Hello everyone,

I need some help. I have a 13 week old JRT, and I have been trying to crate train him since we got him, with not much luck.

He has a routine; his tea, and then a small walk (15 minutes if that, as I've been following the 5 minute a month rule) and mental stimulation 30 minutes later after his tea, and then he'll have a small play if he wants to, and then out to do his business before settling him down for the night. His crate is large enough for him, and he was a warm, comfy bed. He's not afraid of the crate, as he will go into it on his own violation, and the crate is covered so it is more den like.

It's when you leave him, even just pottering around the room he's crated in, he will scream and howl and throw himself at the door to get out, and if you go to bed, world war 3 basically starts, as he will scream like he's being murdered, and this can go on all night, and it is resulting in a sleepless toddler, and a sleepless me! I've tried leaving a light on, leaving the radio on low, even putting a hot water bottle in wrapped in a blanket to try and help him settle. I've tried staying until he falls asleep, and I've tried leaving him when he's awake and can see me leaving, and I've tried sleeping in the same room as him, it just gains the same result. I just don't know what else I'd be able to try.

any advice, please and thank you.

> He has a routine; his tea, and then a small walk (15 minutes if that, as I've been following the 5 minute a month rule) and mental stimulation 30 minutes later after his tea, and then he'll have a small play if he wants to, and then out to do his business before settling him down for the night.

I'm not sure which bit of the day you are describing here but I'd expect to see quite a long time in between some of the steps above.  For instance at 13 weeks old he'll still be on 4 meals a day so if he has tea at 5 ish he'll need another meal before bed and you'll need to go through it all over again...  Most pups have a zoomies moment (lasted for a least an hour with one of mine!!) before they zonk out for the evening and it usually coincides with you wanting to sit down, put your feet up and watch a bit of TV in the evening. 

Where are you during the day?  Are you expecting him to use a crate only at night?

Crate training takes time and a lot of effort to encourage your pup to see it as a safe place.  You will need to pop your pup in little and often throughout the day but only after his needs have been met.  Never try and put your pup to bed when he is very awake - you want to wait until he is due for a sleep then just sit next to him whilst he nods off if that's what it takes.

Most of us will take a puppy upstairs to bed with us for the first few weeks - it's amazing how quickly they learn to settle when you are beside them and can drop a hand into the crate to comfort them.  A pup that has to shout loud enough to wake you, get you out of bed, all the way downstairs and into the garden is, by the time you get there, fully awake and ready to play.  If he is upstairs you can pick him up, carry him downstairs, out into the garden and both be back in bed asleep within 15 minutes :)

Please remember your shouting puppy is trying to explain he isn't ready to be left alone yet so go back a few steps and try again.  Some of the companies that sell crates have some quite useful advice - have a Google to see what you can find.

To be honest, I've always had a different routine.    Right from the pups starting to be weaned.

Play time/training, then food, then sleep.   

When he wakes, out to toilet straight away, then a bit of playing and training, then food.  Usually once a pup has eaten, he'll toilet soon after.   Then once he's eaten and toileted, sleep.   He'll sleep well because of the food in his tum ;-)

Then when he wakes,  toilet,  play,    food, toilet, sleep.

And so on throughout the day.   

This way he'll be ready for bed and sleep, when you go to bed, and should only need to toilet during the night.   When you think of it,  it's not a good idea to run about with a full tua,  and a full tum can help babies to sleep better ...

My pup owners have all reported that their pups have settled in very quickly with this routine :-)

I have always fitted training in the advert times on ITV, etc.  ;-)     It does mean having the TV on, but the timings are just a few minutes of training every 15/20 mins or so :-)     An hour or so of this twice a day means a lot of training, but not for long enough to bore the dog :-)

If you decide to try this routine, you may need to split the first meal, if he's used to being fed asap in the morning, until he's used to the new routine.

>as he will scream like he's being murdered, and this can go on all night

Sorry, but no pup should be left to scream and howl all night.  That is just plain cruel. 

Can you bring him, with his crate, in with you overnight?   The last thing you want is for him to get to hate being crated after all.    If he's with you, alongside your bed, you can hold out your hand to the side of his crate to reassure him (or tell him to SHUT UP!!).   This will help when it comes to getting up to take him out, the once during the night he's going to need until he's older and can hold right through.   Try to anticipate his need, assuming eventually he will settle down to sleep (!) so he doesn't get the idea he shouts and you come.    With mine, going to bed around 11 pm, having had them out immediately before going to bed, I'd get them out around 3 am.   And then straight back to the crate, no playing, but perhaps with a couple of puppy biscuits.   And we'd be up again by 7 am - still are most days.

For sure, no light left on, and no radio on - he needs to learn that night time is for quiet and sleeping.   It will happen, eventually, but really leaving him to get hysterical when crated is a hiding to nothing.   And further, some dogs just can't be crated, door shut in which case perhaps you'd need to get an ex-pen, covering the floor in case of accidents instead.

I would suggest upping the heat a little overnight but if you use a hot water bottle (be careful it doesn't get chewed) that should be enough.   Perhaps a small drink of warmed goats milk immediately before he goes to bed, at around 11 pm, might help him go to bed with a warm tummy?

With crates, it's really about timing.   Daytime - Playing with the puppy so he's not full of energy (good luck with that, with a Jackie!!) and then taking him outside to empty and then into his crate with a few biscuits, door shut, should mean after a bit of complaining, he settles down for a nap, if you have timed it right.   This is when you get other things done around the house.   But don't leave him crated during the daytime for much over 2 hours at a stretch.   Puppies need to be able to run around.

Have you ever actually given in to his screaming and let him back out again?   I have crated mine right from the day I had him - he also had a pen which I chose to use during the day if I didn't want him underfoot for any reason.  He was quite happy to accept his crate but one day very early on we put him in and shut the door he screamed blue murder for quite a few minutes.  When he realised that we were not going to open up he then was quiet - I have never opened his crate unless he was sitting nice and quietly - he then doesn't come out until I give him the word.  I only crate him when I go to bed or if I am leaving the house for more than quarter of an hour.  He always gets a treat at night time - in his crate.  Consistency is very important.