Crate issues

[Blamoms]

Max loves his crate. It's his quiet time away from us but we are now having an issue when I am at work and hubby is home he won't come out. He has tried treats, we leave his leash on so we can use that but I need other ideas. We are going to a trainer and she recommends treats but he doesn't seem to treat motivated.

[GentleLake]

You don't say how old he is, not that I'm sure it makes a difference.

 

You'll need to find out what does motivate him. Toys? Tug? A ball?

 

Figure that out and use it to your advantage.

[chene]

I am also curious about the dog's relationship with your husband. Does he have any issues if you're home but your husband isn't? When Max won't come out, how is he acting? I've never heard of a dog not coming out of a crate unless it's frightened, but maybe that's just a lack of experiences, or maybe I'm misunderstanding the issue.

[Cass C]

Have you been to a vet recently and gotten a clean bill of health? Sometimes a dog will be reluctant to come out of their kennel if they are not feeling well, and particularly if they are not comfortable with the person that is trying to coax them out.

 

Also has your dog ever gotten out of the crate for your husband or is this an ongoing issue?

[Gloria Atwater]

This is very unusual. I would also wonder if there is something going on, health-wise, or if perhaps something happened that has made your dog fearful of coming out when your hubby is there and you are not.

I'm not intimating that your hubby has been mean or done anything harsh! But if something frightened your dog badly enough when you were gone, it's not much of a reach for a border collie to decide that Person B = Scary. For example, a loud noise or something breaking or falling, or some other scary event that accidentally occurred when you were gone but the hubby was there.

Do you know of anything that might fill that bill?

~ Gloria

[Blamoms]

We got Max for a humane society in May. He is 4 and he came from a hoarder house with 11 other dogs. We think that he was abused he does not like men, is a very frightened dog. We have been working with a trainer/behaviourist to help him become a more comfortable dog. He is coming out of his shell slowly he is quite attached to me and my son. We went to the vet and he had gotten a clean bill of health when we got him in May. He will come out of his crate with the boys and hubby sometimes but not always. I have tried many treats and toys.

[GentleLake]

That explains a lot. I've seen many dogs like this come through rescue. It can take a very, very long time for them to develop enough confidence to interact with people, and the most important things you can do are to have an abundance of patience and to let things unfold at his pace.

 

There have been a number of threads about people's experiences working with dogs from similar circumstances. They're well worth the time to read. Here are 2.

 

Kelso: http://www.bordercol...=31080&hl=kelso

 

Dexter: http://www.bordercol...ic=35956&page=1

 

Best wishes working through Max's insecurities.

[juliepoudrier]

If he were my dog and my husband needed to be able to get him out of the crate, I think I'd just leave a drag or even a short leash (but long enough to be reached easily by the human without too much invasion of the dog's space in the crate) on Max. This would allow your husband to just take the end of the leash and then say something to Max like "Okay, let's go!" in a happy voice and then a little tug to encourage Max to come on out.

 

I think the most important thing here is that Max and your husband don't get into an antagonistic place. If hubby tries to get him to come out and gets frustrated with Max not complying, then Max is going to recognize the frustration and probably see it as greater reason to stay right where he is, where he's safe. Having a drag takes the whole "compliance" thing out of the picture.

 

Also, you've had him just two months. Unless there's a compelling reason for him to come out of the crate when you're not home, I'd just let him stay in there. Any extended attempts to get him out when he's not comfortable doing so will likely just reinforce his belief that the only place he's safe is right where he is. If hubby ignores him and just goes about life, Max will eventually decide to come out (and this could take a while, not just days, maybe weeks) on his own. That's when hubby can give quiet praise or a treat or whatever, so that Max is rewarded for choosing to come out.

 

If hubby absolutely has to get him out of the crate for some reason, then I really think the leash option is probably the least likely to cause problems on down the road while you are all still getting used to one another.

 

J.

[Blamoms]

Thanks everyone. We have put a leash on him during the night so if hubby needs to take him out he can. He just leaves him now if he goes in his crate. He comes out when I get home but he does on occasion stay out with hubby. He is making progress and it does not matter how long it takes.

[Blamoms]

We have a new crate issue. I work part time 5 hour shifts during the day. My hours have increased. I came home today to the crate tray pushed all the way out. I had gotten him a kong and stuffed it with treats. What else can I do to help him while I'm at work?

[Cass C]

I have couple things you can try. First have you tried stuffing the kong with either peanut butter or even a mix of wet and dry food and freezing it?

 

Also make sure that you are putting a sleepy puppy in the crate not a super energetic one. Before you crate him go for a walk/run or just play 20 minutes or more if possible so of fetch to help wear him out before he is locked up.

[Blamoms]

I have been doing the kong with peanut butter this week and we always walk 30 mins before I leave. I will try freezing the kong with peanut butter next week and see how that goes. Thank you for the suggestions Cass C

[CMP]

When I have to be gone for any length of time and feel the puppy would be safer/better in a crate, then I leave her with something soft (cloth), something squishy (kong bone), something hard (teething toy) and something noisy (squeaky toy) which I stuff in the corners under the crate bedding so she has to go looking for them.

 

I leave on a television or radio for ambient noise. This puppy seems to like Jazz. All the other beasts are more like classic rock. Oh well :/

 

I put the crate where she can see the door through which I will arrive back - that helps the most. She feels, I think, that she is "doing" something - waiting and watching for me.

 

I cover half the crate with a blanket so there is a dark section and a lighter section. I make sure there is plenty of light in the room if it is daytime.

 

I always have some sort of treat for her when I let her out - something small but yummy.

 

Good luck.