# All naps in crate?



## Jlheagy (Feb 9, 2011)

I have a golden doodle I got last week and she is now 8 1/2 weeks. She seems to be adjusting to her crate little by little. I am wondering if during the day should all her naps be in it? If she falls asleep on the floor should I move her? She usually settles in it fairly quick if I stay in the room, but if I have to leave the room, to shower or whatever she cries and barks. I have been trying to sat home as much as I can, but I do take my kids to school in the morning and she I in it about 1/2 hour. I videotaped her today and she barked for about 10 minutes, and settled after that. When I get home she stays calm until I get her out. Thanks for any help, I have never had a dog, and there is just so much to learn


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## Labmom4 (Feb 1, 2011)

Jlheagy said:


> I have a golden doodle I got last week and she is now 8 1/2 weeks. She seems to be adjusting to her crate little by little. I am wondering if during the day should all her naps be in it? If she falls asleep on the floor should I move her? She usually settles in it fairly quick if I stay in the room, but if I have to leave the room, to shower or whatever she cries and barks. I have been trying to sat home as much as I can, but I do take my kids to school in the morning and she I in it about 1/2 hour. I videotaped her today and she barked for about 10 minutes, and settled after that. When I get home she stays calm until I get her out. Thanks for any help, I have never had a dog, and there is just so much to learn


 Have you tried giving her a stuffed Kong in her crate? That might quiet her down and make the crate more fun for her. I usually use the crate only at night and when I have to leave my puppy at home. But that's just me; lots of people, including my mom and daughter, use their crates a lot during the day and love it. I just put some pictures up on the forum of the tie-down that I use for naps during the day, if you want to look. I'm sure I'm getting redundant, mentioning tie-downs all the time, but I swear by it.


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## Jlheagy (Feb 9, 2011)

I just want her to like the crate so I thought she should Be in it as much as possible for now. I do put the kong in and she's usually happy with it for a couple minutes.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

I also like my puppies out and about during the day when I can watch them. So, if they fall asleep somewhere other than the crate when I'm home, I just leave them where they are! Especially if it's on my lap! 
I wouldn't want to overdue the crate issue. As you said, she seems to be adjusting little by little, and actually, little by little is the best way to condition a puppy to like the crate if they're having issues. Crate overload could cause her to NOT like it at all!


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

I don't think there's a hard and fast rule. Sometimes I feel like puppy nap time is the only time I get household chores done!  (Although my husband is awesome at picking up my slack while I'm on puppy supervision duty. I think he got the short end of the stick there, honestly.) So if he is getting tired and winding down from playing, I will often slip him in there with a stuffed kong to fall asleep while I go do my thing . If he falls asleep on my lap or when I'm going to be sticking around in the same room, I just let him sleep where he is.


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## Jlheagy (Feb 9, 2011)

sassafras said:


> I don't think there's a hard and fast rule. Sometimes I feel like puppy nap time is the only time I get household chores done!  (Although my husband is awesome at picking up my slack while I'm on puppy supervision duty. I think he got the short end of the stick there, honestly.) So if he is getting tired and winding down from playing, I will often slip him in there with a stuffed kong to fall asleep while I go do my thing . If he falls asleep on my lap or when I'm going to be sticking around in the same room, I just let him sleep where he is.


That is pretty much how I feel about it, but problem is if she does nap in it and I go to leave the room (even just to get a drink) she's up and crying. Oh well, it will all come in time, just like the kiddos


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

I kinda agree. The only time you NEED to use the crate is when you are not watching her, everything else is kinda... preference. 

However, it sounds like she is still not happy to be in the crate, which is OK at the is young age. It usually takes a minimum of 3 nights before they settle down easily, so "she barked for about 10 minutes, and settled after that. " sounds pretty good to me. 

Recognize that she will have accidents and she may backtrack with barking.... Don't give in, maintain consistency so that she can learn the rules and boundaries.

In minor contradiction to others, at this age, if your puppy is sleeping in your lap and you want to do something else... and you can move her without significantly waking her, then I think it is good to move her into the crate, especially while you aren't watching her. However, if your question is "should you" ... then I agree with others that there is no reason for moving a watched, sleeping puppy to the crate. A puppy is allowed to sleep anywhere that you like.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Jlheagy said:


> That is pretty much how I feel about it, but problem is if she does nap in it and I go to leave the room (even just to get a drink) she's up and crying. Oh well, it will all come in time, just like the kiddos



Yea, I'm very, very fortunate that my puppy will just keep snoozing or go back to sleep even if he notices me leave the room.


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## theyogachick (Aug 2, 2009)

I don't think that you should force her to take all naps in there, but maybe after a good round of training/play/exercise when she is good and tired, you can put her in there. Is the crate somewhere where you guys are all the time (ours is in the living room). If so, you can put her in there and maybe catch some TV or something for a little while while she snoozes.

I agree that ten minutes and then settling is a good thing. Especially at 8 and a half weeks.

Do you have any other dogs? If not, one thing you could try is hiding yummy treats in the crate. Leave the door open, hide the treats and walk away. Your puppy should want to go in and get the treats and she will start to realize "hey, this place is awesome! There are treats in here!"

You could also have a special toy that she only gets when she is in her crate.

It will come in time. Just keep working on making the crate a great space.


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## lil_fuzzy (Aug 16, 2010)

My puppy still has most of his naps in his crate, he's 6.5 months. Right from the start I would him in his crate when I noticed him getting sleepy. These days I leave him where he is if he's already asleep, but if I know it's the time of day when he will be tired I put him away before he can fall asleep.

Have you tried covering the crate with a sheet or blanket so she can't see you? My puppy used to cry when I left the room too, until I started covering the crate.


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