Suddenly doesn't want to go in kennel

My corgi, Conan, is 2 years old and has never had a problem with his kennel. The only time I ever have him go to his kennel is when I am leaving for several hours. In fact, he usually heads to his kennel automatically as soon as he sees me change from sweats to "real clothes" because he knows I am about to leave. I have always given him a half of a small milkbone as a treat when I ask him to go to his kennel.

For the past week, he has not wanted to go to his kennel and I do not know why. He will follow me to the milkbone box but then he will start to back away when he realizes I want him to go to his kennel. Nothing appears to be different inside his kennel and it is in the same place it has always been. My cousin suggested maybe he felt like a "big boy" now and doesn't think he needs the kennel anymore. I am comfortable with leaving him out in the house now when I am away, but I still want him to think of his kennel as a safe place. Has anyone else had this problem?

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Permalink Reply by Cindy on October 20, 2010 at 4:56pm

Is there a chance that something might have happened while you were gone and he was in his kennel? Smoke alarm went off, thunderstorm, etc? He might be associating the kennel with some thing bad.

Go back to playing games to get him in his kennel. What I do is throw a treat in the kennel, say kennel and then get all happy when they go in. I don't close the door but walk away and play the same game several times. Then I add in a stay command after they go in willingly. Plus my dogs are only fed in their kennels so they know if they don't go in, no dinner.

Good luck and I hope you find out what caused this change of attitudes!

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Permalink Reply by Beth on October 20, 2010 at 5:28pm

Jack once caught his foot running into his crate and hurt himself. It's possible, as Cindy said, that he had a bad experience. I agree to go back to sending him in but not locking him up, and maybe feed him in there for a few days. Then progress to giving him some peanut butter on a kong, locking him in while you are home and opening the door before he's finished. Then move up to the same but leaving him in til he's done. Mix it up and sometimes send him in and let him right out.

First time you leave him unattended, lock him up with PB Kong, go outside, come right back in and open the door. He'll probably be ok with it again long before you get to that step.

Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Alison Prasavath on October 21, 2010 at 10:23am

Noodles was about 1.5 years old when he decided he was a big boy and no longer needed his crate. I knew he wouldn't have an accident in the house, but I was nervous that he would tear up something while we were gone. Noodles was the same way, he knew when I changed my clothes and got his jerky treat, that meant he needed to go in his crate and he would always run in to it and wait for me. It just happened one day that he hid underneath our bed and neither myself or my husband could get him out from underneath it. I was so nervous that day at work, but I went home at lunch and found him just fine and no damage done to the house. He is now 5 years old and has been out of his crate since that day. Oh, I will say that we left the crate door open for 2 weeks after that in case he wanted to go in it, but he never did...he was always on the couch waiting for us or looking out the window.