Guest carriej Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 So at first.. My husband and I were kind of mildly amused by Rich's howling. None of our other greys did this. Well.. Not anymore lol Going to drive us batty. It's the crate. He is 100% fine without the crate, but he needs the crate until he's trained. However I am not sure how much of the howling I can deal with! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocsDoctor Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 What training is it he needs before you ditch the crate? Is he actually learning anything, sitting in there howling? Could you just try whatever it is without it, and see how he does? Quote Clare with Tiger (Snapper Gar, b. 18/05/2015), and remembering Ken (Boomtown Ken, 01/05/2011-21/02/2020) and Doc (Barefoot Doctor, 20/08/2001-15/04/2015)."It is also to be noted of every species, that the handsomest of each move best ... and beasts of the most elegant form, always excel in speed; of this, the horse and greyhound are beautiful examples."----Wiliam Hogarth, The Analysis of Beauty, 1753. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest carriej Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 It's house training that he's learning; as he isn't house trained yet. It's more for when we can't watch him - like this morning when I was in the shower; and when we go to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RMarie Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Are you making the crate a fun experience? As in, treating him for going in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest carriej Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 He gets treats, kongs, goodie bones, toys, etc. He LOVES the crate when the door is open. However when you close the door (unless it's nighttime) within a minute or so he's howling. However he will sleep in there all day with the door open. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Clawsandpaws Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Can you put the crate in a "pee/poo safe" location, and then baby gate that area off so you can leave the crate open? We don't usually see these problems in the kennel, as he was surrounded by 50 other dogs... However I have noticed that it has been MUCH quieter lately... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest carriej Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 LOL he is loud for sure... However when we picked him up on Sunday lots of the other dogs were howling and he wasn't making a peep. Guess he was saving it all for me! The crate is in the living room; which is about the only area we have space for it to be. We could gate of the living room; but I still don't trust him not to pee/poop in there; and if he does it once I'm scared that it will set into motion that it's "ok to pee in here". He's been calm most of the morning since I unleashed him.. Getting his kong and bone ready so I can go to work for a few hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greyt_dog_lover Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Sounds like you need to take him out a lot more. If he is new, he is probably drinking more water than normal due to stress, then has to pee more. Not sure what your schedule is for taking him out, but maybe that's it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest k9soul Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I wouldn't think it's because he needs to potty more if he's fine with the door open. Sounds like he just doesn't like feeling like he's stuck in there, or maybe he associates the door closing with you leaving? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocsDoctor Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Well, I would leave the crate with the door open, and focus separately on teaching him about housetraining. I never used a crate for Doc (they are not usual in the UK, where racing dogshave lived in kennels rather than crates) and found that he was being so anxious to please he was very quick to get the idea. I just followed the guidance below (from the UK Retired Greyhound Trust website), more or less. As greyt_dog_lover says, he will be stressed right now and may be drinking more than usual, so take him out often - if you have to go out, taking him for a proper walk first rather than just into the garden will help encourage him to 'empty out'. House-training We can't guarantee a house-trained dog but most Greyhounds are clean in their kennels, and once they know where you want them to empty, they will be happy to stick with that routine. House training should begin as soon as your dog arrives home. Take them straight into the garden, wait until they relieve themselves and then reward them with a small piece of cheese or a dog biscuit. After this initial visit to the garden, keep repeating the routine at regular periods throughout the day. It is advantageous to take your new pet for a short 5 minute walk at regular periods throughout the day. During this time it is unlikely that the Greyhound will have had a chance to have an accident and they will be thoroughly familiar with the idea that any 'toilets' are to be done outside. Thereafter, if your dog has an accident indoors, bear in mind punishment does not work and can make the dog worse. Anticipate when your dog needs to go, take them outside and praise and reward them when they 'go'. Any 'accident' in the home should be washed thoroughly with a solution of biological washing liquid, as this will take away the smell, otherwise they will constantly re-mark over that spot. Take them to the toilet immediately after food, when they get up and before they go to bed and, of course, in between. Some signs to look for when your dog needs to go to the toilet are restlessness, pacing up and down, whining, scratching at the door or circling. Of course, at first, there may be no signs as the dog will have been used to living in a kennel, but Greyhounds are generally clean animals and learn very quickly. Quote Clare with Tiger (Snapper Gar, b. 18/05/2015), and remembering Ken (Boomtown Ken, 01/05/2011-21/02/2020) and Doc (Barefoot Doctor, 20/08/2001-15/04/2015)."It is also to be noted of every species, that the handsomest of each move best ... and beasts of the most elegant form, always excel in speed; of this, the horse and greyhound are beautiful examples."----Wiliam Hogarth, The Analysis of Beauty, 1753. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greysmom Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 House training isn't just about keeping them from going in the house, but about teaching them to go outside. Unless you have a very recalcitrant dog, they should get the idea very quickly. Every time you take him out and every time he goes, have a nice little party - lots of praise, lots of yummy treats, and repeat a phrase you would like to teach him to trigger going potty. Really be over the top. Yes, your neighbors will think you're a bit strange, but they will also probably prefer that to the howling. When he's in the house, if you're really concerned about it, keep him leashed to you so you can monitor his activities and take him out the second he looks like he needs to pee/poop. If you need to shower, and he hasn't been out in a while, run him out for a quick pee, then baby gate him in a cleanable place. Most greyhounds are used to being turned out two or three times a day, so they are quite capable of holding it if they need to. Putting him on a strict eating/pottying/exercise schedule and keeping him on it will help. If he does have an accident, clean the spot with an enzymatic cleaner. If you see him doing it, clap your hands and make a very loud "UH! UH!" sound, and run him outside. Party when/if he finishes. If you don't see it, clean it up well and don't wait quite so long to take him out next time. Quote Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora) siggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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