What Size Dog Crate Does My Puppy Need?

A frequent question of new puppy owners might be,When we first introduced our new dog to his crate,
what size dog crate do I need? While this is not awe wanted to make sure it was a positive
difficult question, it's one you need to answer beforeexperience. We had done the research and read that
you get your new puppy. Getting the right size cratea puppy should be allowed to go into and out of his
can make a world of difference in how long it takescrate until he is comfortable with it. In our case, we
to house train your new pet.decided to use dog treats to lure the puppy into the
Dogs in the wild live in dens. This provides them acrate. Once he was there, he would take the treat
place of privacy and safety where they can beand then exit. After several times, the puppy
protected from other animals. It is a natural instinctbecame more familiar with the crate and was
of a dog to never want to soil its den. This is a placecomfortable being in there.
where they sleep and it is generally kept clean.When your dog is comfortable be in the crate, he
In most cases, the domesticated dog has a lot ofcan initially start by staying in there for 2 to 3 hours
the same instincts. For example, it is a puppy's naturalat a time. At this time, your dog will start having
instinct not to want to soil its den. This instinct cansome control over his bodily functions and may be
be very useful when crate training a puppy.able to stay in the crate for short periods of time
Puppies under nine weeks old should never be left inwithout an accident. It's important to remember that
a crate. At this age and younger, they are not ableyour puppy will probably have some accidents. If this
to control their bodily functions well enough to be lefthappens, please remember that your puppy will not
in a crate and not have an accident. Once they areunderstand if you punish him for having an accident.
older than nine weeks, crate training can begin.