Getting puppy used to being home alone

[Tacobell]

Hi all ,
I have 10 week old puppy and we’ve had her at home a week now along side our 6 year old JRT.
We are wanting to build her up to being home alone for an hour . I hope I’ve been doing everything right with feeding her in her crate , giving her a Kong in her crate , getting her to sit quiet and I’ll drop a treat in etc .
However, whenever she’s finished her Kong, licky Mat or whatever I’ve left she’ll start crying/scratching at the crate.
I try and leave her till I have a very small moment of quiet and I’ll go in quietly and let her out .
I feel awful as with my older JRT , we had her a few days and then left her 20mins , 30, 40 mins , 1 hour etc etc and I’m sure she prob screamed the house down as I didn’t do any of the above with her . Just shut her in the crate with some treats and left .
I feel I’m torturing myself as I have a camera this time so can see her getting upset . However I just can’t get her to settle/fall asleep in the crate .
Upstairs , she’s in a crate next to the bed and she’s she may wimper for a couple of mins then fall asleep .

I’m wondering if a crate with a play pen is a good option and then keep her and my other JRT in the kitchen so she has my other JRT for company/can see her .
Currently the other crate is in the living room and my other JRT has the run of the house .

 

[Clodagh]

Being able to see the other dog tends to help. And maybe leave the radio on.
And turn the camera off.

 

[Tacobell]

Thank you , yes . Have a radio on for her as well and do my best to ensure I play and do some trick training to tire out her brain to make sure she’s in right Mindset for a nap without winding her up .
You’re probably right , I just need to not put the camera on and just let her get on with it . I’ll do her crate with a play pen attached with a bed in pen so she has choice , plus provide a puppy friendly chew , frozen Kong or licky mat . I’ll leave her 20 mins

 

[stangs]

I hope I’ve been doing everything right with feeding her in her crate , giving her a Kong in her crate , getting her to sit quiet and I’ll drop a treat in etc .
However, whenever she’s finished her Kong, licky Mat or whatever I’ve left she’ll start crying/scratching at the crate.

If you’re leaving a Kong or whatever for her, you’re not training her to feel safe when she’s alone. Instead, you’re just distracting her from you being missing, which means as soon as the distraction’s finished, she’s got no way to cope.

If I were you, I would start from the beginning again but without any distractions, so just building up from sitting next to her when she’s in her crate, to leaving the room for a couple seconds, and then building up in tiny increments.

It’s also advised to do variable durations (once she gets a bit more comfortable anyway). So rather than doing 1min…2min… 3min…. etc, which can make them start thinking it’s going to keep getting harder, doing instead 1min… 2min… 1min… 3min.. 20s… 5min…

 

[paisley]

Is the crate super comfy, well covered with blankets and all round Fabulous Place to be? I would try start very small again, as others have suggested, but also ask for a few minutes in the crate whilst you’re around and visible so it’s a moment to settle but not feel abandoned. I used the phrase ‘bedtime’ and mine would go straight to his crate and settle down. Eventually he would sleep with the door open. You might be a little way off being be able to leave pup for an hour but I’m sure you’ll be fine And no more stressing !