Im telling you im about to put a "lease gate" into my kitchen.
:nono
Well no luck with the on his back thing...
Bossman
X2. WE had 2 pups at 8 weeks old in a cat crate at first in bed with us for 4-5 days, then moved them into a larger crate in the kitchen with a gate like you mentioned. kept them in it most of the time at first, then they get out for longer times as they learn to behave. As soon as you let them out you take them to pee/poop. It becomes a routine eventually & they learn to love the crate. think about a discipline method & stick to it. we used a facial expression of displeasure combined with the threat of a bamboo STICK the word stick & no or EH & the whoosh of the stick was the first words they learned. later a pencil could be called a stick, then no stick & just the threat of "I'm getting the stick, then just the facial expression. BE PATIENT and remember they only want to please you but when young they don't know what that is all the time YET. trying to jump the fence & climbing is a big no no, and she should go back in the crate as soon as they misbehave. They learn fast time out of the crate is a reward & they must be well behaved. Consistency from you, the wife, kids ALL using the same technique reduces mixed signals to the dog. Our dogs had their 13th anniversary with us yesterday and the only times they ever destroyed ANYTHING, not a sock, a shoe, nothing, was after 10 years when we were on vacation & the neighbor left them out of the crate when alone. It's not as cruel as it sounds. An outdoor kennel on a cement slab is a big +, when you get your own place. Be aware she is trying to train you also. The female is SO much harder than the male. At 13 y/o she is now trying to teach me to hold her doggie door open for her & lift her up & down off the bed, and to dry her with a towel after she goes in the pool, just too funny. LOL. WE just taught her to use a set of doggie stairs to get up/down from the bed (due to bad knees/hips) in 3-4 days. There's a reason they call female dogs bitches & it can be a real battle of wills at times. The male is so much easier & when he learns something HE WILL NOT DEVIATE FROM IT. He knows he is supposed to go in/out through the doggie door & WILL NOT use the regular door even when he is in pain from knees/hips and I am holding a closer door open for him. He limps the long way around to the doggie door.
