Training Problem Finder: Two Questions, One Plan
Tell us your dog's stage and what you're working on. You'll get the cognitive reason the problem happens, a practice routine you can run today, and the guides and games that actually apply.
1Which stage is your dog in?
2What are you working on?
Your plan
Puppy crate training: make absence boring before it's long
Puppies are hardwired to seek social contact, so isolation is genuinely aversive. The work is desensitisation in seconds-long increments — not endurance.
Lead dimension: Empathy
Routine: Seconds-first crate ladder
5–8 micro-reps a day, 3 minutes total
- Feed one meal a day inside the crate with the door open.
- Close the door for three seconds, open it before the puppy reacts, repeat.
- Build to 30 seconds with you visible, then to 30 seconds with you out of sight.
- Add a licking or chewing item at the start of every rep, before arousal rises.
- Keep departures and returns completely low-key — no goodbyes, no reunion party.
Know when to progress: The puppy settles within two minutes and stays relaxed for 30 minutes before you attempt longer absences.
Read next
Games that support this routine
Train the dog in front of you
These routines assume a typical profile. Dognition's assessment shows where your dog actually sits across the five cognitive dimensions, so you can pick the method that lands first time.
Take the dog IQ test