Human issues with crates

I thought that I'd talk about crates this morning. The thought of crates sends many guardians into conjuering up ideas of the prison zone "oh no I wouldn't put my dog in a cage." Well my dog; my 13 year old dog who sleeps in a crate everynight was in her crate yesterday afternoon. I didn't put her in there; she went into have a snooze. This is what made me think of crates again. Jessie sleeps in a crate at night because taking a crap in my bedroom is not beneath her. She does not let us know if she needs out and will quite calmly go to the otherside of the room, relieve herself and go back to bed. But if she is in her crate, she let's us know she needs out. She is completely housetrained and would never go in the house other than at nighttime.

I have never felt bad for putting my dogs in a crate; dogs are den animals and to them their crate is their den, if you have used it correctly that is. Yesterday while I was working on my computer I heard Jessie in her crate redecorating her area. She flips and tosses her blanket in there to make it just so, then she lay down and went to sleep. I got a photo of her in the midst of her tossing, note the door is open.

So many of my clients over the years have had crate/kennel issues. When your dog destroys items; a diningroom table leg, your favorite shoes, the tv remote, your glasses or what have you, it can cause resentment. And many a dog ends up at the shelter after having destroyed their last item in the family home. The whole idea around a crate is to protect your puppy and protect your home until they are ready to be left with the run of the house.

A crate can make the difference between loving and hating your dog. But a crate must be used properly; never in anger, never as a punishment and never for extended periods of time. When puppies are young three hours is the max time and about 5 for adults. Anymore than that and it is too long. By making the crate a wonderful comfy place your dog will grow to love their little den. I've always had adults trying to get into the puppy crates when we have a new one. Dogs love quiet little nooks to sleep in.

So the next time you think of a crate in a negative; realize that it is your issue not your dogs issue that is the problem.