Containing All Your Friends

Disclaimer: This post is brought to you by Carlson Pet Products. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your pets will love!

Containing All Your Friends

A few weeks ago my friends from the south, Scout and Sharkie, came for a visit. Trooper and I always love when we can get the whole gang together.

Containing All Your Friends

The thing about my friends from the south though is that they’re really good at being “beach dogs”, but they don’t know a lot about being “farm dogs”.

Simple Pleasures with Ammo the Dachshund

While there are lots of rules about being on a farm that I won’t get into now, the most important one is to never ever ever get close to a horses’ hooves. Those things can break little puppy toes, and kick you in an instant – something Trooper and I are well aware of and make sure to always be on our most cautious behavior when mingling around the ponies.

Now my friends Scout and Sharkie, well, they never really learned this rule. So after chasing a few horses, and a couple of close calls it was deemed that they were not to be trusted around the ponies. (better safe than sorry!)

Containing All Your Friends

Thankfully my friends at Carlson Pet Products had just the thing to give everyone on the farm peace of mind with their indoor pet containment gates.

Containing All Your Friends

Their Design Paw Auto Close Pet Gate kept everyone from sneaking down the basement steps in search of any doors to the outside world that may have been left open.

Mom’s favorite part was the auto-close feature, so when her hands were full she could just push the gate shut and no dogs could squeeze through.

Containing All Your Friends

Sharkie and I had our own favorite part…

Containing All Your Friends

…the small pet door so that we could have our own secret “little dog” adventures without those big dogs tagging along!

Containing All Your Friends

While it’s true that my pals from the south weren’t very “pony savvy”, there was also another new thing with a whole set of rules (that I also won’t get into), that my friends weren’t accustomed to.

Containing All Your Friends

While the humans all seemed to think the Carlson Free Standing Pet Gate was keeping all the dogs from jumping on, licking, or playing too roughly with Baby P….us dogs know that it was really keeping Baby P from pulling fur, pinching, and jumping on unsuspecting dogs!

Containing All Your Friends

Regardless of the reason, this gate floated all around the farmhouse while my friends were in town since it was so easily portable because it required no holes in the wall or pressure points and could easily expand from 40″ – 70″!

Containing All Your Friends

My visit with my friends from the South was far too short, and I was sad to see them go. But I was also very thankful that they made it to the end of their stay with no wounds, missing fur, or broken bones from the very dangerous ponies and babies on the farm – all thanks to Carlson Pet Products!

Containing All Your Friends

I sent Scout home with a list of rules to work on for the next time she visits. #1 being – do not ever ever try to sniff a ponies’ rump! And #2 being – pony poop is a delicacy that can be found in the manure pile, not in a stall where a pony is still standing!

We have a lot to work on before the next visit! Ammo the Dachshund // Blog Signature // Celebrity

What sort of things would you like to keep your pet contained from?

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Tips for Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For PetsmartThis post is sponsored by PetSmart®, and the BlogPaws Professional Pet Blogger Network. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about Kennels, Crates, and Containment Systems for your pet, but AmmotheDachshund.com only shares information we feel is relevant to our readers. PetSmart is not responsible for the content of this article.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

Ok, full disclosure here, when I was a puppy I failed crate training. Yes, it’s true. I barked and cried and threw out all the stubborn dachshund tricks until my mom and dad caved. That was 6 years ago though, and although I may not be the perfect poster dog for loving my crate, I am learning that it’s not such a bad place to be after all.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

As an adult dog I’ve learned that there are many benefits to crate training and I should learn to be one of the many #CrateHappyPets out there.

Reasons why you might need to put your pet in a crate:

  • Your pet becomes injured and needs to be on crate rest
  • Traveling in a carrier by plane or the need to be crated in a hotel to keep pets out of trouble
  • Great for pets with separation anxiety when you leave home
  • Dog agility events where there is a need to kennel pets between events
  • Pet safety and keeping them out of areas that are hazardous

Yet the number one reason that my mom and dad decided to take the plunge and FINALLY crate train me was to keep me from begging for food at dinner time! I guess my cute puppy dog eyes were becoming too much for them to resist!

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

Since I’m probably not the only dog out there that was/is resistant to crate training I’ve decided to share some of my tips on how I learned to love my kennel!

Ammo’s Tips for Crate Training an Adult Dog:

TIP 1: Pad your dog’s crate with something extra soft! If you have to, double up the dog beds, no dog wants to sleep on the hard plastic bottom of a crate. Simply switching out my crate pad for something extra soft made me want to take naps in there instead of anywhere else! For a bonus you can add a pet-safe heating pad, because that’s just icing on the cake!

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

TIP 2: Give your dog something extra special when they are in their crate. I love a toy stuffed with peanut butter (and if you freeze it, it lasts even longer – plus there is no risk of choking when mom and dad are gone). In the beginning my mom would let me chew on something tasty inside the crate (while the door was open) to get used to being in there.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

TIP 3: Cover the top of your crate with a blanket or crate cover. Us dogs are den animals, and sometimes being snuggled up in a dark area makes us feel safe and secure.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

TIP 4: Build duration in the crate slowly over time with routine. My parents started me out with the routine of going into my crate every evening at their dinner time. I started out by just being closed in for a minute or 2 a night, and built up to longer lengths over several months.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

TIP 5: Practice your crate training in many different places. You can even play some crate training games with your pup to get them to look forward to going inside.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

So hopefully my crate training tips have you all excited to get started with your pup too, now all you need is a crate!

Great news, my friends over at Petsmart® are having a SALE ON CRATES, KENNELS, CARRIERS, AND ACCESSORIES all this month, and you can grab one for a steal.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

Petsmart carries many great brands like Petmate®, Martha Stewart Pets®, Top Paw®, Kong®, and Grreat Choice®. Personally I’m a big fan of the wire crates like these from Top Paw® – as I have been known to chew through a soft crate or two before I learned to love them!

Not sure what to buy? Check out this helpful Crate Buying Guide from Petsmart.

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

So don’t delay, grab a cart and head on over to Petsmart (or you can shop online) – these deals only last until March 31st!

Tips on Crate Training Your Adult Dog #CrateHappyPets // Ammo the Dachshund For Petsmart

Before you know it, you’ll have #CrateHappyPets just like me! Ammo the Dachshund

Do you have any crate training tips to share? Post them in the comments below!