Peeing in Crate

Check out the "Training" section, "House training, Crates and Puppies" and you will find loads of additional info that may be able to help you.

Has she had a vet check to rule out an underlying medical cause which may be causing or exacerbating the problem?

"They" may have been telling the truth, but dogs don't generalise well so unless they told you exactly what they had been doing so you could copy it (going back several paces to account for her regression in training because of the new environment) it's not surprising you've had issues.

Have you tried changing the sunstance of the bedding so that she doesn't connect it with peeing?  Vet bed is *meant* to be chew proof because they don't like the feel of it in their mouths (???)  Or you could try removing the bedding altogether, but not if she is being left for any length of time because she could develop pressure sores. 

I would secure a dog proof area that is easy to clean and leave the crate open inside it so she is not forced to go in the crate.  Simultaneously up the ante ref rewards for correct toileting to really give her an incentive to hang on till she is let out.  The higher value the better.... liver cake or cut up hot dog ssg for example.

Part or all of the problem may be attributed to seperation anxiety.... do a forum search to get more info on countering this.  Don't make a big deal of leaving or coming home, ignore her for 10 -15 mins at these times.

How much exercise and mental stimulation (what kind of games, training) does she get and do you leave her with interactive toys to keep her busy while you are out?  A well stuffed frozen Kong may give her something better to chew on than her own bedding.

I am no expert but I had the same problems with my dogs. Maxine would be fine all day if we were home but put her in a crate for 20 minute errand and she would pee. In her case it was separation anxiety. We enrolled in obedience which increased her confidence don't know why she was already obedient but it worked. With our lab Belle she peed in her crate until we took the 'bedding' out. If she had to sit in it she didn't like it and she stopped right away. She would literally move the bedding into the pee to wipe it up.

Another thing I have heard, can't say I do this[8|] is don't just put them in the crate when you are leaving. Then they associate the crate with leaving.

Good Luck
Ann

Thanks for the responces,
I have tried not having bedding in the crate and she has still done it. The other
problem with that is she has almost no belly fur and not having bedding causes
her to have even less.  She was on antibiotic for a rash she recieved which the
vet said should have taken care of a bladder infection.  When out of her crate
she lets me know when she has to go out and has not had an accident while
home since she was aobut a year old.

I'll check into the vet bed.. so far I have only found UK sites that have it.
She gets walked about 40-1hr min in the morning and again in the evening.
Weekends she gets lots of off leash time at the dog park or out training on birds.
I usualy leave her with a smoked bone or a kong. Days when she has chewed
are days when she had both.

When I leave in the mornings she eagerly runs to her crate as she gets a treet when
she goes in.  She does not go into her crate when i'm around the house. She prefers
follow me and be in what ever room i'm in. At night she either sleeps with me or on
a dog bed  next to her crate. I have considdered putting a bed in her crate and makeing
her sleep in the crate durring the night to see if he helps her adjust more.  But would
rather not as she spends most of the day in it already

Do you know where the dog came from before it got to the rescue? If it was a puppymill dog, it probably got used to peeing in a crate from a young age.

Firstly, please don't leave her with bones!  Bones that have been subject to heat (smoked, roasted, sterilised) become brittle and this is when they are dangerous.  If you offer them at all, make sure it is when you are around to supervise closely just in case.  I only ever offer raw bones and only under supervision.  Try stuffing and freezing a kong to leave her with, that is much safer IMO.
 
A dog should love being in her crate.  When you leave, simply the fact that she is in her crate should alleviate her stress and loneliness at being left.  But this only happens if you work hard to make the crate a wonderful place to be.  By only leaving her in it when you go out it has got some pretty negative connotations and is not working well in this respect.  Shut her in it for short periods in the day while you are around, leave her with something tasty and chewy and get on with something else for a while.  let her out before she becomes restless.
 
Also, allowing her to follow you from room to room isn't healthy IMO.  She should learn that sometimes, she doesn't get attention, even if you're around.  Then it is less of a wrench when you leave.  Crates, gates and yummy chewies are good for helping to achieve this.

I had spent several months working her up to the crate putting her in for short periods when I am home and not.
Even now I put her in from time to time when I am home.  She still does not use it as a resting place but does
know the signs of when I am getting ready for work and enters without me having to tell her.

She did come from a profesional trainer/breeder who had sold her to someone, who later could not care for her, he then took her back
and worked with a rescue group to get her placed .  I do not know what her early experiences were as she was a
rescue and the trianer does not know what happened after he sold her.

You might need to take another trip to the vet. The words that caught my eye were should have.

"She was on antibiotic for a rash she recieved which the vet said should have taken care of a bladder infection."