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Crate games
How to prepare the crate before the stay
The point is not to make your dog adore a box. It is to rehearse the one skill a stay asks for on the first night: lying down and resting in a small, unfamiliar space while people come and go on the other side of the door.
Before you start
Set up a crate that fits, in a quiet room, with a chew rather than a bed at first
Size comes first. The AKC's guide says a crate should be just large enough for a dog to stand up, turn around and lie down comfortably, and a puppy's crate can take a divider so it grows with the dog. Put it in a relatively quiet part of the house, away from the busiest doorway. In a Cape Ann summer, keep it out of direct sun; a crate beside a south-facing window in July turns warm fast.
Bedding can wait. The AKC advises caution with beds and blankets until a dog reliably has no accidents and does not shred fabric, because many puppies prefer to toilet on something soft. Add a washable mat once your dog is past both stages. Have a long-lasting chew or a lick mat ready, the kind that keeps a dog busy for ten minutes, and save it for the crate alone.
- Room to stand, turn and lie down, and no more
- A quiet spot, out of the summer sun
- Bedding only once accidents and shredding have stopped
- A chew or lick mat that only appears in the crate
The steps
Play six crate games across two weeks, two or three short rounds a day
Each game takes a few minutes and ends while your dog still wants more. Move on only when the current game looks easy, and drop back a game for a day whenever your dog hesitates. Two weeks is a guide rather than a deadline; some dogs fly through the early games and some need most of a week on one of them.
Leave the crate door open whenever you are not playing, so your dog can wander in on its own, and pay it when it does. The AKC's method has the same outline: a treat whenever the dog approaches the crate, the door left open so it goes in by choice, then closed-door time built up slowly. The games simply give each stage a clear finish line you can see.
- 01
Days 1 and 2, treasure hunt: toss treats into the open crate and let your dog walk in and out
- 02
Days 3 and 4, in and out: say your crate word as your dog steps in, and pay it inside
- 03
Days 5 and 6, dinner inside: feed meals in the crate with the door open
- 04
Days 7 to 9, the quiet door: close it for a few seconds while your dog works a lick mat, and open it before the mat is empty
- 05
Days 10 to 12, walk-aways: leave the room for a minute, then five, and come back calmly
- 06
Days 13 and 14, a nap without you: a closed-door rest of up to half an hour while you are elsewhere in the house
Why it helps
The habit carries to a suite, and the Foundation week can build on it
Board and train dogs at Dogtown sleep in an overnight suite with 24/7 monitoring and bedding we provide, and how the suite is set up for your dog is confirmed at the consult. A suite is not a crate, so this is not a rehearsal of the furniture. What carries over is the habit: going into a small space on request, lying down, working on a chew and drifting off while the building moves around it.
It also gives the trainer a head start. Crate and household manners are on the Foundation list, and a dog that arrives already playing crate games can spend that time on longer rests and calm waits at an open door instead of on its first nervous look inside. Tell us at the consult which games your dog can do, and give us your crate word, so it is the same word at Dogtown and at home.
Mistakes we see
The mistakes that undo the games are a crate used for time-outs and a long first stretch
A crate that has been used as a punishment, even a few times, starts the stay with a bad reputation, and the AKC's guide says never to use it that way. The second mistake is the long first stretch: a dog shut in for a whole workday in the week before drop-off, because the games went well, learns that the door means hours alone. Keep closed-door time short and pleasant right up to the stay.
Opening the door during barking teaches that noise works, so wait for a moment of quiet and open it then. And notice when the whining starts. The AKC separates whining that begins within minutes of going in, which likely signals stress, from whining after a dog has been settled a while, which more often means boredom, hunger or a toilet trip. The first calls for an easier game; the second calls for a break.
- Never a time-out spot
- No long closed-door stretches before the stay
- Open on quiet, never on noise
- Whining at once: easier game; whining later: a break
When to call us
Stop the games and call us if your dog panics in the crate
A small number of dogs panic when they are shut in: heavy drooling, frantic scratching, bent bars, broken nails or soiling every time. The AKC notes that such dogs can hurt themselves trying to escape and suggests a larger, safe area and professional help instead of more crate time. Stop the closed-door games and tell us on the training form, because confinement panic can point to separation anxiety, which a stay does not treat.
For those dogs, private sessions with Gabriella Pope, from $94, start the work at home, with your vet involved where anxiety may need medical support. For everyone else, the last step is the handover. Pack the crate mat or a small blanket from the crate as your dog's one comfort item, drop off in a morning window, weekdays 6:30 to 9:30 AM or Saturdays 8 to 10 AM, and let the suite smell a little like home.
At Dogtown
Where the crate work continues
Crate and household manners are part of the Foundation week, and every board and train night is spent in an overnight suite.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
Do dogs sleep in crates during board and train at Dogtown?
My dog has never been crated. Is two weeks enough?
Should I bring our crate to Dogtown?
Can I cover the crate during the games?
How long can my dog stay in the crate during the run-up?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
Tell us which games your dog knows
Mention your crate word and how your dog rests when you send the training form. We reply within one hour on business days.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
