COMING OUT OF THE CRATE

Learning to come out of the crate in an orderly fashion.

HAVE YOUR LEASH AND COLLAR READY TO SLIP OVER DOGS HEAD

START WITH CRATE GATE CLOSED. Dog is inside crate waiting to come out. No collar or leash on. The word WAIT is said over and over at first to help the dog stay still while you put the collar on. As with all exercises, eventually we only ask or command the dog once. This is why you must be clear. You must also work quickly in order to prevent the dog from making mistakes.

HOLD OUT WIZARD FINGERS

Unlock the crate gate but do not open it up. Count out loud, as you lightly bounce the crate gate 5 times. Count out loud, “one, two, three, four, five”. Now sharply say “WAIT”. Think over what is next. The idea is to teach the dog to come out of the crate in an orderly fashion. Bouncing the gate will help him pause a minute.

Open the crate gate as you gently reach in to put the leash and collar on the dog.  Use waving wizard fingers, to help the dog wait for you. At this point only your voice is keeping the dog there, so do not be surprised if he does not wait. Start over. Say WAIT sharply, bounce the crate gate, open it, stretch out your fingers, like a wizard. Keep saying WAIT but more softly, more like warning to WAIT. Keep saying it as you stand up again closing the gate loosely, bounce it a few times, Now, while you are still standing up, holding onto the leash, leave the gate open, use wizard fingers saying WAIT. Drag out the sound of the word wait to help her stay in the crate. Stand up completely. Take a deep breath. Then ask the dog to come out; say "Let's go". Walk off to the door to go outside as you exclaim happily, "What a good puppy!" (or doggie). Look for the tail wag. Were you kind? 

GENTLE TOUCH ON LEASH FOR A CRITICAL EXERCISE

Rowdy characters will spring out when you open the gate. They will knock you clean over in their joy. This is not acceptable. The dog must come out of the crate IN AN ORDERLY FASHION. Calmly exit the crate, not like a tornado. If he beats you to it, just stuff him back in and close the crate with a clunk to emphasize the error. Say WAIT in a displeased,  annoyed tone of voice.

Bouncing the gate at the beginning should discourage bolting, but sometimes you must be rude and quickly close the gate with a bang as the dog is bolting. If you expect a bolt, say Wait, open the gate and slam it shut immediately and say WAIT again, loudly, as you do. Slam it a few times to make the dog reconsider his plan to bolt. Even if he did not bolt he was probably thinking about it, so slam the gate anyhow. Make a point, do not nag, but be clear. Do not knock the dog on the head even if he knocks you on the head. Just keep your head out of the way and make sure his head is well inside the crate before slamming gates.  Do not knock Rover on the noggin but do keep a no compromise attitude. If he persists, use the word WHAT very sharply. "WHAT!!!! DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?!!!" and start over.

ALWAYS REACH INTO THE CRATE CALMLY AND GENTLY

Crate training is good for a life long, good life, with your dog.