Fresh Start Pet Coaching

Rusty in his crate

I recently attended a webinar titled “The Use and Misuse of Crates” by Dr. Suzanne Hetts and Dr Dan Estep, Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists, based out of Colorado.

Now I recommend the use of crates frequently to my clients, particular to the owners of dogs under 1 year of age. These pups are going through a lot of physical and mental changes as they develop into adult dogs and a crate gives a safe place for these dogs to stay when unsupervised.

Lets face it, puppies can be very destructive, they pee and poop on the floor, and they chew things, particularly when they are teething. Since it is impossible to watch your puppy 24 hours a day 7 days a week, a crate is a very useful tool when used correctly. However, crates can become nothing more than a doggy jail cell if used improperly. One of the most common mistakes when crating a dog is leaving him in there for too long.

Are you relying on your dog’s crate too much?

The biggest danger when crating your dog is that the crate becomes a storage facility for your dog. One study mentioned in the webinar found that some dog owners would leave their dogs crated more hours a day than allowed for dogs in research facilities. Additionally, the dogs with owners were crated in smaller crates.

Think about it, if you crate your dog while sleeping that’s roughly 8 hours. If you also crate your dog while at work then that’s an additional 8 hours. Most people have some sort of commute so let’s add another hour to that. Conservatively, that dog is crated for 17 hours per day. Imagine being put in a room just big enough (if you’re lucky) to stand up, and lie down, and being there for 17 hours per day or more. I don’t know about you, but I think I’d go a little nutty.

So, what’s the solution? Some of the more expensive options would be to enroll your pup in doggy daycare or hire a dog walker to come and exercise your dog 1-2 times per day while you are at work. These are excellent options if you they fit within your budget, particularly if you are the owner of a high energy dog.

A more budget friendly way to reduce the time your dog spends in the crate is to reduce your need for it. That is, gradually wean your dog off the crate. Particularly if you have a puppy that is now reaching the age of 1-2, house training should be complete and the chewing should now be reduced and directed at appropriate objects. Start with increasing your dog’s supervised time out of the crate and then start allowing him unsupervised time un-crated. Start with leaving him alone for 5 minutes and work your way up from there.

If you find that you just can’t trust your dog to be left alone in your house there are a couple of other options available to you. I suggest setting up a play pen area (essentially, a really big crate) or creating a dog friendly, puppy proofed room in your home where your dog can stay while your away. This area should include a variety of toys, a place for your dog to lay down and sleep, a bowl for fresh water, and, if your adult dog is going to be crated for more than 4-5 hours at a time, I suggest having a designated potty area as well that is a different texture from the rest of the floor your dog is on.

Is your dog destroying your house and you don’t know what to do about it? Contact us today to set up your complimentary 15 minute telephone consultation.