Crate Training Help!!

[bmwhittall]

We have a 7.5 month old female shihtzu. We have been putting her in a crate at night. She is doing great with the house training. She goes to the door to go to the bathroom. But we are having major issues with crate training. For one thing, she absolutely hates her crate and has from day one. She goes in around 10 and then around 430-6 she will start barking. And it's because she has to go potty, she just can't hold it. And her latest thing... she has been peeing in her crate every single night! AHHH! I have been getting up with her when she starts barking to let her out, but now she knows if she barks she gets out, so we were trying to let it go, but if we dont let her out, she messes everywhere. How do we get her to go all night in her kennel without barking and peeing in there all night long? We are very tired, and want her to be able to stay in her kennel until we get her out in the morning.

[adunphy]

How large is her crate? Do you have bedding in there?

Amy

[bmwhittall]

her crate is her size exactly. she does not really have alot of extra room. we could make it a little smaller...and i don't put any bedding in there at all because she either pees or poops. but she has been going to the bathroom in her kennel since she was a baby. even when we sectioned it off, and she could barely lay down, she would still mess in it. you could tell she was trying to hold it. then for a while she was doing pretty good. she would still start barking around 630, but no messes. and now everyday, she stinks like pee when i get her out around 630. its almost like shes just trying to defy us by saying if we you're gonna make me stay in here, im gonna pee in it!
any suggestions. we need her to stop barking in it at random points through the morning, but mostly to stop peeing in it! i will try to make it a little smaller again though and see if that helps with the messing.

[adunphy]

Before you do that, just a few more questions.

Where did you get her? What type of environment was she in? Has she had a check for a urinary tract infection?

Amy

[bmwhittall]

we got her from a lady that got her from a breeder. so i don't know the conditions of where she was born. i was never told if they were bad, and i dont think they were. we haven't had her checked for urinary tract infection... hadn't thought of that. would that affect her daily routine as well, because she has "normal" bathroom habits during the day. and she doesnt act sick at all?

[adunphy]

It could really be any number of things. The first thing I ALWAYS rule out is urinary tract infection.

Second, stop giving her water 3 hours prior to bed time. Take her out at 10PM or whenever you go to bed. WALK HER. Don't trust her to do it, follow her on leash and make sure she goes.

Another thing to look for is the amount of sodium in her diet. Is it too much? Treats, raw hides, things like that can often lead to problems.

Finally, and this wont sound fun, but I would set my alarm and take her out. Get her used to when she hears the alarm its time to go. Slowly increase the time and delay the alarm. So the first few days you might do 4 AM, then 4:15, and so on. When you have successes a few days in a row, bump it up.

Remember her bladder is small since she is a small dog, but I am confident you all can overcome this

Amy Dunphy CPDT
www.EverydayDogTraining.com