How to crate train your new puppy.
Crate training a puppy for the purpose of housebreaking them is my method of choice. It is a simple method that, if done right, secures a puppy's potty habits from an early age and sets a standard of behavior they do not forget. The method is simple, but it is time consuming in the beginning. I cannot stress enough, however, how great the rewards are! There is nothing better than a well trained dog! The beginning is foundational to their whole life so it is of great importance. This is why I like to know ahead of time if someone is going to be home to do the work required before I send a puppy home. I want my customers as well as my puppies to have a great experience and the initial efforts are what set the stage. A well trained dog is like GOLD and everybody wins. That said, the Doodle is one of the fastest learners in dogdom. They have the setter/retrieve side that is so eager to please you and the poodle side that has the brains to back it up :)
Why it works.
To crate train your puppy, you will use their own natural instincts to your advantage. The biggest of these instincts is NOT to soil where they eat or sleep. They will do all they can to prevent this from happening. When you are starting out, this will be in their crates. The reason the size of the crate is so important is that you need to use this natural tendency to your advantage. IF you should try to give them more room than recommended, they will use their sizable intellect to figure out that they can soil when they want to if they just do it up front and then move back and away from it. This is NOT motivational. You will also be dismayed by the fact that they almost always do it in the front of the crate and they have to walk through it to get out...not a happy thing! If, however, they have the described restrictions, they will do all they can to 'hold it' until they get out of their sacred sleeping spot before they do their business.
Setting the stage.
The first thing you will teach your puppy is that they can 'hold it'. Up until this time they have relieved themselves as they desired, whenever they desired and wherever they desired. They have had no reason not to. Now it is your job to help them discover their ability to hold back the urge until the proper time and place has been reached. When you first bring your puppy home it is going to resent the crate and just want to be out with you doing what it has always done, play, eat, drink, poop and pee. It is up to you to get control of this in a kind and clear way.
The six step process.
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First person up in the morning, take the puppy straight out! You may have to carry them for them to make it as they are not used to holding it and they will be ready to burst. Take the puppy outside to the spot that you want them to use when they relieve themselves. Try to stay consistent with this if you want their waste to stay in a restricted area. Until they have had their full three sets of shots it is best to restrict their outside time to your yard. After that they can go most anywhere for walks. Praise them heavily whenever they do their business. Use their names when praising, not when scolding.
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The next step is to feed them, and take them back outside! Whoever controlls the food, controls the poop. Within minutes of eating solid food, the puppy's food from the previous meal is now ready to be expelled....almost immediately! Always plan to take him out as soon as he is through eating! Watch him do his business, praise him, and bring back inside.
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At this time, you can leave him out in a restricted area to play. Give him about 30-40 minutes and then PUT HIM BACK IN HIS CRATE. Make the total of this time, play time and crate time around 2 hours total. Do NOT take him out at the end of his play time. He needs to be in his crate where he does not want to soil after playing so he will learn to 'hold it'. When he is out playing, he has no motivation to hold it, but in his crate he does.
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At the end of the 2 hours, take the puppy back outside. Watch them do their business and then bring them in. If it's feeding time, feed them and TAKE THEM BACK OUT. Watch them relieve themselves again and then bring them in for play time. As described above, let them play in a restricted area for about 20-40 minutes, then BACK IN THE CRATE. After a total of about 2 hours, do it all again. It will quickly move to longer times out and longer times they can stay in their crates without soiling.
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In the beginning you should expect to have to get up with them in the night to take them out so you will need to place their crate near someone's bed. This allows you to give them reassurance by your presence and to hear them when they tell you in the night they need to go out. This often is only for as few as a couple of days to perhaps 4-5 nights. After that they realize that they would rather sleep and they can wait until morning :) At the evening meal, try to feed them by 6 pm. This will not be an issue once they are solidly trained but until then it gives the meal time to move through them so they can eliminate it before being put in their crate for the night.
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This is the basic pattern to follow. You will just judge by his success or failure if the timing is right or not. If he is responding, broaden his times a little at a time until he is finally safe to be out for hours playing. By the time he is 4 months old he should be able to be trusted out for several hours at a time and in his crate without soiling for 8-10 hrs at a time (mostly at night, these are VERY social dogs and should not be crated unless it is necessary and for as short a time as possible). By six months, most have the run of the house. Be careful, dogs are sneaky. They learn fast that you do not like them to do their business on the floor or inside so they will sneak off into a secluded part of the house to do it....don’t let them outsmart YOU!
Using the bell.
One other idea that works well with these very smart dogs is 'the bell' . This is a bell or set of bells that you can hang near your door for them to ring when they need to go out. Every time you take them out, take their paw and ring the bells. Eventually, they will ring them themselves. Word of caution: they are very smart and figure out that they can go outside anytime they ring the bell, this has to be monitored to prevent owner abuse :)
Special considerations.
There are certain non-negotiables that have to be considered. First, a puppy will need to relieve himself EVERY time he/she eats, first thing in the morning (and I mean FIRST thing) and the very last thing at night before being put in his/her crate for the night. That said, he will need to pee even more often. The puppy needs to have water available to him at all times throughout the day to stay hydrated. This will mean frequent trips outdoors to pee, but should still be able to live within the 2 hour crate training cycles. Food is different though and can be controlled. When you put his bowl down for him to eat from, let him eat what he will. If he wanders off, pick it up, he is done. He will eventually realize he had better eat or it goes away. Do not offer it to him again until the next feeding, then do the same.