Episode 2: How To Survive Night 1 With a Totally Untrained Dog

In today’s episode, we dive deep into the world of crate training with Shade, my project of an untrained puppy. Despite meticulous planning, things don’t always go smoothly when introducing a new dog to a crate. This candid episode showcases the challenges and how to navigate them effectively.

House training/Potty training a new puppy is an equally crucial aspect of dog guardianship. We’ll go over proven tips and techniques to make this process as seamless as possible. Learn how to troubleshoot common issues that new puppies face, such as having a hard time adjusting to their new home.

As a bonus, we’ll delve into a commonly overlooked issue: chewing. Puppies love to chew, and not always on their toys. Discover how to manage this natural behavior without causing your dog undue stress.

Key Topics Covered:

• Crate Training Fundamentals
• House Training Tips
• Troubleshooting Behavioral Adjustments
• Managing Chewing Behavior

By the end of this episode, you’ll be armed with evidence-backed methods and insights to navigate the tricky first night and beyond with your new puppy. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned dog guardian, this episode promises unique insights that will leave you optimistic, motivated, and ready to tackle the challenges of dog training head-on.

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🔬 For more information on the latest scientific guidelines for modern dog training methods WATCH THIS VIDEO!

• Have I been wrong about dog training ...



☝️👀👂 If you prefer to LISTEN instead of read... I narrated both of my audiobooks for you guys myself!!! If you listen to the audio versions be sure to let me know what you think! 🎙😜 You can find audio (and Kindle) versions at the links above as well.

Thank you so much for watching this video! If you have any feedback, requests for future content, or just want to tell us about your dog… We’ll see you in the comments!! 🤗 - Zak and Bree (and Inertia… and Veronica! 🐾)

CHAPTERS
00:00 intro
00:50 first crate training session
02:30 identifying signs of anxiety
04:32 puppy destructive chewing
05:15 bed time routine
06:12 it’s happening
06:30 potty training issues
08:01 the first thing I teach new puppies

[Scoop_MO]

I’ve had my puppy for 3 and 1/2 weeks so far and he’s perfect thanks to watching your puppy training videos. He’s 12 weeks old and knows sit, place, laydown, stay, walks on a leash really well, learning leave it and sleeps all night in his crate. Hasn’t had any accidents in his crate and hasn’t woken me up. I use the word “yes” and the clicker for training

[savannah]

Most valuable thing I did while potty training my puppy was putting it to a cue. I use the cue "hurry up" and my dog will immediately do her business which is a lifesaver especially in those freezing winter months

[rebeccaburnell]

My Aussie x Maremma took a bit of work to acclimatize to the crate, but I kept at it gently and she's really excellent in there now at 20 months (without bedding... she still wants to shred bedding, no matter what stuffed Kong/safe chew toy I put in there... but most of the time she curls up around the house she curls up on the linoleum floor so I'm not in the least concerned about the lack of a bed in the crate).

From Day One after I brought her home at 8 weeks old, all her meals were fed in there, and every day multiple times a day we'd play a game where I'd tell her "get in your den!" and she'd go in there for a treat, dispensed at the very back of the crate (so she knew she was expected to not hover around the door). From Day One, I also worked on teaching her to not barge out the crate door when opened, by gently closing it "in he face" if she thought she could come out without being released. That's also how I taught her her release word ("ok").

She still didn't like being put in there at first (including at night, where I insisted she sleep for the first couple of months while I was ensuring she was house trained) and some nights she'd kick up a huge fuss (not letting up, with so much stress she'd end up shaking if I tried to let her "cry it out"). What ended up working for us was that I'd put her in there at her bedtime then I'd park myself in front of the crate with kibble. When she gave me a second of "quiet" I'd give her a kibble, then I'd count to 2 and give her another kibble (ie, before she started to fuss again) and rinse and repeat that for, like, 30 seconds... then I'd start counting to 3 before giving her a kibble and repeat that for 45 seconds... then I'd start counting to 4 before giving her a kibble...

Eventually she'd fall asleep.

A week-ish later, I'd start the evening with intervals of counting to 3 and working upwards and we might get up to intervals of counting to 15 before she drifted off.

etc

... it took a solid 6 weeks of working that, unfortunately, before she was ok with going in there at night. It was a significant "sacrifice" of my own usual evening wind-down routine, and I wanted to scream and pull my hair out at how slowly I had to take it to keep making progress, but I knew I needed her to be able to chill in that crate.

She mostly sleeps at my feet at night now, but she spends bits of every day in the crate (and still eats both meals every single day in there). I'm at home every day so it's mostly just 5 min here and 45min there for different reasons, but she's perfectly chill hanging out in there as long as is needed, like for example the few times I need to drive into the city and I'm away for 6hrs or something.

