Bloo

Weimaraner Education Topic # 1: CRATE TRAINING

Let’s talk about crate training!!!

We believe that one of KEYS to a happy life with a Weimaraner is to crate train him.

1. A crate is a place that provides your dog with a safe place that is all his own.

2. Whether your dog is at home, in the car, on a road trip in a hotel, staying at the vet’s office, flying across the country, etc., he will remain comfortable since he identifies with his crate as his happy place.

3. While in a crate, your dog is unable to pace around the house, chew on dining table legs, rip apart sofa cushions, raid the refrigerator, get into the kitchen trash, pee on your heirloom rug, poop on the living room floor, and/or drag an entire roll of toilet paper all through the house.

For those of you who have Weimaraners who have 100% freedom and full house privileges and you have no problems, GREAT!!! These tips aren’t for you.

For those of you who adamantly believe that crating is cruel, these tips aren’t for you, either.

For those of us who work in rescue, we intake more dogs than we can count because families are tired of their grown-up puppies “tearing up furniture and clothes” because they “spend the day alone in the house.”

Speaking of tearing up furniture…

MEET BLOO.

Bloo’s former family has had him since he was a puppy. Unfortunately, over the last couple of years, they’ve likely spent thousands of dollars replacing clothes and furniture that Bloo has destroyed as a result of being loose in the house while alone all day. They finally hit a point of frustration where they felt Bloo would do better in another home.

It’s obvious by their correspondence to us that Bloo’s former family LOVED him dearly. He’s neutered. Up to date on all his shots. Fed premium food. Good with dogs. Good with kids. Walks well on a leash. Knows sit. Can shake with both paws. Not a mean bone in his body. Cuddler extraordinaire.

A fountain of tears accompanied his farewell.

But Bloo has had a lot of freedom… perhaps a little bit too much, and when Weimaraners are smart, crafty, bored, AND free to move about the country… they can get into trouble.

Apologies for the pink collar, Bloo. It was the only one we had on hand when it came time to pick you up. Keeping fingers crossed it doesn’t take too long to find you the perfect home.

P.S. CalWEAR family, please help us expand our list of reasons why crating is helpful. Bonus points for testimonials and photos. We’ll consolidate responses we can use for future education efforts. Here’s hoping that going forward, we take in fewer dogs due to destruction and lack of crate training.

– With love and gratitude, Team CalWEAR