Hi everyone, I've really been enjoying and appreciating reading your posts and insight so thought I'd ask your you opinions for my current question. Our 9 week old Sheltie puppy (came home 5 days ago) is settling in well; he self-soothes in his crate at bedtime in a few minutes, and whenever he naps during the day (which he does plenty, normally on a cushion in the adjacent living room that he's decided is his bed) I've been carrying him to the crate to continue his nap there with the door open. He gets treats (lick mats) and his meals in the crate.
However, I'm certainly experiencing times when being able to crate him for a nap on our schedule – as long as it aligns with him being 'due' one in terms of food/play/pees – would be amazing. I work from home and it is very flexible but obviously I still have meetings! Him napping contained would be game changing!
I'm wondering what people's views are on how I balance the really slow and steady recommendations of crate training with creating the naps for him, to put him on a workable routine that's predictable for him and thus make my wife and I be better owners to him rather than being worn out from being completely on call all the time). My question is that he's only be with us for 5 days, and I feel we're at an appropriate place in his crate conditioning (fine in there overnight, is encouraged and treated inside the crate, has been in there with the door closed for 10 seconds with us nearby), how is that compatible with the enforced naps that I've seen everyone mention? Based on his nighttime performace of self soothing I imagine that if I put him in there with a lick mat and then went to have a work call he'd finish the lick mat, cry and then acclimate in a few minutes, but I really want to avoid that 'bad place I'm trapped' association for more than is necessary given we're currently trying to build his confidence in the crate.
We don't have a play pen.
submitted by /u/poastertastries
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