My new puppy hates her kennel. How can I make her feel safe inside?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is something that she needs to get used to. There is not necessarily a magic trick to make them stay in the crate without complaining about it. What I find helpful is to reward them for being in the crate. I like to give them a long lasting chew or treat (such as peanut butter) right when you get her inside (not when she complains). She will then associate the crate with something positive which may help make this more ok. This should help. Have a good day!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are medications for anxiety that can work in these cases that can be used on an as needed basis such as Trazodone. This is something her veterinarian could prescribe. Good luck and have a good night!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. It sounds like Stormy is dealing with separation anxiety. I would recommend feeding her dinner in her crate and making this a place where she wants to go and is comfortable for her. I would make sure she has plenty of room to move around in as well. You can try using the Adaptil products to see if this calms her down and relaxes her. It can take some time for a dog to become crate trained but the key is to make it an enjoyable place that she wants to be in. If she associates the crate with food and a place where she sleeps, she will hopefully find the crate less stressful. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please remember to rate this answer as helpful or not. Thank you!

It sounds as if your puppy is developing serparstion anxiety. The good news is that she is still young and you have time to correct her behaviors so she can live a long happy life! I would recommend first commiting to crate training your dog. This will help prevent her from destroying things and keep her safe so she doesn't get into anything that could harm him. Crate training can take a few weeks but once she is used to the crate she will begin to feel safe there. I would also recommend taking her on a fast paced walk before you have to crate her to help drain some of his nervous energy. You can also try giving her a chew toy like a kong in the crate to keep her distracted. If these tactics do not work I would recommend talking to your vet about starting her on an anti anxiety medication until she becomes more accustomed to her crate. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck!

Congratulations on your new puppy. Some pups take a bit longer to adjust to their new homes, which isn't surprising as it is a big change! I recommend using a supplement to help with anxiety. Anxitane and Composure are two very safe options. Anxitane: https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3307+11260+27387&pcatid=27387 Composure: https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3307+11260+20934&pcatid=20934 You can also use Adaptil, which is a pheromone product to help with anxiety. https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3307+11260+37236&pcatid=37236 Or, better yet, you can use Adaptil, and one of the supplements to help make Violet feel less anxious and safe in her new home. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would recommend that your boyfriend pets her frequently always approaching her very slowly and with a calm voice and demeanor. Also, it would help if he approaches her with treats. I find peanut butter in this type of scenario very helpful as it takes time to lick it off which will give him more time to pet her at the same time. Usually this works well. This will take time and patience but I think that eventually she will warm up to him. Good luck and have a good day!

I understand how frustrating it can be to get a dog comfortable in a kennel. There are a number of reasons that it is beneficial to get a dog comfortable being in a kennel, so I do think it is worth continuing to try. If Jasper needs to be kept quiet after surgery or for any other reason, we certainly want him to be comfortable in the kennel. For now, you might consider feeding him his meals in the kennel (without closing him in it). The goal would be for him to run into the kennel excited for food and associate it only with feeding. I am attaching a handout below that may have more ideas for you. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1129 However I also don't think it's necessarily a problem for Jasper to sleep in your bed as long as you are comfortable with that. I am attaching a handout below that discusses reasons to have a dog sleep in a crate instead of a bed. You will have to make the best decision for your house as far as that goes, but you could also consider having a dog bed for Jasper to sleep in as an alternative. I graduated my puppy from sleeping in a crate to sleeping in a dog bed in the bedroom and used a baby gate at the bedroom door to keep him from wandering out of the bedroom. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1418 Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.