SUPER glad I invested the time and care in crate training.

[Ice_likes_planes]

Love the new series! My 8 year old dog only spent her first year in a crate. After which she has never been it one again. If only this video existed when I was crate training her the experience would be much better for me and her! I’m planning to buy a new dog soon and I will definitely keep this in mind! Thank you Zak!

[emmydoll]

We just got a puppy from the shelter who is 3-4 months old. We’ve had her for just over a week now. She came already crate trained and partially house trained. It’s been interesting to say the least. Some of it has been training ourselves to remember to take her out regularly as it has been many many years since my husband or I have dealt with a dog on a consistent basis and our kids never have. I am glad I found your channel. I wish I’d found it more than a week ago but it’s not too late to do things right. Thanks for the advice and support. 😊

[cathyhankins]

After watching your videos before I brought home my new pup, she has really embraced it and has done well. It's a daily and nightly routine as she grows and learns and my senior dog is still with us. Thanks for all the knowledge and help you share with us. 😊

[hetalgupta]

I live in India, inspired by your book and this video, have bought a crate and is being used extensively. Such a blessing indeed. To the T I have practised with my 7 week old golden. And yes I have hit the jackpot!😊

[TheFurHotel]

From all the guests at The Fur Hotel, thank you Zak for your training videos!! At The Fur Hotel, We’ve implemented many of your training principles. We will continue to refer our clients to your videos. 💕

[judithmurphy]

I had dogs as a kid, but at 64 my current dog has benefitted so much from my new knowledge. Thanks Zak ! 🐕

[rachelcrossen]

Loving this series. Wish this video was longer. I completely understand why you didn’t force the crate the first night but how do you let a complexly untrained puppy sleep with you? I would be scared I would wake to a horrible mess

[missdaisysunshine]

You are among resources I used for crate training years ago. My dogs know and love their crates and routine. They tell me when it is time to put them to bed. They have their food in their kennels to help control feeding for one obese and one underweight dog.

Kennels are used for bedtime, feeding and when they need a safe place from stress.

We can leave the house without crating them and they are fine (our trash cans are dog proof).

Crates are never punishment or unnecessary confinement. If I am out of bed, they are out of crate lol

[margaretfleming]

The two puppies we raised we never crate trained. However, they slept in the utility room under a worktop on a bed. We put a mattress on the floor next to them and took it in turns to sleep there until they were well established in the house and house trained. It really didn’t take that long to work. I do regret not crate training though because one of the ‘puppies’ developed elbow issues in their senior years and had to be confined after surgery. He was a nightmare, not his fault, ours because of the lack of training.

[HollyOly]

My puppy was 8 weeks and exhausted his first night!! He slept through the night in a cozy cat carrier on a chair pushed right up to my bedside, so I could keep my hand in the carrier with him. Worked beautifully! Didn’t take long at all to keep moving him a little farther away at nighttime. May not have been so successful at 14 weeks!

[dukeblockington]

We adopted a 5 month old a week ago. She does really well with her crate. After 3 days she is sleeping in her crate on her own. She will lay in the crate on her own during the day. When it is time for bed, we just say "bed, " and she goes right in.

[jfrankcarr]

The first night with our standard poodle pup was eventful. She tore up the canvas travel crate we had her in so I had to go climb up in our attic at 3 AM to get an old wire crate we hadn't used in years. It had to be held together with bungie cords. I placed an overnight order at Amazon for a new, large, crate right then. She's still using it and loves it as her "bedroom".

[MrsC]

We were so fortunate with our puppy. She slept through the night in her crate at 12 weeks. She had to sleep in the crate because of our elderly cat. She still sleeps in her crate at 10 months old. The crate was the easiest thing with this high energy pup and we're still working on other issues but she's doing great. Patience is key!

[deedaw]

Got a DDB at 4 months old with zero training other than crate training. He turned a year recently and has just now figured out toys are fun and tug and catch is pretty great too. Then 4 months of intense summer heat delayed training more. Cooler mornings are upon us and we are back at training outside the house.

[jamesr]

Harper did very well with the crate. He understood it as his room and would take his toys in there

[jeno]

We crate trained, never had issues, puppy likes it fine and seems to consider it a safe place. 💖

[farmfitness]

Our puppy was crate trained and it is his safe space. He is now 18 months old. Whenever he needs some time out, or wants to sleep with no distractions, he goes directly to his crate. We feed him his dinner in his crate and he's learned that when we want him to go into his crate we lure him with food. So, at dinner time he happily eats his dinner with his back end outside of the crate.