@ignatiusdidache Our puppy Merlin hated his crate. I mean, he hated it. Cried and cried anytime we put him in.
We have two dogs, so we put their crates side by side and covered them with a blanket on 3 sides and a second blanket for the front.
Our other dog would get anxious, but not the way Merlin did.
We fed them every single meal in their crates with the door open months. High value treat immediately after closing the door at night.
But what I think really helped the most was the "daddy pillow." So, we would cover the front of the crates too once they went to bed for the night and sit outside the crate for about 10 minutes, speaking softly to him. We also had a fan on nearby for white noise. Then we took a shirt that my husband (his most favorite person in the whole wide world) wore one day and put it over a pillow - as though it was a pillowcase. Once the front was covered, we would lean the daddy pillow against the front of his crate. That way, he could smell and feel "daddy" there. It wasn't long before we could put the pillow in front and just walk away without sitting there, and I don't think he could tell we weren't still there.
That really was what did it for him. Now, every night, he runs to his crate and, by far, prefers it to our bed. We have had to lure him out to come cuddle for a few minutes some nights before bedtime because he loves it so much.
Now, each night, we tell them to go to bed and they go straight into their crates, get a dental chew and get covered with the blanket for the night.
Best decision ever - you will not regret it if you stick with it, but it will take time and consistency!
Best of luck!