Puppy questions

I wouldn't want to sleep in my "bathroom" either. Do you think she has associated the crate with where she should pee? Can you close her off in a safer room, like a laundry room or the kitchen, somewhere without carpeting, with pee pads on the floor on one side of the room and sleeping blankets on the other side? And maybe a few toys in there too? You can order a fence/gate if you don't have a room that can close off with a door. Chewy.com has several styles, both movable and the type you affix to the top or bottom of the stairs. Enjoy your new family member!

When my pup was new I bought a gate that could either be used straight to close off a room or wrapped to create a big square to keep him enclosed. Not five minutes after I put him in the square was he at my feet in the next room. I put him back in the square and peeked around the corner to see how he got out. The little escape artist went to the corner and put one foot on each side and shimmied up and over! He flopped onto his face after reaching the top, but he was out. But when it was used flat to block off a doorway, he couldn't get out.

**added as a possible idea for you.  I purchased one of those large plastic trays that are sold at hardware stores and meant to go underneath a washing machine to prevent a leak.  I buy the large pee pads from Chewy and I put it into the plastic tray just in case he peed too close to the edge, which happened often.  He was trying, but he would stand where his head was well into the pad surface, but his pee stream hit the very edge of the pad and would creep underneath.  With the plastic tray, he was fine with stepping into the tray to use the pee pad.  It seemed to help him stay away from the edges too.  My dog is a wanderer when he poops.  He will stand in one position and squat to pee when using the pad, but walks around in circles on the pad when pooping.  And outside, he will lift his leg like a normal male dog but still walks as he poops.  He is almost 11 years old now, so that is never going to change.  But at least he never steps out of the tray itself.  

I have some health issues and knew that taking him down the stairs at night, or even during the day when I was having a bad day, would be very difficult.  And some days, I end up staying in bed all day because it is too painful to get up.  I knew that I had to have a workable solution for both of us.  I trained him to use the pee pad inside the tray when downstairs and I put the pad in my shower in the master bathroom when upstairs, leaving the door slightly open for entrance/exit.  He never once had an accident, so it has worked very well for us.

Congratulations!

Don’t put pee pads in the crate. At her size and age, she should be able to hold her pee for 6-8 hours. Don’t teach her to pee in her crate.

Keep working on the crate. She’s likely reacting to the loss of her people and not the crate itself. If she prefers the larger crate, that’s ok. Not all dogs like their crate, but with training will tolerate it. Do all of her feedings in the crate. Put a highly desired treat or toy in there when she goes in and reserve that special item just for the crate. Play with her and the crate, tossing a toy and and letting her come right back out. Make it a fun place. Wear an old tee shirt or sleep with a towel so that your scent is on it and put that in with her, realizing that it will likely get chewed on.

Within the next month, she will sleep less and chew more. You have a good year of her getting into stuff. My philosophy with dogs is the same as with toddlers. Keep them in your sight at all times and crated the rest of the time. Young dogs get into stuff and you’re likely to have an expensive vet visit eventually with an unattended puppy. Especially if it’s a teen “watching” her at night. Teens sleep long and hard!

You need to make the crate a safe, fun zone.

You need to crate during the day. Add toys, blanket and bed if you want.

If she fussed, say quiet immediately. Then says yes and treat.

Try to get her to be quiet longer.

Do this no more than 30 min. Then let her out.

Rinse and repeat all day.

Later in the day remove yourself from the room once she is quiet with you in the room. Again say quiet immediately, yes when quiet and treat.

Back off treats as you go on in the day.

It is okay to be a little stressed, puppies are stressful at first.

You have gotten some good advice - you can buy very small training treats to help. Also, just be consistent and she will probably learn to tolerate a crate as needed.

My dog was 2 when we got her (due to ds begging) and I just remember the first month or so just feeling like she was never going to 'fit in'. Eventually, most dogs will mold into what you want with training and consistency. In a few months, you will wonder what you ever did without her!!

Congratulations!!!

