How to stop my puppy crying in crate when I walk out of sight?

Perhaps (and without being there, I can't tell for sure) Loki keeps crying because he gets your attention. You do not need to stay with him, nor does he need something to keep him occupied at night. He needs to learn that nighttime is for sleeping. Once you are sure that all of his needs have been attended to, put him in his crate and walk away . . . and stay away! Do not go back, yell, try to soothe, etc. Once he realizes that his noise won't get the desired result, he'll stop. However, he may get worse temporarily. This does not mean that the tactic isn't working. On the contrary, it means that what he was doing before no longer gets the desired result, so he's ramping up the behavior in the hopes that more will be better. Stand your ground! He will eventually learn for himself that nothing is going to work, so he may as well go to sleep.

What's more important is what you DON'T do. BellaRose is acting like a typical child who doesn't want to go to bed. Once you are sure that all of her needs for the night have been taken care of, put her in there and walk away. Do not scold her for crying, or try to soothe or comfort her. Don't go back to her. And do not let her out of the crate! She is testing you. Ignore the crying completely. Once she realizes that her behavior is not having the desired effect, she will stop. It will probably take a few times for her to get it. Good luck!

Thanks for asking about crate training your puppy. I'm a professional dog trainer. It sounds like you are doing some of the general recommendations for crate training, like feeding in the crate and giving treats in the crate. I'm going to share with you all of my tips for crate training. But the two most important things are to ALWAYS give high value treats for going into the crate and never let him out if he's crying or barking. For you I recommend doing this: Step 1: Throw a handful of yummy treats in the crate and say "Crate" or whatever phrase you want to use and let him go in to eat them. While he's eating them, close the door and stand there. When he's finished eating the treats and not crying, open the door and let him out. Do this 5 times. This teaches him that he gets lots of treats in the crate. The crate is good! Step 2: Throw the treats in the crate, say the word "Crate", let him go in and eat, close the door and walk out of site for a few seconds or a minute (very short time). Come back when he's not crying. Open the crate and let him out. Do this 5 times. This teaches him that you put him in his crate, leave and come back and let him out when he's not crying. Step 3: Throw treats in the crate, say the word "Crate", let him go in and eat, close the door and walk away for 5 minutes. Come back when he's not crying. Open the crate and let him out. Do this 5 times. This teaches him that you stay away longer but you still come back and let him out when he's quiet. Step 4: Do same thing for 10 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour and then at night. Step 5: Now that he knows the crate is good, keep reinforcing it by always giving treats to go in. Give him a stuffed Kong or special toys that he only gets in the crate. Keep feeding him in it and don't let him out when he's crying. More tips: Guidelines: 1. A puppy should be able to stand up, turn around, and lie down comfortably in the crate. 2. Do not leave any extra space inside the crate where the puppy might be able to eliminate. If the crate is large, place another barrier inside that will leave just enough room for the puppy, as stated in step one. 3. Place a towel or padding in the bottom of the crate for puppy to lie on. Remove if you feel the puppy will chew or ingest it. 4. Select an area in your home to set up the crate. This should be in a room where the puppy is engaged with family activities and able to view the family. This may be the family living room or master bedroom. 5. Setup the crate and let the puppy see it in his environment and explore. Keep the door open and hide yummy treats inside, he will learn that good things happen in his crate. 6. Hold a yummy treat in your hand and lure the puppy into the crate. As the puppy enters the crate, say “Crate” or whatever word will be used as the crating cue, and praise and treat. 7. Continue to leave the door open and keep hiding treats under the crate bedding. This will encourage the puppy to explore the crate. 8. Repeat several times until she is comfortable going into the crate. Additional Information: • NEVER force the puppy into the crate. • If a puppy should begin whining or barking in his crate, check your housetraing schedule to ensure the puppy does not need to potty. If the puppy just eliminated, wait until she is quiet before you let her out of the crate. Wait patiently for a split second of silence, and then open the crate door. If you let a puppy out of the crate when he is whining or barking, this will become an “I want out of the crate” cue. • The crate should become a calm and positive environment. • For crate training to be successful, the puppy must view the crate as a refuge and associate it with positive experiences. • Add special yummy treats or toys that the puppy only receives when he is in the crate. Food-stuffed toys like Kong’s work well and make the crate a happier place for the puppy. • When a puppy is left alone in his crate, play soft music in the background.

Dogs (as well as people) do things that get results. If you talk to Sienna when she is whining, or if you let her out of the crate, or even yell at her to be quiet (because negative attention is better to a dog than none), she will continue this behavior. If you ignore her completely when she whines, she will learn that this behavior no longer gets the attention she wants, and she will stop. Just be sure all of her physical needs have been met before you crate her. Also, be prepared for an increase in her fussing temporarily if you have been responding to her at all), because what she was doing is not working anymore, so she may feel the need to "up the ante" to get a reaction from you. Be sure you ignore her every single time, no matter how long it goes on. She will stop!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This is a tough part of puppyhood! In general the advice goes to ignore the crying entirely and only pet, talk to, or let Vito out when he is quiet. Otherwise he learns “Hey! Crying gets me attention and out of this crate!” Patience and dedication over several days or weeks with this method usually does the trick. I’ve attached a good handout in the link below with other things you may not have considered about crate training. Hope this helps and best of luck to you and Vito! 

vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vmth/local_resources/pdfs/behavior_pdfs/Crate_Training_Your_Puppy.pdf

If Oliver sleeps peacefully in his crate during the night, then clearly he is used to it. As for the daytime . . . you need to decide what the house rules will be, not he. Put him in the crate when he is awake, and ignore any whining or howling. Any attention, even negative attention such as scolding him, will reinforce the behavior. You may have to tough it out for a few days, but once Oliver understands that no amount of noise is going to bring results, he will stop. Just be prepared for an initial escalation if his antics worked in the past to either get him sprung from the crate or some other reward. He will wonder why they are not woreking now, and try harder. Be patient. He will stop if he gets no satisfaction from his efforts. Just be certain that you are not leaving him in the crate for too long a period of time during the day. Best of luck with this! If you need further assistance, you can click on the prompt to initate a consult.

If you have previously given into him over your husband that may be why he only cries when you are in the room. If he is crying in the cage it is ok to leave him and then once he is quiet you can get him out. He is still young and is still learning. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.