New puppy question.

[Patchworkpony]

So I have got Lark my working cocker puppy home and quite frankly she is adorable. She already sits and comes to command inside (outside with all its new smells is too exciting to concentrate at the moment). She lives in the completely safe utility room which has a tile floor and no plugs etc. where she has a big squashy bed and her crate with Vetbed gold for comfort. I don't lock her in her crate at night as she totally hated it and whimpered. With the freedom of her own room she spends her sleeping time sprawled on her bed and some of time in the crate going in of her own accord. If I need to keep her safe from visitors opening the back door or the hoover etc. I pop her in her crate with a small distraction and she's not too bad at all in short bursts. At no time do I ever intend to force her to stay somewhere for long periods that she could dislike as she is a very gentle sensitive little bitch that wants to please and loves human company.

She is learning not to jump up and as one of my gundog friends remarked today she is highly intelligent and thinks things out for herself - so the worst thing I could ever do would be to sour her. At night she is put to bed at 11pm and let out at about 6.45 and never does a poop just sometimes the odd wee but sometimes nothing at all. I am putting her outside about every half hour when possible and she is 90% clean however on Thursday we unfortunately had to leave her for two hours as we had an appointment and when we got home there was nothing at all on the floor - all of which is amazing for an 8 week old pup. She never cries if you lock her in her room for a while or at night and the only reason I'm not sleeping properly is that I'm worried in case she does.

She seems to be the perfect puppy except for one thing I don't really understand. She wees on the Vetbed in her crate and if I wash it as soon as she goes in there (of her own accord) she wees on it again. Three times now she has done this but never on her big comfy bed. I am at a loss but certainly don't tell her off. I thought dogs didn't foul a crate and am hoping she will grow out of it. Is it to mark her territory and if so why is the big bed completely dry? Perhaps it's her way of letting me know what she thinks of a crate! I will never go out and leave her for hours in a crate as I don't need to. She is however crated in a different one in the car and she hasn't weed in that. Forward please doggy experts.

 

[angrybird1]

She's probably smelling the urine on the vet bed even after it's washed so thinks that is where she should wee.
I'd stop using vet bed in the crate for a while and see if that helps.
You don't want her to think that the crate is her toliet.
Try washing the vet bed on a high temp with bio washing powder. Also wash the crate out well.

 

[Thistle]

She's confused, dogs don't foul in a crate when they are shut in, however as she can come and go she doesn't understand that it's a bed and thinks it's a toilet.

Please reconsider your comments about never shutting her in or forcing her to be crated.

Crates are very useful in the car to keep them safe and also it's a good idea to crate/cage train when they're young in case they ever have to be hospitalised, being crate trained could make a stressful time less so.

You could just continue the way you're doing, not using it all night but perhaps pop her in there for a nap during the day, with the door shut. It would serve the same purpose.

She sounds a cute pup, we need pics though!

As above clean the bedding and the crate with bio washing liquid, it destroys the enzymes that she's using to mark.

 

[Clodagh]

Her breeder may have used vet bed and she has now learned it is a suface to pee on?

 

[Patchworkpony]

Crates are very useful in the car to keep them safe and also it's a good idea to crate/cage train when they're young in case they ever have to be hospitalised, being crate trained could make a stressful time less so.

You could just continue the way you're doing, not using it all night but perhaps pop her in there for a nap during the day, with the door shut. As above clean the bedding and the crate with bio washing liquid, it destroys the enzymes that she's using to mark.

Done all that - and yes she does have short naps in there with the door shut doing the day but I don't want to force her at night when there is no need. She travels in the car in a crate and as I said doesn't wee in that. I used a completely new type of bedding in the cage but she still had a wee on that. Strange isn't it.

 

[Patchworkpony]

Her breeder may have used vet bed and she has now learned it is a suface to pee on?

No just had newspaper.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Get the enzyme removal stuff from a pet shop, it will properly take away the smell.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Stop confusing her! Put her big comfy bed in the crate, so that she understands that it is her safe place, she can choose to go to bed in there when the door is opened and when you want her to stay in there, she will be comfortable and feel secure.

 

[Alec Swan]

……..

Please reconsider your comments about never shutting her in or forcing her to be crated.

…….. .

I'm really sorry Thistle but this is quite the opposite of sound advice.

Patch, if your pup's wetting in the bed which is in her crate, remove the bed and then perhaps put newspaper down on the floor and where she would probably go if she were prevented from going outside, and that would be by the exit door. She has two beds, one where she sleeps and one where she goes for a pee. Can you see the lunacy of that?

Apart from the times (none of which I can currently imagine —— visitors turning up perhaps?) when putting a pup in a cage may just be necessary, she's already contained in a room, so why force a further restriction upon her? What will it achieve? I hate to say this but I suspect that you may well be the creator of your own problems, she's still only a baby.

Alec.

 

[Thistle]

I'm really sorry Thistle but this is quite the opposite of sound advice.

Patch, if your pup's wetting in the bed which is in her crate, remove the bed and then perhaps put newspaper down on the floor and where she would probably go if she were prevented from going outside, and that would be by the exit door. She has two beds, one where she sleeps and one where she goes for a pee. Can you see the lunacy of that?

Apart from the times (none of which I can currently imagine —— visitors turning up perhaps?) when putting a pup in a cage may just be necessary, she's already contained in a room, so why force a further restriction upon her? What will it achieve? I hate to say this but I suspect that you may well be the creator of your own problems, she's still only a baby.

Alec.

I always crate train a dog, for the reasons I mentioned previously, I also said you don't need to shut the dog in all the time, just enough so it isn't stressed in there should you ever have need to cage the dog, vets, car etc.

We're all different and all do things in different ways, that's what makes a forum like this a useful sounding board.

No need to shoot other peoples thoughts down though.

 

[Clodagh]

She has two beds, one where she sleeps and one where she goes for a pee.
.

That makes sense, take it down to one comfy spot and if you were me that would be the one in the crate, even if you don't shut the door. Our older lab used to go into the crate to sleep whenever the pup wasn't in it, they really do like them.

 

[Patchworkpony]

Thank you all so much for your helpful comments - they all made sense.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I didn't crate train the first lot, but crated Jake when we snapped his cruciates and needed to be made to rest. I've crate trained this lot because it's so useful. They're springers, they're forever injuring themselves and it was a huge help in Hereford this week with the old lad.

I see nothing wrong with using a crate, I'm sure it helped toilet train them and it's their safe place when it's out, although I no longer use it except for injuries.

 

[Alec Swan]

……..

No need to shoot other peoples thoughts down though.

I hadn't intended shooting down your thoughts, I simply don't agree with your suggestion and couldn't really think of any other way of saying so. Sorry!

Alec.

 

[Patchworkpony]

Just for the record I hated the whole cage idea - it is now in the shed. She is very good at night with just one wee on the floor and her bed is dry as a bone. Today I had to leave her for 4 hours (medical appointment) which I hated doing. I expected to come home to all sorts. Nothing! Floor completely dry but as soon as I opened the back door, after a very warm welcome, she did the biggest wee ever. Gosh I love this puppy. I have had her 10 days and she will sit, lay down and now come running to the whistle (and of course a tasty treat). She is a confident, happy puppy that is delighted to play and have fuss but if I leave her in her room just accepts it and beats hell out of Mr. Bunny or the octopus. She made it very clear that she hated the cage and I am so glad I never forced her as she really wants to please and even a firm 'no' when she jumps up immediately stops her in her tracks. Like with horses - no one size fits all and in the end every sound animal trainer must go by their instinct not 'by the book'.