cage training my dogs

Question

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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
hi my name is ben and i have two dogs that are a mix of a Jack Russell, Rat Terrier and a Australian sheep dog. my problem is that every night they both go potty in thier cage, so every morning i have to give them baths, and i heard that too many baths is not good for their skin. do you know any tricks or tips to stop them from going potty in their cage?.
also one of the doge (the female) wont stop barking and crying ALL NIGHT LONG, and i am in the marines, so sleep is very important to me. so if you can give me any input on this problem it would be greatly apreaciated.

thanks
ben
-----Answer-----
I have a few questions for you, first, Ben.

1. Are they in the same crate, or do they each have separate ones?

2. Where are the crates located, and how big are they?

3. How long are the dogs in the crates each day?

4. How old are the dogs?

5. Are they speutered yet?

6. What do you do when the female is barking and crying?

7. How long have you had them?


You are right that too many baths is not good for their skin. Before I can give you good advice, though, I need to know the answers to the questions above.

Kristen


well the dogs are in seprate cages because the male
(rocky) does not go potty in his cage too often and when they are together the female (panda) goes potty oll over him.

the cages are in the living room. rocky is in a medium cage and panda is in a fairly big one, the dogs are only 9 lbs so they realy arent that big

they are in the cages about 7-8 hours a night

they are about 5 months old

no ther are not speutered

umm when panda cries i normally wake up and take her outside to go potty but she never goes and i end up puting her back in her cage and i go back to bed.

we have had them since x mas

Answer
Thanks for getting back to me, Ben. It's good that they are in separate crates. My main concern is that I believe their crates may be too large for them. The crate should only be large enough to allow the dog to stand, turn around, and lie down in.

Panda has you trained well! She has figured out that if she whines and cries, you let her out of the crate! You're going to have to stop this. You say that when you do take her out, she doesn't go to the bathroom, so I'm thinking the only reason she's doing it is because she knows you're going to come and let her out. This is going to be difficult, but you're going to have to start ignoring her whenever she is crying or barking or whining in her crate. ONLY when she is quiet should you let her out. If you have neighbors that she is disturbing, then I would recommend that you get a bark collar to wear at night. I personally like the Innotek BC-200. It costs a little more upfront, but is rechargeable, so you save money in the long run by not having to buy and replace batteries. The cheapest place I know of to buy this collar is http://home.search.ebay.com/Innotek-BC-50_Pet-Supplies_W0QQcatrefZC12QQfromZR41Q

It is a very small collar, and is appropriate for dogs as small as toy poodles. I have used this collar myself on small and large dogs and have been very pleased.

I'd also go ahead and have them spayed and neutered just to prevent them wanting to mark territory. They are nearing the age where this will begin, so I'd do it pretty soon. They should be able to go all night without needing to be taken out, but during the day they should be taken out at least once (more if it's possible). The general rule with puppies is that they can go the same number of hours between potty breaks as they are old in months. Of course each puppy is different, but this rule gives you somewhere to start. If they are 5 months old, then they should be able to hold it for up to 5 hours during the day, as long as access to water and food is restricted and they are taken out to potty before being crated. I recommend putting them on a feeding/watering schedule, so that you can more accurately judge when they are going to need to go potty.

Cut their daily ration in half and feed them one half in the morning and the other half in the evening. Leave the bowls down for 30 minutes and then pick them back up again. If anything is left in the bowl, put it back in the dog food storage container. Do not add this amount to the next meal. At each feeding, they should be offered the same amount each time. Take them out to potty within 30 minutes of eating, to allow them to have a bowel movement if they need to. When you take them out, take them on leash, and either take them out separately or have another person hold one leash and you hold the other. Do not allow them to play or run around or become distracted.
Water should be made available to them when you feed them, and left down for an hour. If someone is home midday, water can be offered again for an hour then. If not, that's okay. Water and food should be taken up at least 3 hours before bedtime. This gives them time to digest their food and empty their bladder and bowels before you have to crate them.

If you have any bedding material in their crates, remove it. Sometimes, dogs will potty in their crate if they have a way of covering it up, but as soon as you remove that bedding, the problem stops.

Good luck and please let me know if there's anything else I can help you with!