How to tell normal puppy crate whining from real distress
Normal puppy protest involves brief complaining that eventually settles, while actual distress is marked by frantic pawing, shaking the crate, and escalation where the puppy cannot calm down. Mistaking real panic for simple whining prevents owners from stepping in to make the training exercise easier and creates severe tension between partners.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1ignoring whining entirely until the puppy settlesDid this help you?
- 2using calm settling cues, turning on lights, and communicating without opening the crateDid this help you?
- 3sitting against the crate or gradually reducing proximity over timeDid this help you?
- 4setting timers for how long to let the puppy cry before taking actionDid this help you?
- 5Playing crate games to build positive associationsDid this help you?
- 6Putting a cover over the crateDid this help you?
- 7Playing classical radio to mask household noisesDid this help you?
- 8Letting them cry for a short period to see if they settleDid this help you?
- 9Letting the puppy sleep in bed with the ownerDid this help you?
- 10Trying gradual crate training, treat methods, and reward methodsDid this help you?
- 11Covering the crate to make it cave-likeDid this help you?
- 12Feeding all meals inside the crateDid this help you?
- 13Using a crate divider to make the space more appropriate for a puppyDid this help you?
- 14putting treats and a treat toy in his crateDid this help you?
- 15putting his food and water in his crateDid this help you?
- 16sitting next to the crate in sightDid this help you?
- 17speaking to him in a soothing voiceDid this help you?
- 18Moving to the sofa to sleep so the puppy calms down and goes back to sleepDid this help you?
- 19Taking the puppy out for a bathroom break and putting them back in the crateDid this help you?
- 20ignoring the cries and waiting for the puppy to eventually calm down and sleepDid this help you?
- 21taking the puppy outside to check if it needs the bathroomDid this help you?
- 22doing crate games and practicing closing the door with treatsDid this help you?
- 23Trying to put the puppy in earlier or laterDid this help you?
- 24Carrying the puppy into the crateDid this help you?
- 25Using high-value treats like kongs or popsiclesDid this help you?
- 26Feeding meals in the crate with the door openDid this help you?
- 27Letting the puppy out sooner or recognizing that the duration in the crate may be too long for their age.Did this help you?
- 28Waiting out the cryingDid this help you?
- 29Giving a treat or enrichment food toyDid this help you?
- 30Staying by the crate until the puppy falls asleep and then sneaking outDid this help you?
- 31Using gradual baby steps like moving further from the crate over timeDid this help you?
- 32Playing white noiseDid this help you?
- 33waiting out the initial 5 to 15 minutes of crying until the puppy settlesDid this help you?
- 34removing blankets and covers for safety if the puppy chews or eats themDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“She lost it on and off for hours. Up all night.”source ↗
“She hates even a minute of crate time during the day (for training) and at night (for sleep training).”source ↗
“Running on fumes here. Tried all the treat methods, reward methods, count to 5-10-20 to let her out, etc. No success.”source ↗
“Where I’m struggling is that sometimes this doesn’t look like a few minutes of mild complaining. He will whine incessantly, paw at the crate, shake/rattle it, and work himself up. I’m having a very hard time distinguishing between normal puppy protest that should be ignore and a puppy who is actually too distressed to settle and needs us to make the exercise easier.”source ↗
“The disagreement itself is becoming stressful enough that I’ve told my partner I don’t want owning a dog to create a serious divide between us.”source ↗
“I’m so sleep drepived right now because we were at the emergency vet last night and the sound is killing me. I feel so anxious that he hates me”source ↗
“When we crate her, which she goes in willingly on her own, she will scream for 5-15 minutes then settle and sleep for 1-2 hours.”source ↗
“The crying when crated has not improved at all since day 1, and I just want to know if this is just an age thing or if there's something more we could be doing.”source ↗
“Basically, our 4mo old puppy almost always cries when we put her in her crate.”source ↗
“What I don’t get is why she continues to cry initially nearly every time we put her in.”source ↗
“The past 2 weeks he has been reluctant to into his crate to for bed time, biting and jumping at me and my wife when he knows it time or we set it up with a kong/ popsicle etc.”source ↗
“The last 2 weeks as I said he has been refusing, even if his treats are in there he'll kind of nudge his head in but then back up quickly.”source ↗
“When we do eventually get him in (unfortunately I had to carry him in the last two times because he was going full shark) he settles down fast enjoying his treats then napping.”source ↗
“She was terrible in the crate at first. She sounded like a rabid monkey she’d scream so loudly.”source ↗
“I’m so stressed with everything, he has worms... It’s day 4 of doing this on my own and it’s so scary being fully responsible for him.”source ↗
“Our puppy is distracted by the treats for a few minutes but then full on panics, he bites and pulls at the crate wires and screams, sometimes he stops for a minute but then it always continues.”source ↗
“If we have to leave the house and leave him in his crate he continues these behaviors nonstop until our roommate let's him out.”source ↗
“We have only both left the house once since getting him.”source ↗
“At the beginning, she would always cry when put in her crate, and she would never go on her own despite having treats and toys in.”source ↗
“I am running into some issues with him immediately yelping and crying as soon as he wakes up in his crate.”source ↗
“the second that door closes and locks and we walk away he cries.”source ↗
“today my husband put him in there so he can mow the grass. That’s probably a good hour at least outside and he said he cried the entire time”source ↗