How to Crate Train a Puppy

By Goody DoggyBased on AKC and AVSAB guidance

A crate gives your puppy a small, safe room of their own. The American Kennel Club (AKC) says crates help puppies with potty training and keep them from chewing the furniture.

The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB) says a crate should be a place for comfort or play. A puppy who’s used to a crate is also less stressed if a vet stay or a car or plane trip means time in one.

The steps below follow AKC’s method. Some puppies take to the crate in a day, and others take several months, depending on their personality and past experience with being shut in.

Before you start

• Pick the right sizeChoose a crate just large enough for your puppy to stand up and turn around, with room to lie down. If it’s bigger, your puppy can potty in one end and sleep in the other.
• Find a quiet spotPut the crate somewhere calm. Start when your puppy is already calm or sleepy.
• Take the collar offAKC says a collar can get stuck in the crate bars, so take it off before crate time.
• Skip soft bedding for nowMany puppies go potty on soft things like beds and blankets. Add them once accidents have stopped.

Take your puppy out to potty and play before each crate session.

Crate training a puppy, step by step

1. Make the crate a good place to be near

   Tie the door open so it can’t swing shut. Feed meals near the entrance and sprinkle treats or toys around the outside for your puppy to find. Praise and reward your puppy every time they go near the crate.

2. Invite your puppy inside

   Use treats to get your puppy to pop their head in, then place them farther back until your puppy’s whole body is inside. You can also feed meals in the crate, starting with the bowl in the doorway and moving it farther in each meal.

   Never force your puppy inside.

3. Close the door a little at a time

   Wait until your puppy happily runs in. Move the door an inch or two toward closed, then open it all the way again. Keep going a few inches at a time until you can gently close it, toss treats inside, and open it right away.

   Go slowly here. AKC warns that a loud bang or a bump from the door can undo the good feelings you’ve built.

4. Build time inside

   Start with a few seconds with the door closed. Pass treats through the bars every 5 to 10 seconds, and stop the treats as soon as your puppy comes out.

   A food-stuffed chew toy helps, and freezing it first makes it last longer.

5. Add distance

   With the door closed, take one step back for one second, then come back, reward, and open the door. Move farther away one step at a time until you can leave the room.

   Mix short, close sessions with longer ones, so each try isn’t harder than the last.

6. Add a word for it

   Once you can tell your puppy is about to walk in, say a word like “crate” or “kennel up” just before, then give a treat. Keep rewarding now and then so the crate stays a happy place.

Common crate training mistakes

• Opening the door for whiningThat teaches your puppy that crying gets them out. Wait for a few seconds of quiet, give a treat inside, then open the door. Whining means you moved too fast, so go back a step.
• Leaving a puppy in at night when they whineIf your puppy is crated overnight and whines or fusses, let them out. They most likely need to go to the bathroom.
• Using the crate as punishmentThe crate should stay your puppy’s happy place. AKC says to never use it for punishment.
• Leaving your puppy in too longA puppy shouldn’t stay in longer than they can hold their bladder, which depends on age. Even for an adult dog, it shouldn’t be all day, every day.

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When to get help

If your puppy seems panicked or won’t stop crying, stop crate training. AKC says this can be a sign of separation anxiety and suggests help from a professional dog trainer or behavior consultant.

A crate should never be used for a dog in panic or severe anxiety. Not sure what to look for in a trainer? See what dog trainer certifications mean.

Find a puppy trainer near you