Get the pee pad out of the crate. Crates aren’t for pottying. Put a comfy pad in it or some old blankets. Cover it at night. Put the pup in there throughout the day as well to rest and relax. Take the pup out every two hours, even throughout the night. Puppies are wonderful and exhausting.

Take a look at “Southend dog training” on Instagram, FB, or Tik-Tok for great advice.

When I raised my German Shepard puppy I used the classic book "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by The Monks of New Skete.  It helped me so much. Another author I learned a lot from was Carol Lea Benjamin especially her "Surviving Your Dog's Adolescence". She has a few other books too. 

Training a puppy should begin as soon as you bring her home. It works best with positive reinforcement instead of negative consequences like Cesar Millan uses in my opinion. Dogs are very eager to please their owners. You can use a high happy voice as a positive reinforcement for some dogs (this is all I needed for Holly because as a GSD she was so eager to please and easy to train), but for others you may need to use a treat or a clicker-depending on the breed or the temperment of the puppy. Make it a game and come to it with a positive, happy mood. If you get frustrated-stop. Just start again at another time. 

When we first brought Holly home I slept with her in the bed on our fold out couch in the living room so we could get to the front door and outside for the numerous potty breaks she would need. This didn't last long at all. Maybe the first 2-3 weeks. This helped her to adjust to her transition away from her siblings too. Soon she was sleeping in her crate and I honestly can't remember if we had it upstairs in our bedroom or downstairs in the living room. This was several years ago. 

I wish you the best of luck with your new bundle of fur. Have you chosen a name yet?

The general rule of thumb is that a puppy can hold their bladder one hour for every month old they are, meaning she probably can’t go overnight without peeing.

You need to be taking her out during the night for that, not training her to pee on a pad in her crate. (You don’t want her thinking the crate is an acceptable place to pee.)

Have you tried putting a blanket over the top of the crate?

A very good friend mentioned never getting a puppy during the height of winter - I did not listen, but understand why she made the recommendation when I was shivering the first few weeks. As those above have said - DO NOT teach her to pee in her crate, that is the exact opposite of what you're looking for. She'll need to go out in the middle of the night for the first few weeks. We got on one of those puppy heart beats for the first few weeks and made sure to use a blanket from the litter to transition.

smile.amazon.com/iHeartDogs-Heartbeat-Puppy-Toy-Comfort/dp/B0B8332Y5D/ref=sr_1_8?crid=5QZUL7FXXYB8&keywords=puppy+heartbeat+stuffed+animal&qid=1671735882&sprefix=puppy+heartbe%2Caps%2C121&sr=8-8

Some people say you can just use an old fashioned alarm clock that ticks for the same effect, but it seemed to help. the first few nights in the crate were the hardest and then he was used to it. Like everything else, if you don't stick to the routine, they won't adapt.

Those photos are adorable!

I’m another who used the Monks of New Skete method. Their Art of Raising A Puppy is my gold standard. Basically, their training consists of “don’t let a puppy do what you don’t want a 60 lb dog to do (jump on you)” and “catch a puppy doing the right behavior and reward it” (sitting before being given a treat). A golden doodle is unlikely to need a heavy handed method like the Caesar Milan methods.

Regular old Cheerios make the best training treats and they are cheap.

So cute! Thanks for sharing the photos.
If she's got Golden in her, she would rather chew off her own foot than be a bad dog. Kind consistency is key.

      Koko is adorable and I love the photo of her sleeping with your child. So very sweet.      

A beautiful Goldendoodle lives up the hill from me, so I have puppy envy. I love the photo of your child and her. Enjoy her!!

The crate with a divider works well. The sleeping space should only be big enough to lay down and turn around. No extra space where she can pee. I highly recommend getting her a snuggle puppy from Amazon. It has a heartbeat and my dog still sleeps with his (20 months). I got a fitted crate cover with Velcro closures. When he occasionally fussed I would play lullaby music I had his crate on my side of the bed where he could see me.

There are videos to teach bell ringing to go outside. Mine rings whenever he wants to be outside. You first teach them to touch the bells and treat. Then I would stand outside the glass door and hold up a treat for him to ring the bell and then open the door. They learn quickly.