crate hell

[Jeanette]

its just the impression i got from the posts...

just feel i've had more negative feedback rather than help...

and feel like a bad dog owner for having to put her in a crate

Well I certainly didn't mean my posts to come across like that.   I am just aware that crates are sometimes used by people for the wrong reasons which can have a negative impact on the puppy/dog, not saying that this is the case here but I wanted to point out the use of crates i.e. my example of putting a puppy in whilst asleep etc.   Abuse of crates can have a serious impact on a dog.

If you're using a crate for time out etc then that shouldn't happen either.   Whereabouts is your crate in the home, mine for example is in the kitchen but we also have a dog gate on the kitchen door so Indie would sometimes be in the kitchen during her manic moments as a puppy terrorising my little boy   but not put in her crate.    Do you have a space she can be in but not locked in a crate?

If you OH was painting the fence, couldn't she be outside.   You can buy stake out pegs from pet stores which she could have been attached to so that she could see what was going on and be outside with him but not get upto any mischief.  

[Ian Wright]

my grace travels in her crate. sleeps in her crate at night and wonders in and out when ever she likes. But this weekend we took her to Wales and me and my wife went to the club on the site so we locked her in her crate for 1 1/2 hr i listened out side the caravan for a while and she was fine. When we got back we took her a walk on the beach never had any trouble crating her ( yet )

[mooching]

and feel like a bad dog owner for having to put her in a crate

No-one here has said that.

Just querying how often and how much (and why).

Maybe if you felt able to answer some of the questions we've asked for clarification, we could help you a bit more?

[Anita D]

When I'm doing garden jobs I don't want help with   my lad goes on a stake in the ground on his long lead and he has something to chew on like a rawhide.  

[ginnygirl]

Please dont feel bad, you have done a lovely thing giving a rescue dog a home. sometimes things are a little ...or a lot different than expected when we bring a dog into our homes and often we need to be flexible with routines and training needs to suit the individual dog....I think people are just trying to make suggestions to help you have a happy life with your pet. Just consider suggestions made and try to apply what you feel may work for your dog to be happy. This is a forum where we all ask for advice from time to time and not everyone will respond in the same way or have the same oppinions........its up to you to what advice you follow    

[vixen]

Oh haygar I just want to give you a big hug as I hope you don't think all this advice is negative and may stop you asking for advice again.
This really is a very supportive and informative forum and you will find it invaluable in the future.
Everyone here is trying to help to find why this behaviour is happening and just probing you to find the cause.
We really are a friendly and caring lot (really) 

[ginnygirl]

Oh haygar I just want to give you a big hug as I hope you don't think all this advice is negative and may stop you asking for advice again.
This really is a very supportive and informative forum and you will find it invaluable in the future.
Everyone here is trying to help to find why this behaviour is happening and just probing you to find the cause.
We really are a friendly and caring lot (really) 

So nicely put!

[Ian Wright]

Oh haygar I just want to give you a big hug as I hope you don't think all this advice is negative and may stop you asking for advice again.
This really is a very supportive and informative forum and you will find it invaluable in the future.
Everyone here is trying to help to find why this behaviour is happening and just probing you to find the cause.
We really are a friendly and caring lot (really) 

could not of put that better my self 

[bracken]

Is there a possible area that use instead of a crate as you are out for a while ?

Sorry cannot give any advice on crating as we don't use them in the house my 6 are free to roam the downstairs when I am at work, but I do crate in my car     

[oscars mum]

we have one of those stake out pegs they are idea for out door job's when Oscar can watch he still has a little cry every so often just to let you know he is still there and in need of a little rub

Oscar is our first Dog he is 3 and still teaching me how to be a good doggie mum  

[Mudmagnets]

we have one of those stake out pegs they are idea for out door job's when Oscar can watch he still has a little cry every so often just to let you know he is still there and in need of a little rub

Oscar is our first Dog he is 3 and still teaching me how to be a good doggie mum  

Sounds like he is doing a good job an all. 

Re crating: tried it with the Smudgester when I first got him as 8 week pup and he protested loudly and strongly (he was only in it for about 10 mins while I had me dinner   . Katie on the other hand up to the age of about 9 months was quite happy to go in it at any time...... great idea for gardening the pegging out thingy.

re the carrot for teething - I have found that altho Katie will happily eat a very cold carrot, it does tend to make her poo a bit erm..sloppy

[Sarah1985]

 Not everyones situation is ideal but that doesnt mean we should be judged for keeping dogs.

Sorry if ive offended anyone, I certainly wasn't having a pop at anyone for working and keeping dogs ...I'm in that boat too. If a dog is happy and content in a crate fine, but if it is protesting maybe its an indication that another arrangement might be better. I suggested a pen because this works well for my dog when she has to be left for a few hours. I give her stuffed kongs and balls etc to keep her occupied whle i am away. In addition to her walks I do training exercises with her. I'm not against crates, she sleeps in one all night.  
[/quote]

Sorry i can get very deffensive about my dog lifes. I see so many under stimulated dogs whose owners think its enough to be at home all day and ignore them. 

I can be a grumpy thing sometimes 

[Sarah1985]

Mine are in their crates for 6 and half hours every day total while im at work and it doesnt do them any harm (both working cocker).

Could I ask how old they are?
If they're adults, I'd say there's a big difference between an adult working cocker being crated for 5-6 hours a day and a nearly-teenage puppy who has only been with his owner a relatively short while.

The poster also hasn't said whether she and her husband are out at work when they crate their puppy, or whether one or both of them are still in the house. (Which is why I asked if there was a reason that the puppy is in the crate for this period of time). My understanding is that dogs tend settle better in their crates when they know their owner is out, than when they know their owner is around and want to get to them but can't.

5 months and 1 year. Both have abreak at lunch (about 20 mins for a wee and a poo.) and back in for the afternoon. We've done it from the beginning and they are completely ok with it.

I do agree that mine settle when Im not in much better than when i am. I couldnt for example put them in in order to do the housework (not that id need to).

Its also worth noting my dogs have ALOT of hobbies. Both are going through obedience classes and basic gun dog. As well as me privately teaching them Rally obedience and heel work to music. We also do agility with the oldest and are looking into flyball. And somewhere in that we manage to help organise group dog walks. There is just one night a week where we dont take them to one thing or another.   If anything mine are glad of the break from me when i do eventually do go off to work

[rwasinski]

Sarah, can I ask why you crate them?

[ginnygirl]

I have tried Ginny in the kitchen when I'm going out, as my eventual aim is to give her freedom of the house when I'm out, but she cries. When I put her in her pen she settles straight away even though it is a smaller space....she must feel secure in her pen as I started this routine at 8 weeks. She is crated in my bedroom at night.