Cicero will be 2 in May and has been crate trained since he was a puppy. The past few months he has decided that 7 a.m. is what time he wants to wake up regardless of what time we went to bed. I on the other hand would like to be able to sleep in on the weekends.

He will bark like crazy for hours. He knows he can't come out of his crate when he is barking and has never been allowed out when he is barking. If he hears me get out of bed he stops in hopes of coming out.

He also is under the impression that he shouldn't have to be in the crate if I'm home and do his barking thing.

Any suggestions on how I can get him to shut up in his crate?

As far as wanting to sleep later on weekends, this is something neither dogs (nor young children) understand. They are creatures of habit,and if they're used to being up at 7am that's when they'll wake up and let you know they're up (be glad it's not 6am). It it was me, I'd just get up and take/let the dog out to do its business. Then put it straight back in the crate with an interactive toy such as a stuffed, frozen kong and go back to bed.

If the dog is literally barking for hours just to get quiet when you come to open the crate, somehow, some time he's been inadvertently taught that barking works. From your post, he's learned that he can bark and bark and bark but, as long as he stops when he hears you coming, he'll get out of the crate. Smart dog! I would try setting him up at various times. Put him in the crate and leave the room but stay just outside the door until you hear him start up the barking. Then quickly go back into the room expressing your displeasure with his behavior. If need be, you could even do something, such as throwing your keys for example, so that they hit the floor or crate in such a way as to startle him quiet. Then praise him for the quiet and leave again. Wait a very short time (i.e. 10 seconds), then return again, praise for quiet and let him out of the crate. Sometimes let him out without the 2nd exit, and sometimes, go in and out of the room more than twice. Vary things so that he doesn't figure out a routine.

Another option would be to use a good quality anti-bark collar, which would correct him each time he started barking in the crate.

I should have mentioned in my orginal post that the barking isn't because he has to go to the bathroom. He can be taken out to the bathroom at 2a.m. and will still act the same way come 7a.m. I have also tested the theory by when I have let him out not taking him outside right away and he doesn't even go to the door to ask to be let out he is conent just to be out of his crate.

Elaine-Thanks for your response and I agree I am lucky it's not earlier. I have tried the taking him out to potty and putting him back in with no luck. I will maybe try giving him a kong or something this weekend to see if it makes a difference.

I agree he is a smart dog and has learned to work the system. I tried your suggestion this morning and had the result I expected. See the problem is that I have a small apartment. So it isn't that he hears me coming so much as he hears me move. I was sitting on the couch this morning(I fed him in his crate so I could try it out) when he started barking. I got up to find something to throw like you suggested and the barking stopped. I stood outside the bedroom door for a few minutes waiting for him to start back up but he didn't. The problm I see is that he knows he won't get out of there when he is barking so even if he happens to be barking up until the moment I open the door he will stop when he sees me.

If he has earned the right to stay out of the crate unsupervised, have you tried not crating him at night on the weekends?

He hasn't completely earn the right to be out unsupervised at this point. I have tried letting him be in my room on night a while back and he just wouldn't settle down wandered around the room and whined and barked for about an hour before I just put him back in his crate and he went right to bed. I keep meaning to try it again but haven't done so yet. Maybe I'll give it another try tonight.

Is the crate in your bedroom? If not maybe move it in your room at night and leave the crate door open, this way he has the option of sleeping in there and then coming out in the morning.

There really isn't any room in my bedroom for his crate. Also he is kind of a jerk and will pull out everything from his crated(bedding) and drag it around. The bedding gets a little hairy and grimy so that makes it less than ideal even if it did fit in my room.

This may sound weird but if he won't gut and try and eat stuffed toys, you might try giving him a stufed animal along with the frozen kong or other crate only chew toy. One of my collies actually chose his "Snuffy" Bear (long story) and my current TFT has a Mickey Mouse she sleeps with. For some reason having a stuffed toy worked for both these dogs. It's especially helpful if it has your scent on it.

Apartment living (or even roommate living) can get complicated at times, can't it?

Of course, if the favorite toy has to be washed or something ... LOL.

Cicero would kill a stuffed toy. He shreds his beds and blankets in his crate as well.

On the bright side Cicero slept in my rooom last night. He didn't wake me up quite as early and when he did I just told him to go lay down again.