Kennel Training, also known as crate training, is quite a debated topic.
As a dog trainer I can tell you it’s quite humane and is a good way to house train your furry friend, regardless of his age. If your precious pup has not been crate trained, chances are you’ve got your hands full just with clean-up duty.
Natures way
In the wild, the dogs den is his safe place, where there’s no threat and is his own little space, so your buddy should instinctively take a liking to his kennel as his den, when trained correctly. Right from the time your buddy was a pup in his mother’s den, nature had a way to train him. The mother would get rid of any feces and urine. The pup is used to living in the den comfortably. So, it’s pretty easy to train your buddy by a method called ‘conditioning’. Aside from “potty training” your puppy, dogs feel safe in a den-like environment and that’s where kennels become a great place for every pup.
Routine
Kennel Training takes its cues from Mother Nature by giving your furry buddy a regular, confined, place to relieve himself. Once he begins to get into the routine of relieving himself at the same spot, just make sure you don’t change the arrangements inside his den/kennel, Dogs are built to be quite predictable when it comes to relieving themselves.
They normally tend to ‘go’ about ten to twenty minutes after they’ve had a meal. So, kennel him then. Both routine and random kenneling times are beneficial. Especially, when you’re out running errands, and you have to leave your buddy at home for a bit, this could be a great time to kennel him.
This way you’ll find some time to relax, and not worry about furniture or other parts of the home becoming soiled. Additionally, in future, if you have the time on hand, you could get into the routine of taking your buddy out for a stroll along a particular path every day. Bear in mind the path should remain the same, since your furry friend will look for the same spot with its smell each day.
Included, but with his own space
Kenneling is a great way to ensure that your buddy does not feel left out or excluded from the family. As opposed to putting him in the basement or outdoors on a leash, the kennel can be placed anywhere around the house.
This way when there are guests or small children around, you’re free to have a nice visiting time, while your pet gets the sense of belonging, while having his own space.
Some doggy buddies have a tendency to become excited or even anxious with new people around, having him in the kennel at this time and at close proximity to your friends and family, will help him calm down and learn the right ways to greet trusted folk.
Traveling
Traveling is a difficult time for pets, especially since many places such as resorts, spas or other holiday places may not be open to having pets about. So, if you’re planning a short family camp out or an outing where pets are allowed, having a kennel trained pet give you a lot more flexibility to carry him along. When you do take those vacations or go on business trips where pets aren’t allowed, you’re pet will be in a better position to adjust to a good dog boarding facility. This is because he’ll have his own familiar kennel to resort to even though you are not around.
