2 hours, 6 months = 6 hours.

2. You can begin leash training, which consists of the puppy dragging around a leash, as soon as the puppy is walking. Delmar Smith, a highly respected gun dog trainer, would collar and leash an entire litter of playful pups and let them tug and pull on each other. He felt that it not only desensitized the puppies to the leash and collar's sensations, but since the other puppies were doing the pulling, the owner/trainer was not involved with any initially negative feelings the pups may have had about being attached to a leash.

[Kade]

Originally Posted by Novel

Delmar Smith, a highly respected gun dog trainer, would collar and leash an entire litter of playful pups and let them tug and pull on each other. He felt that it not only desensitized the puppies to the leash and collar's sensations, but since the other puppies were doing the pulling, the owner/trainer was not involved with any initially negative feelings the pups may have had about being attached to a leash.

That's so smart! I wish Winston's breeder had done that.

[Novel]

Kade - Delmar Smith is awesome. He was a truly amazing man, and although he came from the old school generation, his techniques are startlingly simple and easy. He has a real commonsense approach. I'll have to post some of his sayings. They are really neat!

[Carrie]

I apply the same rule as Hersheysmom, but without the plus one... so at 2 months = 2 hours, 6 months = 6 hours.

Oh cool! So when Lyric is being a pest, I can lock him up for......let's see, he's almost 24 months, that's 24 hours at a time. Yea-hoooo!!!! LOL!

[HersheysMom]

yeah, if only it were that easy...
then he'll never go in the crate AGAIN! LoL

[Novel]

Originally Posted by Carrie

Oh cool! So when Lyric is being a pest, I can lock him up for......let's see, he's almost 24 months, that's 24 hours at a time. Yea-hoooo!!!! LOL!

LOL... ah yes, I forgot to put in the provision that 8 - 10 hours is the maximum, depending on the dog.

[Asella]

Thanks for all your responses. You've all been really helpful. I brought up the leash question because my pup is 12 weeks now and every time I put her leash on she is so occupied with chewing it, that I never get her to stop long enough to train her. I was thinking that maybe it was too early for the leash, but I guess not.
Thanks!!

[Novel]

If she wants to chew on it let her... she shouldn't be able to do too much damage, and you can try and occupy her with different things, just don't actually use the leash yet, just let her drag it around. Once she stops chewing on it and even noticing it is there is the time to begin to actually use it.