An adorable video of a golden retriever puppy refusing to get into his crate has delighted viewers online with over 475,000 views on TikTok.
In the video posted by Levi Sebastian Blehm (@levi.s.b), Goose the golden retriever is told repeatedly to "go to your crate." When he's first told, he obediently walks over and sits next to the crate, looking proudly back at his owners. When asked again, Goose sticks his head in, then decides it would be better to lie down outside the crate, before simply staring blankly at his owners after each command.
The caption on the video reads, "His tiny confusion is so cute."
TikTok users found the clip hilarious, with one commenting, "Goose understands and politely declines your request." Another person joked: "Not confused. He knows exactly what he's doing."
"He's like, I'M AT MY CRATE WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT," said another commenter.
A puppy will have a natural instinct to seek out a comfortable and safe space, and crate training young can take advantage of this and make the process easier," according to the Humane Society of the United States. It's an important tool to help prevent symptoms of separation anxiety such as chewing on furniture and toys and also makes transporting your dog much simpler and safer.
Newsweek spoke to Dr. Patrik Holmboe, a veterinarian at Cooper Pet Care, about his top tips for crate training your puppy—with just a little more success than Goose's owners.
A Gradual Introduction
Like with everything new, puppies need time to get used to experiencing a new environment, crate included.
"Spend a few days with the crate sitting in the room with the door open," Holmboe advised. "Place some nice bedding inside, maybe a favorite toy to entice them in, and make sure the puppy is completely comfortable with the crate before you try and get your puppy inside."
Positive Reinforcement
Heap on the praise and treats whenever your puppy shows any interest in the crate, "especially if they walk inside on their own when the door is open," Holmboe said.
"Make sure your puppy knows that if they even go near the crate, they will get lots of positive rewards. Very quickly this can create a powerful positive connection with the crate, where they know that the crate is a bringer of good things. Make sure to do this before you start trying to lock the puppy inside so that they've already built up this positive reward."
Feed Meals in the Crate
Feeding puppies their meals in the crate could be considered a form of positive reinforcement, says Holmboe.
"You're again trying to form a strong positive connection with the crate for your puppy," the veterinarian said. "By feeding their meals in the crate (and again, initially do this with the door open), you're letting your puppy know that inside the crate, good things happen."
Stay Strong!
There will likely be some complaints when you do finally lock your puppy in the crate for the first time, but Holmboe stressed that this is entirely natural.
"If you let your puppy out of the crate when they whine or bark—or even give them attention for it—they will quickly learn to keep doing this, as it gets them what they want," he said, recommending that owners should ignore it as much as possible while considering two major caveats.
"First, you need to make sure your puppy's basic needs have been met, so that you know their whining isn't for a physiological reason," he said. "This means that you've made sure your puppy has eaten, drank, peed and pooped prior to going into the crate.
"Secondly, you don't want your puppy to be panicking inside the crate, as this will create an intense negative association. Of course, deciding if whining is just due to annoyance or panic might be difficult to decide sometimes—this would be a case to consult with a professional behaviorist or trainer."
Establish a Strong Routine
Dogs love routine as it takes away any anxiety about things like not being fed, or being abandoned.
"If your puppy knows the approximate times they will be going in the crate, this can definitely help them accept and even enjoy those times," said Holmboe.
He suggested a routine could look something like this: your dog gets three walks a day, after each walk they get fed a meal, and then get one to two hours in the crate to sleep. After coming out they could get 30 minutes of playtime.
"A routine like this makes it much easier for your puppy to know what is going to happen each day," he said.
Don't Use the Crate as Punishment
It's important not to use the crate as punishment, as it will reinforce negative associations with the crate and your puppy will become extremely stressed when inside," Holmboe said.
"This will hurt your puppy's good feelings about the crate, and make them view it more as a negative space," he explained. "And this, in turn, will make them less willing to calm down and rest inside the crate—which is what we want in the end".
Newsweek reached out to Levi Sebastian Blehm via Instagram for comment.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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