O’Fallon, Illinois is one of the fastest growing communities in the St. Louis metropolitan area, and many of the denizens who call it home often fall in love with the place and its benefits of owning pets, especially man’s best friend. Labrador retrievers, in particular, are quite common; in fact they’re America’s favorite dog for the 23rd year in a row in 2013. If you want your precious puppy lab to grow up to be an obedient friend, you should get started early with O’Fallon,IL dog training—starting with the crate.
The Lab Way
One of the main reasons labs are so beloved is the fact that they are kind, loyal and playful. The downside to this is unless you know how to control the lab’s energy and help him release it, he might take it out on every object in your house. Fortunately, crates help rectify destructive behavior and could help your lab find a place to alleviate his stress and anxiety, instead of constantly finding him chewing on your walls or couch.
The Introduction
Start the process by introducing your puppy to the crate—place it near the center of the house where he could easily gain access to it and leave the door open. Make sure that he associates the crate with comfort, rest, and relaxation, so you might want to put some comfy pillows or sheets and some of his favorite treats for a few days until he gets used to it.
The Crate Time
According to an article by Melissa McNamara in The Nest, you should help your lab puppy acclimatize to his new surroundings by increasing the time he spends in the crate:
During the first few hours of crate training, crate your puppy for a matter of seconds. Lure your Lab into the crate with his favorite treat and close the door for 30 seconds and let him out if he’s quiet. Increase the duration of time in the crate to five minutes with you in the room and continue to increase the duration in five-minute increments until your puppy is calm in the crate for 30 minutes with you in the room. Return to five-minute increments inside the crate, but with you out of the room. Gradually increase the time until your puppy can spend 30 minutes calmly inside the crate without you in the room.
Keeping your lab happy and relaxed in his crate is an excellent means of puppy training for O’Fallon, IL dog parents, and it’s a good first step to more complex, but orderly training. You can hire reliable professionals, such as the experts from Kranky K9 Dog Training, for more help in ensuring that your relationship with your best friend isn’t marked by constant stress or filled with torn sheets and gnawed shoes.
(Source: Crate Training an 8-Week-Old Lab Puppy, The Nest)